October 18, 2021

Projected K-12 drops in enrollment pose immediate upheaval and decade-long challenge

Once past Covid disruptions, many school districts face a long-term predicament: budget cuts forced by projected declines in enrollment.

John Fensterwald

October 18, 2021

California districts anticipate major hits to their 2022-23 budgets as enrollments drop

School districts seeing major enrollment and attendance drops fear substantial funding cuts in the 2022-23 school year.

Ali Tadayon

October 14, 2021

Nearly half of money for high-needs students not getting to their schools, analysis finds

Research by the Public Policy Institute of California compares Local Control Funding Formula allocations to school-level spending.

John Fensterwald

September 23, 2021

Staffing shortage delays ambitious program to extend school day and year in California

Low-income districts have priority funding for a nine-hour day and 30-day summer school; lacking staff, they'll have an extra year to plan.

John Fensterwald

September 8, 2021

School districts must start adjusting their Covid recovery plans soon

California public schools must act now and think differently to close Covid-related staff shortages.

Robert Tagorda

September 7, 2021

Tightening layoff law would further squeeze school districts' ability to budget

Assembly Bill 438 would force districts to determine which support staff to retain three months before the state budget is passed and six months before the school year begins.

Vernon Billy

August 23, 2021

Many small districts complain California shorted their funding during the pandemic

Many small districts educated students who fled urban areas due to Covid, yet weren't compensated, with a big impact on their budgets.

John Fensterwald

July 20, 2021

Guinea pigs of change: Class of ’21 endured recessions, a pandemic and big shifts in education | VIDEO

The Ginny Chronicles takes Generation Z on a travelogue through landmark policies that shaped their time in school.

John Fensterwald, Andrew Reed, And Yuxuan Xie

July 13, 2021

Unprecedented California budget to usher in sweeping education changes

California will spend billions now and in coming years on young children, student mental health, community schools and the teacher shortage.

EdSource Staff

July 13, 2021

Where California’s education funding is going

The state’s K-12 and higher education systems will receive a record-level influx of new money.

EdSource staff

July 8, 2021

The ‘stars aligned’ in budget deal, but hurdles remain for early education

This is much work still to be done to ensure the pre-K entitlement will narrow, rather than reinforce, gaps in children’s early learning.

Bruce Fuller

July 2, 2021

Special education sees 'historic' boost in new funding

California will get over $1 billion in state and federal funding for students with disabilities, many of whom struggled in distance learning.

Carolyn Jones

June 29, 2021

Post-Covid California state budget with record spending on education heads to Gov. Newsom

College savings accounts, universal transitional kindergarten, new community schools, teacher recruitment incentives are a signature away.

EdSource staff

June 26, 2021

Lawmakers, Newsom cut deal on state budget: Record spending on pre-K through college

2021-22 budget would include record K-12 spending, phase in transitional kindergarten for all 4-year-olds, significantly expand Cal Grants

John Fensterwald, Michael Burke, Zaidee Stavely, And Sydney Johnson

June 22, 2021

California school districts receive unprecedented windfall but lack teachers to help students catch up

A longstanding teacher shortage grew worse during the pandemic, and districts will have to decide which programs to staff and those they won't.

Diana Lambert