The vast majority of large urban districts statewide have implemented the 2015 California Healthy Youth Act. Yet uproar over the landmark law has garnered headlines in a few places, most notably Orange County.
While most states have some system that links their high school and college data to track what happens to students once they exit high school, California does not.
Civil rights advocates worry that if the Trump administration decides to rescind federal school discipline guidance established in 2014, the action could hamper reform efforts at the local level. Meanwhile, state officials say it would have no real effect on statewide policy.
New state data shows 46 percent drop in school suspensions over the last five years. The suspension rate for African American students in 2016-17 was 9.8 percent, for Latino students 3.7 percent, for white students 3.2 percent, and for Asian students 1.1 percent.
The State Board of Education adopted the first new language policy in 20 years — the English Learner Roadmap, an online resource for school districts that will help guide curriculum, instruction and standards for the 1.4 million English learners in the state’s public schools.
An advocacy group for English learners says the $5 million in new state money to train more bilingual teachers is a "first step," and warns that Proposition 58 has worsened a severe shortage of bilingual teachers.
