Headlines
FCMAT provides links to California K-12 news stories as a service to the industry. However, some stories may not be accessible because of newspapers' subscription policies.
Feb 21, 2020
Settlement of a major lawsuit against the state of California seeking to protect students’ right of access to literacy was announced Thursday and specifically singles out the Stockton Unified School District for extra support from the state.
Feb 21, 2020
Nationwide, homelessness among students is the highest it has ever been, according to a national report released last month. But advocates say that a big part of the reason that the numbers are growing is that teachers and other school officials are more aware and better prepared to identify homeless kids.
Sep 21, 2020
The school board Wednesday voted 4-0-1, with board President Marisol Madrigal Uribe abstaining, to approve new requirements which mostly will be tied to the existing entry requirements by University of California and California State University schools.
Feb 21, 2020
Measure L, which will be on the primary ballot March 3, would require two-thirds of voters’ support to pass, and would raise about $18.3 million annually for the Fremont Unified School District, officials said.
Feb 21, 2020
Prosecutors leading the A3 charter school criminal case want to take back potentially millions of dollars of charter school oversight fees that were paid to small school districts that were supposed to hold the A3 schools accountable.
Feb 21, 2020
Under an agreement reached with plaintiffs in the complaint, Ella T. v. State of California, the state will provide $50 million specifically to improve literacy in the 75 California elementary schools with the highest concentration of third-graders scoring in the bottom tier of the state’s standardized reading exam.
Feb 20, 2020
Special education in California should be overhauled to focus on the individual needs of students, with better training for teachers, more streamlined services and improved screening for the youngest children, according to a compilation of reports released today.
Feb 20, 2020
El Rancho Unified school board members Teresa Merino and Carolyn Castillo walked out of Tuesday night’s meeting in protest after a heated exchange about civility led President Gabriel Orosco to recess the meeting.
Feb 20, 2020
Instead of heading for their fourth-period classes on Wednesday morning, about 150 Healdsburg High School students headed for the exits to support their teachers’ calls for better wages and benefits.
Feb 19, 2020
Just a few months ago construction crews were working on drywall, light fixtures and plumbing at the Kern High School District Regional Occupational Center's newest educational centers. Now students are in the "classroom" gaining hands-on skills
Feb 19, 2020
Two pending rule changes meant to reduce what the Trump administration calls abuse of federal benefit programs could also mean hundreds of thousands of children lose access to free school meals.
Feb 19, 2020
The Redlands school board is again discussing a stadium for Redlands East Valley High School, after parents and student athletes called for athletic field upgrades. The high school, the only one in the district without such a venue, has a grass field, some bleachers and a dirt track.
Feb 19, 2020
The Monterey Peninsula Unified School District board of trustees appointed Veronica Miramontes, the programs and events manager at Restorative Justice Partners Inc. and a mother of an MPUSD student, to fill its open seat last week at a special meeting by a unanimous vote.
Feb 19, 2020
Voters in Lafayette and Moraga are being asked to support the acclaimed elementary and middle schools in each city with separate parcel taxes on the March 3 ballot.
Feb 19, 2020
In a late afternoon press release, board chairman Jim Riggs announced Miller and the board had “agreed to part ways.”
Feb 19, 2020
Special education in California should be overhauled to focus on the individual needs of students, with better training for teachers, more streamlined services and improved screening for the youngest children, according to a compilation of reports released today.
Feb 18, 2001
When the Paradise Unified School District meets on Tuesday night it will discuss a proposal to terminate 72 full-time equivalent certificated positions at the end of the school year. However, the proposal also notes that 56.2 positions are vacant and or will be vacated.
Feb 18, 2020
Several Orange County school districts are asking their voters to approve financing repairs and upgrades to facilities as well as new construction on campuses through the sale of bonds.
Feb 18, 2020
Chula Vista Elementary School District is asking voters to approve a bond measure that would build 100 units of affordable housing for its teachers and staff. The measure’s proposed $65 million teacher housing project would be the first in San Diego County and one of a growing number in California.
Feb 18, 2020
Voters in three Riverside County public school districts will be asked to vote on school bonds in the Tuesday, March 3, election. If all three are approved, $492 million in money for local school districts could be raised.
Feb 18, 2020
Many parents line up before 1 a.m. and brave 45-degree weather hoping for a chance to register their children in the Extended Day Child Care Center for after-school care at one of Dublin Unified School District’s eight schools.
Feb 18, 2020
Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to entice thousands of new teachers into the classroom, concentrate school improvement in the most impoverished neighborhoods and use competitive grants to challenge districts to form partnerships and develop best practices to raise achievement.
Feb 14, 2020
School employees, parents and others demanded Wednesday night that a Santa Paula school board reject, at least reconsider, proposals to cut $2.8 million in jobs and close two elementary schools.
Feb 14, 2020
The parents at a meeting this week for the Lincoln High cluster came to make one message clear to school officials: You are failing our children. A common complaint among families is that they try to make their voices heard; and the district doesn’t listen.
Feb 14, 2020
The district is asking voters on March 3 to support Measure T, a bond that would pump $259 million into schools over a decade to refurbish existing classrooms, build new ones, replace aging roofs and equipment and upgrade inefficient heating and ventilation systems.
Feb 13, 2020
Amid much criticism and complaint, the Kentfield School District toughed out five and a half hours of debate this week to identify just over $1 million in cuts to the 2020-21 budget.
Feb 13, 2020
For the first time in a decade, Folsom Cordova Unified School District is building a new school. Mangini Ranch Elementary School will open for the 2021-22 school year, in time to welcome students moving into the new housing developments in Folsom.
Feb 13, 2020
Hundreds of teachers in the Sacramento region are new to the profession. And a significant number of those new teachers are working in schools with a high number of economically disadvantaged students.
Feb 13, 2020
Parents from San Luis Rey Elementary School in Oceanside are petitioning the school district to fix decaying facilities at the campus, saying the school isn’t safe for students or staff.
Feb 13, 2020
A San Diego County Superior Court judge on Monday blocked payments of more than $1.5 million to several businesses that had billed the now-defunct A3 charter schools.
Feb 13, 2020
Across the state, 29.9% of students met or exceeded the new science standards on this first test, with fluctuations according to grade level. High school students must take the test once between 10th and 12th grade.
Feb 13, 2020
A new plan by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who struggled with dyslexia as a child, would pay for more screenings and services for the thousands of California students with dyslexia — a condition that advocates say has not received enough attention in schools.
Feb 13, 2020
The West Contra Costa Unified School District Board of Education voted unanimously Wednesday night to rename Wilson Elementary School after former First Lady Michelle Obama, according to a news release from the school district.
Feb 13, 2020
Three students from Pioneer High School in Whittier have filed a lawsuit against Delta Air Lines after one of its planes dumped jet fuel over their campus and other suburbs of Los Angeles County.
Feb 12, 2020
A student of Asian descent in California claims he was sent to his school nurse's office just for coughing amid the coronavirus pandemic. When he returned to class, he asked why the teacher was not sending other students out every time they coughed.
Feb 12, 2020
A California high school is taking action after a photo that circulated on social media showing several of its students posing with a swastika and Confederate flag sparked fear on campus.
Feb 12, 2020
Although most of the nearly $1 billion proposed in the budget would extend existing grant programs to recruit and train teachers, more than $300 million would create entirely new programs.
Feb 11, 2020
The advocacy group Everytown For Gun Safety is joining with the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association — the nation's largest education unions, with several million members — in calling for schools to reassess the use of lockdown drills.
Feb 11, 2020
Between an effort to place a ballot measure before voters in November and an ongoing lawsuit, 2020 could be the year San Diego decides once and for all whether to change the way its school board elections are carried out.
Feb 11, 2020
Supporters of changing the way San Diego Unified school board elections are carried out worry a potential measure to change the process might include more controversial provisions that could muddy the waters. A lawsuit addressing the issue is also moving forward.
Feb 11, 2020
After trying unsuccessfully in 2012 and 2016 to pass tax measures to pay for school upgrades, Brea Olinda Unified School District leaders are hoping to convince residents to say yes to Measure G on the March 3 ballot.
Feb 11, 2020
All but one of the 42 school districts in San Diego County are expecting to spend more than they take in, either this year or in the next two school years. Most are projecting to do so for all three years.
Feb 11, 2019
The San Ysidro School District will ask voters to authorize as much as $108.5 million in spending for school construction and upgrades under a pair of bond measures that will appear on the ballot in March.
Feb 11, 2020
After the September death of a middle school student assaulted by two other students, Moreno Valley school leaders went looking for new approaches to curb bullying on its campuses, where it teaches 32,763 students.
Feb 11, 2020
The largest school bond in state history, at $15 billion, is going to voters in March as supporters try to put a dent in a $100 billion backlog of failing boiler rooms, leaky roofs and new construction projects needed at K-12 schools and universities.
Feb 11, 2020
Talk of a San Ramon Valley Unified School District teachers strike took an ominous turn Monday after the school district delivered its final salary contract offer following a third, unsuccessful mediation session between the two sides.
Feb 11, 2020
Reducing gun violence, making college more affordable and addressing the teacher shortage again are on the minds of California voters, who also said they would support raising teachers’ pay and spending more for schools, according to a new PACE/USC Rossier poll.
Feb 11, 2020
Almost half of Fresno Unified students take part in career and technical programs. The training helps students as well as local industries that area struggling to find skilled workers.
Feb 11, 2020
For many districts, the investment has paid off with higher graduation rates, a drop in absenteeism and more students submitting financial aid forms and completing the A-G courses required for admission to UC and CSU.
Feb 11, 2020
At least 1 in 8 California high school seniors take community college courses while still in high school, an increasingly popular strategy that gives students a head start on their college careers, and has been shown to boost both high school and college graduation rates.
Feb 11, 2020
The San Ramon Valley Unified School District agreed to pay the parents of a 15-year-old Danville boy who drowned during his high school swim class $8 million in a settlement, the attorney for the student’s parents said Monday.
Feb 07, 2020
The district unveiled its aquatics complex — the first pool to be opened in more than 100 years — at a ribbon-cutting ceremony with administrators, trustees and other community members.
Feb 07, 2020
The Bakersfield City School District trustees filled an empty seat on the board Thursday night, but it came as another board member was rushed to the hospital first.
Feb 07, 2020
In March, Californians will vote on Proposition 13 during the 2020 primary election. The initiative is a $15 billion state bond measure to fund facilities projects at public schools, community colleges and universities.
Feb 07, 2020
A California school district says it’s the first in the nation to use bonds to build affordable housing for its employees. The Jefferson Union High School District broke ground Wednesday on the new housing units, the district said.
Feb 07, 2020
Parents and teachers on Tuesday aired their frustrations about the dilapidated condition of San Luis Rey Elementary School at a public meeting on the fate of two aging campuses in the Oceanside Unified School District.
Feb 07, 2020
Faced with declining enrollment, mounting pension liability and insufficient state funds, eight school districts serving San Jose students are asking residents for a total of more than $600 million to help keep them afloat.
Feb 07, 2020
Statewide, 32 percent of 5th-graders, 31 percent of 8th-graders and 28 percent of high school students met or exceeded standards on the California science test aligned to the new standards.
Feb 07, 2020
The district, which serves about 4,200 predominately low-income students, anticipates that it will need to cut between $2.5 million and $3 million for the 2020-21 school year. In December, the district projected between $1.5 million and $2 million in budget cuts.
Feb 07, 2020
The Walt Disney Company has not only waived a $250 fee it previously demanded for a Lion King screening at Emerson Elementary, but the conglomerate’s CEO has pledged to personally donate to the Berkeley school.
Feb 06, 2020
An employee of South Monterey County Joint Union High School District was arrested Tuesday in connection with an embezzlement case, according to detectives from the South County Major Crimes Investigations Unit.
Feb 06, 2020
The Monterey Peninsula Unified School District is seeking feedback from the community it serves on the potential issuance of a housing bond on the November ballot that would fund the creation of housing for teachers.
Feb 06, 2020
While pitching to voters a new $448 million school bond measure on the March 2020 ballot, Poway Unified School District officials have called out state funding trends, arguing Poway Unified gets less per pupil than other K-12 districts in the region.
Feb 06, 2020
California’s governor appointed San Diego Unified Superintendent Cindy Marten to California’s teacher credentialing commission, which has the power to issue and revoke credentials and other teaching permits.
Feb 06, 2020
The Fair Political Practices Commission concluded that the board member failed to disclose the acquisition date of personal investments into tobacco corporation Altria Group but issued a warning without administrative repercussions.
Feb 06, 2020
This fall, Pittsburg High School will put to the test an auto class like no other when it launches its first advanced, hands-on course on repairing and maintaining self-driving electric vehicles.
Feb 06, 2020
President Trump is trying once again to put the almost dormant issue of school choice, which had been a prominent issue in his election campaign, into circulation again — without any chance that it, or any variation of it, will emerge from Congress.
Feb 06, 2020
The California Department of Education is siding with ethnic studies advocates who argue that courses should focus on four ethnic and racial groups whose histories have been largely overlooked in the high school curriculum.
Feb 05, 2020
As Pasadena confronts its affordable housing problem and Pasadena Unified closes schools to address declining enrollment, officials from both governmental bodies see an opportunity to help one another.
Feb 05, 2020
About 81% of the approximately 330 students at Chapman Elementary are socioeconomically disadvantaged, according to the California Dashboard. Of these, there are about 23 families currently experiencing a form of homelessness.
Feb 05, 2020
The California Fair Political Practices Commission is investigating Los Angeles Unified School District board member Scott Schmerelson for a potential violation of economic disclosure regulations, as the West San Fernando Valley board member campaigns for reelection.
Feb 05, 2020
Oakland Unified Superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammell proposes has proposed to lay off more than 68 staffers to come up with more than half of the $21.5 million that the district says it needs to cut from next year’s budget.
Feb 05, 2020
Parents are playing a more hands-on role in California’s ongoing quest to grow the number of students who pursue technology professions — and tech-savvy workers in all kinds of fields.
Feb 05, 2020
California Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to pause physical education tests for students for three years due to concerns over bullying and the test discriminating against disabled and non-binary students.
Feb 05, 2020
As fear about the novel coronavirus has gripped communities throughout the country, the Alhambra Unified School District has grappled with how to inform students and parents about the realities of the illness while combating misinformation and fear-based rumors.
Feb 04, 2020
As fear about novel coronavirus spreads — much faster than the disease itself — nearly 14,000 people have signed an online petition, urging Alhambra Unified to cancel all classes until the outbreak ends. However, Toby Gilbert, a spokeswoman for the district, said there are no plans to cancel classes. She also dispelled a student-spread rumor that the district bans face masks.
Feb 04, 2020
Poway is asking voters this year for $448 million to renovate schools, which will cost an estimated $650 million to repay over 28 to 30 years, or $1.45 for every $1 borrowed.
Feb 04, 2020
Measure Q would repair roofs, plumbing and electrical systems, improve campus safety, replace old buildings and portable classrooms with permanent structures, and add science and technology labs at schools in the Escondido Union School District,
Feb 04, 2020
A California father’s decision to put on a DVD of “The Lion King” to entertain kids at a parents’-night-out fundraiser may end up costing an elementary school $250, Berkeleyside reports.
Feb 03, 2020
A U.S. Supreme Court case is underway that could open public school funding to religious schools in more states, but it’s unclear how it will impact California, where private schools — religious or not — are forbidden from receiving public money.
Feb 03, 2020
Gov. Gavin Newsom's plan includes money for professional development, competitive grants and $20,000 bonuses for educators who commit to high-needs schools.
Feb 03, 2020
Vista school officials identified $5.55 million in cuts they said would help balance the budget for this school year, without taking resources or services out of classrooms.
Feb 03, 2020
The Dehesa School District says a corporation that has been managing the Inspire charter schools across California appears to have been skirting transparency and conflict of interest laws.
Feb 03, 2020
Proposition 13, the only statewide measure on the March 3 ballot, would create a $15 billion bond to build, repair and modernize schools, from kindergarten through public colleges and universities.
Jan 31, 2020
The fight over ethnic and racial disparities in the way schools mete out discipline to students has been ongoing for more than a decade, and a lawsuit filed against the Kern High School District in 2014 compelled the district to hold several public forums to address the issue. On Thursday night, district officials held their sixth and final community forum focused on student behavior, district discipline and school climate.
Jan 31, 2020
The Paradise Unified School District will announce staff member layoffs next week, according to Superintendent Tom Taylor. Since the Camp Fire, the district has lost about 130 staff members, starting the year with 280 employees and now having 260.
Jan 31, 2020
This year, 12 traditional schools in San Diego Unified School District will automatically qualify for the state’s list of worst-performing schools. Seven of those schools are located in District E.
Jan 31, 2020
Teachers union members will hold an after-school walkout at Chula Vista Elementary schools Wednesday to protest a district proposal that would eliminate a class size cap for certain grades.
Jan 31, 2020
With Oakland Technical High School as the backdrop, a group of parents and teachers announced Thursday they are suing the Oakland Unified School District for injuries they say they suffered by police officers at an Oct. 23 school board meeting.
Jan 31, 2020
If your child attends public school or eats school lunch, it won’t hurt your application for permanent residency. That’s the message school officials across California are trying to send to immigrant parents.
Jan 31, 2020
For the first time in more than two decades, teachers have the opportunity to use the political drama of the impeachment trial to liven their lessons and teach history as it unfolds.
Jan 31, 2020
The March 3 California ballot includes a $15 billion state bond issue to help schools, community colleges and universities with construction costs for their facilities.
Jan 31, 2020
Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia, D-Bell Gardens, introduced Assembly Bill 221 in 2019 to ban Teach for America educators from working in charter and traditional public schools if at least 40 percent of the students were from low-income families.
Jan 30, 2020
Fifteen California school districts are suing the nation’s leading manufacturer of electronic cigarette devices, alleging the company has been deceptive in marketing its products to children and is negligently damaging the health of students and disrupting their learning.
Jan 30, 2020
More than a decade ago, San Diego Unified created a plan, called Vision 2020, envisioning a quality school in every neighborhood by 2020. The district can point to many successes over the last several years, but the achievement gap remains stubbornly unmoved by several key indicators.
Jan 30, 2020
Twenty struggling Los Angeles schools will get a mega-infusion of resources in an aggressive, experimental effort to show that L.A. Unified — if properly funded — can boost student achievement, L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner announced on Tuesday.
Jan 30, 2020
The Huntington Beach City School District board meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 28, ended quite differently from the way it started – with trustees voting 3-2 to close an elementary school this summer, oust most transfer students and lay off 29 teachers.
Jan 29, 2020
A proposal to alter the financing split between San Rafael City Schools’ high school and elementary school districts is raising concerns among teachers, staff and even some taxpayers.
Jan 29, 2020
Parents alleging a spike in violence among students at a Yucca Valley middle school protested on Tuesday, charging that the fights are going unpunished by the school administration.
Jan 29, 2020
The San Ysidro School District has made a promise to fully transition to zero-emission buses beginning no later than 2021, a decision hailed as a crucial step in the fight against poor air quality in the community that lies along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Jan 29, 2020
The Fremont Open Plan, known for its experience-based learning and whole child education, could switch places with a small neighborhood school in Modesto.
Jan 29, 2020
The Antioch Unified School District board unanimously agreed Jan. 22 to issue the final of five general obligation bonds approved in 2008 under Measure C to generate $61.6 million to renovate the district’s aging schools.
Jan 29, 2020
The report gave California a “B” for its declining suspension and absenteeism rates, which are due largely to a state ban on willful defiance suspensions in kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Jan 28, 2020
Over the years, school districts across the San Joaquin Valley have leveraged bonds to invest and renovate facilities in their districts. In March, a dozen of school districts in the region will ask voters to approve more bond money, including six in the Fresno-metro area.
Jan 28, 2020
Average teacher pay in California public schools rose to $82,746 last school year, an increase of 2.6 percent from the prior year, new state data show.
Jan 28, 2020
About 50 concerned parents, students and neighbors gathered in the Quimby Oak Middle School Gymnasium Tuesday night to protest the closure of two elementary schools in San Jose’s Evergreen School District.
Jan 27, 2020
Local school districts have plenty of ideas to improve their campuses and students' education, but oftentimes that comes with a hefty price tag.
Jan 27, 2020
Vince Enserro, director of nutrition services at Chico Unified School District, said the changes will not affect the food served by the district’s nutrition services department.
Jan 27, 2020
Twelve former students of a man convicted of sexually abusing them when he was their teacher at a Richmond school will receive a combined $10.9 million to settle a lawsuit against the school, an attorney said.
Jan 27, 2020
A lawmaker in wildfire country is proposing making up the lost instructional time for the most severely affected students by funding “disaster relief” summer schools.
Jan 27, 2020
A mother of an eight-year-old elementary student has filed a claim against the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) saying teachers and the principal ignored ongoing incidents of physical and verbal abuse against her child.
Jan 27, 2020
This month marks a notable milestone for the Los Angeles Unified School District: For the first time in more than two decades, it’s now in full control of its special education system.
Jan 24, 2020
The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing is assembling a panel to recommend alternatives to the Reading Instruction Competence Assessment, or RICA, while state legislators are considering a bill that would replace it.
Jan 24, 2020
Education and labor leaders interviewed by EdSource say that the impact of last year’s strikes has been considerable, although less visible as measured by the size of teacher rallies or the number of strikes in the state.
Jan 24, 2020
Legislation by California state Sen. Bill Dodd would help schools make up instructional time lost to climate-driven emergencies such as wildfires and public safety power shutoffs.
Jan 23, 2020
Teachers and staff at the Conejo Valley Unified School District receive no organized gender diversity training and feel unprepared in helping transgender students deal with potential harassment, bullying and other issues, administrators said Tuesday.
Jan 23, 2020
The Long Beach Unified school board hopes to have a successor for its longtime education chief selected in early May.
Jan 23, 2020
The Supreme Court is gearing up to decide whether it is constitutional for states to use money to pay for tuition at religious schools. The decision to hear the case comes after three mothers from Montana sued the state, arguing that it is showing anti-religious bias by only offering tax credits to those who attend public schools.
Jan 23, 2020
The new contract for classified staff, including employees such as nutrition workers, custodians, bus drivers and office staff, follows a similar agreement that the board struck with teachers in December.
Jan 23, 2020
The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing is assembling a panel to recommend alternatives to the Reading Instruction Competence Assessment, or RICA, while state legislators are considering a bill that would replace it.
Jan 22, 2020
Despite rumors to the contrary, Highland Elementary School is not set to close in the coming days according to a message Principal Hecate Rosewood wrote to the school community Friday.
Jan 22, 2020
Taking charge of a school district that has fought hard to stay on the fire-singed ridge is no easy feat in a year after the Camp Fire, but Tom Taylor feels up to the challenge.
Jan 22, 2020
A change in graduation requirements nearly two years ago at Santa Rosa schools to better prepare all high school students for college has put at least 20% of sophomores in jeopardy of not graduating on time.
Jan 22, 2020
On Thursday the Dehesa school board hired Bradley Johnson, chief business officer at the also-tiny Rancho Santa Fe School District, as its new superintendent. Johnson will start on Feb. 10 and will be paid a $176,000 annual salary.
Jan 22, 2020
The creation of a teachers union a year ago at the long-hailed Gompers Preparatory Academy charter school has divided the school community. Now some teachers are petitioning to get rid of the union.
Jan 22, 2020
Three victims of a former middle school teacher serving a 74-year prison term for sexual abuse sued him and the Redlands Unified School District on Tuesday under a new state law that extends the statute of limitations for certain sex crimes.
Jan 22, 2020
A historically low proportion of school districts in California currently are in fiscal distress. But with most districts facing declining enrollments and escalating costs, the Legislative Analyst’s Office is suggesting that the Legislature give districts more financial relief in next year’s state budget.
Jan 21, 2020
After six years of both turmoil and triumph, Ross Valley School District Superintendent Rick Bagley is retiring from his post, effective July 1.
Jan 21, 2020
Voters in the Novato Unified School District will decide on the March 3 ballot whether to support Measure A, a parcel tax renewal and increase that supporters say would provide stable funding for critical school programs for the next eight years.
Jan 21, 2020
Sweetwater Union High School District students will experience new hits to the classroom starting as early as this school year. Principals have also received proposed staffing allocations for next year, which include the elimination of major school level positions.
Jan 21, 2020
Sweetwater Union High School and San Ysidro School Districts recently received negative financial outlook ratings from the Fitch Group, a national credit rating agency.
Jan 21, 2020
Three small paragraphs in the state’s education code will shift up to $90 million from schools in 10 California counties this year, putting the money instead into the state’s coffers for trial courts. But the move could violate another section of state law, county officials said.
Jan 21, 2020
Two Antioch school trustees are accusing their board colleagues of being “biased and unfair” by declining to appoint one of them, who is black, as board president — for a second time.
Jan 21, 2020
One year after the teachers’ strike that convulsed California’s largest school district, Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Austin Beutner says that the district still faces fundamental financial problems, and continues to spend more money than it is receiving from the state.
Jan 21, 2020
Four teachers from a Los Angeles-area school sued Delta Air Lines on Friday, saying they were exposed to jet fuel when a plane with engine trouble dumped its fuel over a densely populated area, including several schools, while making an emergency return to the airport.
Jan 21, 2020
As California celebrates the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday, some may not know that it was a tenacious group of Oakland high schoolers that led to his birthday becoming a state holiday.
Jan 21, 2020
In an audit last fall of three districts’ spending, State Auditor Elaine Howle called on the State Board of Education and the Legislature to hold districts more accountable for how they spend money they receive from the Local Control Funding Formula.
Jan 17, 2020
The Santa Rita Union and Salinas Union High school districts are asking for a court order to halt the City of Salinas' West Area Specific Plan (WASP) to add thousands of homes to the north side of town.
Jan 17, 2020
At least 70% of Oroville’s high school students are considered socioeconomically-disadvantaged. In Chico, Between 400 and 500 children are categorized as housing insecure at any time during the Chico Unified School district’s school year.
Jan 17, 2020
Fed up with a growing achievement gap between African American students and all others in a San Francisco Bay Area school district, a group of parents is declaring an “educational state of emergency” and demanding improvement.
Jan 17, 2020
This Proposition 13 would authorize a $15 billion bond for school modernization and construction projects. Here’s how it would break down: $9 billion for K-12 schools, and $2 billion each for community colleges and the state’s two public university systems, the California State University and University of California.
Jan 17, 2020
State Sen. Connie Leyva, a Chino Democrat and former president of the California Labor Federation, introduced Senate Bill 796 this month to remedy what she called an archaic mistake that’s left teachers unnecessarily on the hook for their substitutes’ wages.
Jan 17, 2020
Moreno Valley school board member Jesús Holguín and Superintendent Martinrex Kedziora are being sued for harassment by a former assistant principal.
Jan 17, 2020
Redlands Unified School District notified parents Thursday, Jan. 16, that victims of a former teacher who was convicted on sex abuse charges more than 14 years ago plan to bring a civil suit against the district.
Jan 17, 2020
The superintendent in West Contra Costa United says his district is losing enrollment as students finish sixth grade. Rather than move on to middle school, they often jump to charter and private schools.
Jan 16, 2020
The newly minted teachers union at Gompers Preparatory Academy in southeastern San Diego is still without a contract a year after formation and now faces a challenge that could mark its end.
Jan 16, 2020
Will the Huntington Beach City School District close one of its seven elementary schools? Will it kick out the 750 students who transferred from other districts? Will it lay off dozens of teachers?
Jan 16, 2020
The incident resulted in skin irritation and other minor injuries to more than 60 children and staffers at a handful of Los Angeles-area schools, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman said on Wednesday.
Jan 16, 2020
Piedmont Unified School District board trustees at their recent meeting approved a salary boost for some 30 adult education instructors.
Jan 16, 2020
Fed up with a growing achievement gap between African American students and all others in a San Francisco Bay Area school district, a group of parents is declaring an “educational state of emergency” and demanding improvement.
Jan 16, 2020
The Los Angeles Board of Education on Tuesday agreed to pay more than $25 million to settle lawsuits over alleged sexual misconduct.
Jan 16, 2020
California Democrats blocked a contentious bill on Wednesday that would have required parents to sign permission slips for their younger kids to attend sex education classes in school.
Jan 15, 2020
For nine months, teachers at the small Cucamonga School District held picket signs and marched in front of schools weekly, braving the early morning chill. If the mediator doesn’t bring about a settlement, both sides will be mandated to open their financial books by order of an independent fact-finder. If that fails, the teachers could go on strike.
Jan 15, 2020
When Frank Foggiano steps onto the Grossmont High basketball court several times a year, he’s more than just a coach. He’s also playing host to tournaments that cost his teams and others hundreds of dollars to play in.
Jan 15, 2020
More homeless families are sleeping in a temporary shelter inside a public school gym in San Francisco’s Mission District compared to about a year ago, when officials threatened to close the little-used facility.
Jan 15, 2020
An airplane returning to Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday morning dropped jet fuel onto a school playground, dousing several students at Park Avenue Elementary School in Cudahy, officials said.
Jan 15, 2020
When State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond took office in 2019, he announced that recruiting more male teachers from diverse backgrounds would be one of his top priorities.
Jan 14, 2020
Students at C.K. McClatchy High School in Sacramento raised money for a senior gift in 2017, only to have the account depleted two years later then replaced after teachers realized the money was missing.
Jan 14, 2020
Starting this semester, Paso Robles parents must pay nearly $400 per year for each student to ride the bus to school — a large price increase caused by a driver shortage and a need to cut routes in the coming year.
Jan 14, 2020
On Jan. 10, 2020 Gov. Gavin Newsom presented his proposed budget for California for the fiscal year beginning on Oct. 1, 2020. As a public service, EdSource is providing a lightly edited transcript of Newsom’s remarks on his K-12 budget proposals.
Jan 14, 2020
Vulnerable students could suffer the most when the district makes nearly $50 million in cuts to close its budget gaps for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years, says a coalition of advocates.
Jan 14, 2020
Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to find a way to send every California 4-year-old to preschool, but he says the state just can’t afford the cost — yet.
Jan 13, 2020
Voters in McFarland and Wasco will decide the fate of three school bond measures in March that, if passed, will lead to the construction of new facilities and revitalization of several schools.
Jan 13, 2020
Due to statewide teacher shortages, many of California’s approximately 800,000 special education students are being taught by teachers who haven’t completed teacher preparation programs or have received only partial training.
Jan 13, 2020
Vowing to support “all students and families” in its jurisdiction, trustees of the Sausalito Marin City School District extended the timeline for creating a unification plan by six weeks, to the March 12 board meeting.
Jan 13, 2020
Frank Foggiano is both requesting and signing off on tournament expenses out of the Grossmont High basketball account, which comes from donations, concessions, ticket sales and student fundraising.
Jan 13, 2020
The Cajon Valley Union School District sued one of its five school board members last month, alleging wrongdoing including stealing office supplies, harassing employees and disclosing confidential school board information.
Jan 13, 2020
California Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed Friday to provide $20,000 stipends for teachers who teach at a high needs school for four years, eating up $100 million of the state’s budget for the next fiscal year.
Jan 13, 2020
Gov. Gavin Newsom is moving forward on his promise to offer subsidized preschool to all low-income 4-year-olds and is proposing to consolidate most other subsidized child care programs in California in a new Department of Early Childhood Development.
Jan 13, 2020
Anticipating nearly $4 billion more in revenue for K-12 schools and community colleges in the next state budget, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday proposed to continue massive investments for teacher recruitment and training and for transforming special education.
Jan 13, 2020
After nearly a decade of school discipline reform in California, the suspension rate for African American students continued to decline last year, according to recently released state data.
Jan 13, 2020
We analyzed some of the most popular social studies textbooks used in California and Texas. Here’s how political divides shape what students learn about the nation’s history.
Jan 10, 2020
Arrests of students who fight at Moreno Valley Unified School District campuses will continue despite the belief by district officials that putting students in the criminal justice system is the wrong solution.
Jan 10, 2020
Residents of one San Francisco Bay Area school district are struggling to understand how a budget deficit nearly quadrupled in a matter of months — and are questioning why the district board and public weren’t alerted sooner about the magnitude of the problem.
Jan 10, 2020
Due to statewide teacher shortages, many of California’s approximately 800,000 special education students are being taught by teachers who haven’t completed teacher preparation programs or have received only partial training.
Jan 09, 2020
The Lincoln Unified School District has voted to reject Aspire Public Schools’ petition to open a charter school in the district in a meeting that went late into the night.
Jan 09, 2020
School districts across California have taken a variety of approaches to this issue, including requiring students take a six-course curriculum on Saturdays or assigning them a research paper on the dangers of vaping in lieu of suspension.
Jan 09, 2020
Last year, nine traditional public schools performed poorly enough to make the state’s list. This year, 11 traditional schools will automatically be added to the list, according to the new data reviewed by Voice of San Diego.
Jan 09, 2020
As changing demographics shrink the number of students enrolling in public elementary schools in the area, the Ravenswood City School District is set to vote Thursday on closing two of its five elementary schools to deal with a massive fiscal deficit.
Jan 09, 2020
Though barely a week old, 2020 is shaping up to be the year that policy makers and legislators force school districts to be more accountable for how they spend money they receive from the state’s funding formula.
Jan 09, 2020
The San Diego Unified School District is suing Juul Labs, a giant in the electronic cigarette industry, for the company’s role in fostering vaping among children, a trend that has disrupted learning at schools throughout the district, the lawsuit states.
Jan 09, 2020
Galvanized by a state audit that criticized California’s lax oversight of school spending, legislators are ringing in the new decade with proposals that would require the state to follow the money that districts get to educate disadvantaged kids.
Jan 08, 2020
The Lincoln Unified School District Board of Trustees will vote Wednesday on a petition by Aspire Public Schools to open a charter school in the district.
Jan 08, 2020
The protracted case of Ontario-Montclair school board member Alfonso Sanchez is expected to resolve next week when the state’s political watchdog agency considers assessing Sanchez a $17,000 penalty for multiple campaign finance violations, records show.
Jan 08, 2020
Last week, Priest Rivera's family filed a lawsuit in San Diego Superior Court against the Encinitas Union School District citing negligence and negligent supervision and training.
Jan 08, 2020
A California law that took effect Jan. 1 giving traditional school districts more power to deny charter applications is credit positive for both traditional school districts and charter schools, according to Moody’s Investors Service.
Jan 08, 2020
The Los Angeles County Board of Education voted Tuesday to close an Inglewood charter school with a lengthy history of financial problems and mixed academic performance that illustrated flaws in California’s oversight system.
Jan 08, 2020
A ransomware attack left schools in the Pittsburg Unified School District without email or internet servers when educators returned to work from the winter break Monday.
Jan 08, 2020
A state program that recruits classroom aides, food service workers and bus drivers — who are already on campus and invested in local schools — and trains them to become teachers is one innovative way California is trying to combat its teacher shortage.
Jan 07, 2020
Sunnyvale School Benjamin H. Picard will retire at the end of June, setting off the search for a new head of the 6,600-student school district. Picard, 69, was unanimously appointed superintendent in 2009.
Jan 07, 2020
California lawmakers returned to work on Monday to tackle a daunting list of challenges that include climate concerns, education issues and a growing homeless population — problems complicated by election-year politics.
Jan 07, 2020
As the California State Legislature reconvened on Monday, Senator Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino) introduced legislation that would repeal the 40-year-old California law requiring public school employees—including teachers—to pay for the cost of their substitutes.
Jan 06, 2020
El Rancho Unified’s Assistant Superintendent of Business Alejandro Rojas, placed on administrative leave last month, said he plans to fight his way back into the job.
Jan 06, 2020
The language of professional educators is a rattle bag of indecipherable jargon and acronyms: SELPA, ELIRT, “integrated multi-tiered systems,” “student centered coaching cycles” and SpEd CAC are just a few.
Jan 06, 2020
Months after advocacy groups sued the Sacramento City Unified School District for discrimination against students with disabilities and black students, the district and the plaintiffs may seek a settlement.
Jan 06, 2020
Churches and corporations that were paid tax dollars to educate A3 charter school students are asking a judge for $1.8 million they say they are owed by the network, which was shut down last year after A3 leaders were indicted for an alleged fraud scheme.
Jan 06, 2020
Three months after Cornerstone Academy leaders and parents were left dumbfounded by a decision that could potentially close the high-performing San Jose charter school, the community is holding out hope that their worst fears will not become a reality.
Jan 06, 2020
In the months since his death, later ruled a suicide, deep troubles have been unmasked in this tiny school district that serves mostly low-income Latino students.
Jan 06, 2020
Some Antioch voters will soon be asked if they’re willing to pay for a $105 million bond to upgrade aging schools — the third bond in 13 years.
Jan 06, 2020
A county-appointed consultant has been paid more than $135,000 in the past year to help Sweetwater Union High School District fix its finances, an ongoing expense that will now fall increasingly on the district as it grapples with a budget crisis.
Jan 06, 2020
Let’s get to work on on education predictions for 2020. The scale ranges from 1 to 5 “Fensters,” with 1 meaning no chance and 5 meaning highly likely.
Jan 06, 2020
In his first year in office, Newsom partially made good on education positions he highlighted on his website and in a questionnaire for EdSource.
Jan 06, 2020
As North County school districts contend with difficult budget choices, they must determine how to pay teachers competitive wages while also trimming spending.
Jan 06, 2020
The Orange County Human Relations Commission will join the county Department of Education in presenting two public forums this month exploring the impact of hate-driven incidents among students, schools and their communities.
Dec 27, 2019
The San Ysidro School District may need to cut between $1.5 million and $2 million from next year’s budget to address deficit spending.
Dec 27, 2019
The candidates are confirmed and the upcoming Los Angeles school board races are all but certain to make for a high-stakes election cycle that will pit teachers and their allies against backers of charter schools for influence over the nation’s second-largest school system.
Dec 27, 2019
The Mt. Diablo Unified School District is trying to collect money it mistakenly overpaid retired non-teacher employees who have been working as substitutes.
Dec 27, 2019
The number of teachers of color in California isn’t keeping pace with the diversity of its student body. Changing that is top of mind for Tony Thurmond, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. He has made closing the achievement gap for students of color a central part of his mission, and he says diversifying the teacher workforce is key.
Dec 26, 2019
A recent study out of University of California Los Angeles, across the state, found that more than 200,000 students -- 3.3% of the student population -- are experiencing homelessness.
Dec 26, 2019
The number of Monterey County schools eligible for additional assistance for low performing student groups has gone down this year, which is a sign of progress local education officials say.
Dec 26, 2019
Taking part in an act normally reserved for much older politicians, University City High School sophomore Zachary Patterson recently started his term as the first student trustee to serve on San Diego Unified School District’s board.
Dec 20, 2019
Grossmont officials have pledged to reduce the district’s overall expulsion rate by 2020, but have so far not acknowledged problems in their expulsion rate for black students.
Dec 20, 2019
The Sacramento City Unified School District’s Board of Education reported it will not meet its minimum reserve requirements for the current and next two fiscal years before the board is set to approve its first interim financial report at Thursday’s school board meeting.
Dec 20, 2019
The amount of money that prosecutors say a former Corona-Norco school district official embezzled could be more than twice what was originally reported, a new report says.
Dec 20, 2019
Teacher strikes, wildfires and a college admissions scandal made for a tumultuous year for California education. And new legislation in Sacramento had a big impact on charter schools and early childhood education.
Dec 20, 2019
With pennants, campus tours and bilingual workshops on financial aid, some schools in the San Joaquin Valley have embraced college preparation for students. And are starting to see success.
Dec 20, 2019
Despite the wide range of challenges at the Richmond K-6 school — low academic performance, poor attendance, high suspension rates and teacher turnover — Theresa Griffin and the newer teachers are working together to turn it around.
Dec 20, 2019
While eight out of 10 students from rural areas graduate from high school, many are not ready for college. Educators around the state have been working hard to reverse the trend.
Dec 19, 2019
The Sausalito Marin City School District will spend nearly $150,000 on a facilities consultant to help figure out how to bring the district’s two campuses together.
Dec 19, 2019
Christopher Steinhauser, who has been the superintendent for the Long Beach Unified School District for 18 years, announced his retirement at the school board meeting Wednesday, Dec. 18.
Dec 19, 2019
The Oceanside Unified School District Board of Education approved an interim budget with no expected shortfalls on Tuesday, and awarded 3 percent raises to all employee groups except classified.
Dec 19, 2019
The Redlands Unified School District is looking into the feasibility of putting a bond on the November 2020 ballot to pay for upgrades and repairs to facilities, as money from previous bonds runs out.
Dec 19, 2019
The Dublin Unified School District is one step closer to opening a second comprehensive high school after purchasing land for the school, more than a year after starting the process.
Dec 19, 2019
Thanks to the overwhelming passage of Measure H in the Nov. 5 special election, which raised $2.6 million to enhance teachers’ and other school employees salaries, Piedmont teachers will receive a 2% salary increase retroactive to July 1.
Dec 18, 2019
The California Department of Education (CDE) and the State Board of Education (SBE) have released the California School Dashboard, a website that gives parents, students and educators access to valuable school and district data.
Dec 18, 2019
On Tuesday, Dec. 17, the Ocean View School District debuted its Central Kitchen, built from the ground up on Warner Avenue near Beach Boulevard. Everything about it is colossal, from the 30-gallon skillet to the 60-gallon kettle.
Dec 18, 2019
Sweetwater Union High School District may have to cut as much as $26 million from its budget next year to make ends meet, according to the district’s latest budget projections discussed at a board meeting Monday.
Dec 18, 2019
A proposal meant to protect kids from unnecessary discipline by banning expulsions for disobedience in California schools passed out of the Assembly this week, moving closer to becoming a law.
Dec 18, 2019
With public health officials scrambling to understand a mysterious lung affliction linked to electronic cigarettes, a new survey of American teens suggests that the behavior tied to the deadly illness has spread at a historic rate.
Dec 18, 2019
San Francisco Unified School District and four other Bay Area school districts have joined a growing number of school districts around the country in suing Juul, seeking unspecified damages allegedly incurred by schools seeking to stop students from vaping.
Dec 18, 2019
Small rural schools have long had a hard time competing for state school bond money, even as neglect shuts down classrooms. That may change with the state bond on the California ballot in March.
Dec 17, 2019
In March, local voters will weigh two parcel taxes — measures T and U — that would raise a combined $6.9 million annually for Santa Cruz City Schools.
Dec 17, 2019
The Vallejo school district has reached a tentative agreement with the non-teaching district employees for a two-percent salary increase and a one-time $500 bonus to each employee covered by the California School Employees Association (CSEA).
Dec 17, 2019
The Sacramento City Unified School District has been successful in adding an ethnic studies program to its curriculum. Now activists are trying to make it happen in Elk Grove schools.
Dec 17, 2019
A school district has struck a deal that clears the way for a new school in Mountain View amid huge expansions by Silicon Valley tech titans that are driving the need for more housing and education facilities.
Dec 17, 2019
It could soon get a lot harder to find out how many preschoolers were suspended more than once in California or how many children of different racial and ethnic groups have access to preschool.
Dec 16, 2019
While the Pasadena Unified school board may have been looking at the same midyear budget report as district staff, members had dramatically different answers when it came to the state of the district’s fiscal health.
Dec 16, 2019
School leaders within Inspire — a homeschool charter network targeted for a state audit into alleged fiscal malfeasance — recently described how it’s difficult to ensure students meet statewide learning standards because parents choose which curricula and resources to use.
Dec 16, 2019
Oceanside parents are keeping pressure on the school district to preserve a school bus line from the Crown Heights neighborhood to local schools, after the district announced plans to cancel the route.
Dec 16, 2019
Dozens of Los Angeles high schools will soon host clinics providing sexual and mental health services for teenagers as part of a wellness program that officials say is a groundbreaking model of comprehensive on-campus care.