Theresa Harrington
Theresa covers Oakland Unified and West Contra Costa Unified, among other topics. She came to EdSource from the Contra Costa Times/Bay Area News Group, where she covered regional, statewide and national education issues. She has been recognized with multiple awards for her education reporting by the California Newspaper Publishers Association, the San Francisco Peninsula Press Club and the California Teachers Association among others. She began her career as a producer managing children’s and other educational programming and print outreach for KQED. Theresa is an alumna of San Francisco State University where she received a B.A. degree in broadcast communications.
All articles by Theresa Harrington
California districts hoping voters will allow them to borrow $13 billion
More than 60 districts throughout California seek as little as $2 million up to $7 billion for school construction, repairs and technology.
Theresa Harrington
October 28, 2020
California student activists push to lower voting age to advocate for change
Youth activists from San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, Palo Alto and Culver City are among those working to lower voting ages in cities and the state.
Theresa Harrington
October 28, 2020
How some California school districts deal with students absent from virtual classrooms
Two San Francisco Bay Area districts are expanding outreach to their most vulnerable students including those who are homeless, foster youth.
Theresa Harrington
October 16, 2020
Quick Guide: What California parents and students should know about the coronavirus
EdSource provides the latest information on the many changes underway.
Theresa Harrington
September 11, 2020
California schools ordered to close in-person instruction after counties were put on watch list
Conflicting direction from the state added to confusion over whether schools could continue in-person instruction in Mendocino County.
Theresa Harrington
August 21, 2020
Power outages hit California as school resumes virtually across the state
Power outages due to heat wave could affect California residents through Wednesday, governor promises flexibility if schools are affected.
Theresa Harrington
August 17, 2020
Oakland Unified reaches compromise with teacher’s union in distance learning deal
Oakland Unified reached a tentative agreement on distance learning which, if approved, will go into effect immediately upon ratification.
Theresa Harrington
August 14, 2020
Oakland Unified opens virtually with thousands of students lacking computers and hotspots
A citywide campaign raised $12.5 million to provide for low income students, but the devices have not yet arrived due to a backlog.
Theresa Harrington
August 13, 2020
Data glitches delay whether California districts can seek waiver for in-person instruction
Backlog of records is expected to be added to county data within 72 hours, which will allow the state to unfreeze its county monitoring list.
Theresa Harrington
August 10, 2020
Glitches in California’s Covid-19 data could be fixed within two days, state official says
After the data issues are resolved, counties will be able to make decisions about elementary school waivers, state official says.
Theresa Harrington
August 7, 2020
Virtual learning hub led by Oakland parent group aims to continue in fall
Building on summer pilot program, nonprofit group wants to help Oakland students in a program that gives low-income parents a stipend to oversee their child's online learning.
Theresa Harrington
August 5, 2020
Oakland Unified lacks agreements with teachers and other staff as Aug. 10 school start looms
After bargaining for three weeks, teachers’ union and district disagree on how to provide distance learning and when to reopen campuses safely.
Theresa Harrington
July 31, 2020
Oakland Unified to reform online makeup courses after harsh grand jury report
District expects to implement new credit recovery policies and procedures and to better train staff in their use for the 2020-21 school year.
Theresa Harrington
July 29, 2020
Oakland Unified wants voters to approve $735 million bond for school upgrades
Bond measure to be placed on the Nov. 3 ballot would cover one-fifth of the $3.4 billion need identified in a Facilities Master Plan.
Theresa Harrington
July 1, 2020
Oakland school board unanimously agrees to eliminate its police force
Board agreed to disband entire internal police department by end of the year and form a committee to come up with an alternative safety plan.