David Washburn
David Washburn covered school climate and discipline issues for EdSource.
He’s been practicing the art and craft of journalism for 25 years, most recently in the nonprofit sphere as editor of Voice of OC and reporter/editor at Voice of San Diego. He spent eight years as an enterprise/investigative reporter for The San Diego Union-Tribune. His work included award-winning stories on financial elder abuse, lack of oversight of contractors in Iraq, San Diego’s high rate officer-involved shootings and mismanagement at the San Diego Red Cross. Early in his career he worked as a researcher for Dateline NBC. He has a bachelor’s in journalism from the University of Missouri.
All articles by David Washburn
Chronic absenteeism in California schools up slightly, new data show
More than 1 in 10 students statewide were chronically absent from school in 2017-18. Rates for students in marginalized groups much higher than the state average.
David Washburn
January 31, 2019
Stockton Unified settles state complaint over discriminatory policing practices
State investigators also found that the district violated students' Fourth Amendment rights and the rights of students with disabilities. The district agreed to five years of state monitoring.
David Washburn
January 22, 2019
Trauma in Paradise: A California school system focuses on mental health after devastating fire
As students and educators in and around the town of Paradise begin a new semester, just two months since the deadliest wildfire in California history, they are carrying with them levels of trauma that will certainly impact their ability to learn and teach, experts say.
David Washburn
January 15, 2019
Help EdSource shine a light on challenges in rural education
Our newsroom wants to tell the stories of students and their families in rural California who are suffering from high rates of chronic absenteeism, and help in the search for solutions.
David Washburn
January 15, 2019
Restorative justice reduces suspensions in elementary grades but not middle school, study shows
Many educators say restorative justice has transformed school climates. Others say it is over-hyped. A new study by the RAND Corp. lends support to both sides.
David Washburn
January 4, 2019
Trump administration’s school safety report met with harsh criticism in California
The report strongly recommended rescinding the Obama policies that both emphasized alternatives to suspensions and expulsions and highlighted data showing that students of color and those with disabilities were more likely than white students to face these punishments.
David Washburn
December 19, 2018
With sparse state funding, California districts get creative in addressing student health
As needs far outpace resources, districts are increasingly turning to outside partnerships to provide services that they see as crucial to a student's success.
David Washburn
December 18, 2018
New location found for California high school destroyed by wildfire
Paradise Unified School District officials have found a location in Chico that will, for the foreseeable future, serve as the district’s high school while campuses decimated by the Camp Fire are rebuilt.
David Washburn
December 12, 2018
School suspensions continue downward trend in California, new data show
About half as many students were sent home for disciplinary reasons during the 2017-18 school year as had been at the beginning of the decade.
David Washburn And Daniel J. Willis
December 11, 2018
California school districts to get ‘wake-up call’ with new absenteeism measures
At least 40 percent of California school districts and charter schools have rates of chronic absence in grades K-8 that are high or very high based on new performance measures that will be unveiled next month.
David Washburn
November 28, 2018
Plans come into focus for California schools ravaged by wildfires
Officials have identified three elementary schools that will take Paradise Unified students displaced by the deadly Camp Fire and are close to securing a site for middle and high schoolers.
David Washburn And Diana Lambert
November 28, 2018
Paradise educators find resilience amid fire's destruction
School officials throughout Butte County are working furiously to find classrooms for children who lost their schools in the Camp Fire, while also worrying about the emotional impact of the losses on students and teachers.
David Washburn And Diana Lambert
November 20, 2018
After the fire, a school district gone
The Camp Fire damaged or destroyed the majority of the schools in the Paradise Unified School District and at least 3,800 of the district's students, along with scores of teachers and several school board members, lost their homes in what has become the deadliest fire in California history.
David Washburn And Diana Lambert
November 16, 2018
Youth advocates say some Central Valley schools resisting their voter education efforts
Organizers are attempting to reverse the historically low turnout among young voters.
David Washburn
October 23, 2018
With bill signings, Gov. Brown makes his final mark on California education
A rundown of the governor’s decisions on some of the most-watched education legislation that crossed his desk this year.