Natural disaster resources for schools and districts

This week’s wildfires in Northern California and Southern California have left school districts and students in a state of emergency. These devastating fires have destroyed neighborhoods, forced many schools to remain closed, displaced families and students and are an ongoing concern. In response, state and local […]

Advanced Placement (AP) scores on the rise in California

Mirroring national trends, the number of California students taking college-level Advanced Placement exams has increased according to the California Department of Education. Equally significant, the CDE said the number of Latino and African-American students taking the tests has also increased. Along with the Scholastic Achievement […]

Promote student civic participation during High School Voter Education Week

The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s annual Constitution Day civics survey, conducted last month, resulted in some surprising numbers. While only 26 percent of respondents could name all three branches of government, 33 percent couldn’t name any at all. According to reporting from The74, nationwide only […]

The DACA Repeal: Resources for school districts and Dreamer teachers

Roughly 5,000 teachers in California are caught in the crosshairs of President Trump’s plan to cancel the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, joining hundreds of thousands of individuals across the state and the country facing an uncertain future. Known as DACA, the Obama administration […]

Supporting undocumented students & families after DACA decision

In light of the Trump Administration’s announcement to suspend the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, commonly known as DACA, school board members are encouraged to remember that despite changes to federal policy, school districts’ and board members’ responsibility to serve all students remains unchanged. […]

New ways to bring English learner success into focus

More than 1.3 million California public school students are English learners. Some are new arrivals to the United States, others have attended American schools for years. Both groups, though, share the challenge of learning English through an unfamiliar language — English. Teachers and administrators are charged with […]

Teacher shortage continues, experienced teachers in demand

A new report from the Learning Policy Institute cites that about 90 percent of teacher vacancies are due to teachers leaving the profession, and posits that a national teacher shortage could be alleviated by improving retention. Further, by retaining experienced teachers, school districts could also […]

California underperforms in protecting student athletes, report finds

Although California fields the second largest number of high school athletes nationally at just under one million students, the state has placed next to last in rankings for public high school athletic safety, according to a recent report. The report from the University of Connecticut’s […]

After Charlottesville: Resources to help schools discuss intolerance

As the school year begins, the recent white nationalist rally in Charlottesville has been a catalyst for national conversations about racism, bigotry and racially charged symbols. Educators can expect students to want to discuss these issues and their impact. California schools too have grappled with […]