Category Archives: Uncategorized

Have a happy and healthy holiday season!

20 Dec
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The CSBA offices will be closed from Dec. 23, 2019–Jan.1, 2020. We will resume bringing you the latest in education news and research on Jan. 6, 2020. We wish you a happy and healthy holiday season!...

Federal budget proposal sees modest increases in Title I, IDEA and other key funding areas

17 Dec
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Facing a Friday, Dec. 20 deadline to pass a budget for the 2020 fiscal year, Congress this week is considering a $1.4 trillion spending package that would provide a total of $72.8 billion in discretionary funding for the U.S. Department of Education — a figure that represents a $1.3 billion bump above 2019 funding levels. Specific appropriations in the bill would include a total of $16.3 billion for Title I (an increase of $450 million) and $12.8 billion in total...

Ransomware Is crippling schools. What can they do about it?

3 Dec
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By Sam Bocetta A few decades ago, when computers were still novelty gadgets and the internet was not available to everyone, schools and other educational institutions had a minimal reliance on technology. Fast forward to today and the situation has dramatically changed. When before a teacher might only have a single workstation in their classroom, now the entire education process is running on networks and online systems. This has made many processes more efficient, but at the same time, every...

CCEE partnerships in action (Part 2): Better serving foster youth and African American students

20 Nov
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The California Collaborative for Educational Excellence, a key agency in the state’s System of Support, hosted its inaugural public event on Nov. 14 in downtown Sacramento. “Equity in Action: A Real-Time Look at What’s Working in California Schools” featured work being done in partnership with county offices of education and districts around the state to create more equitable educational outcomes for three underserved student groups: English learners, foster youth and African American students. The second of a two-part overview of...

CCEE partnerships in action (Part 1): Improving outcomes for English learners

19 Nov
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student writing
The California Collaborative for Educational Excellence, a key agency in the state’s System of Support, hosted its inaugural public event on Nov. 14 in downtown Sacramento. “Equity in Action: A Real-Time Look at What’s Working in California Schools” featured work being done in partnership with county offices of education and districts around the state to create more equitable educational outcomes for three underserved student groups: English learners, foster youth and African American students. The first of a two-part overview of...

Megan Dahle, former school board member, claims Assembly District 1 race

6 Nov
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Republican Megan Dahle claimed a relatively easy victory in yesterday’s election to fill the vacant Assembly District 1 seat in the Legislature, garnering 57.9 percent of the vote to top Democrat challenger Elizabeth Betancourt, who conceded the race late in the evening on Nov. 5. Dahle is a former school board member, serving a term as board president of Big Valley Joint USD, a small school district in Lassen County. She is the wife of Senator Brian Dahle (R-Bieber), who...

New Laws for California Schools: SB 223, administration of medical cannabis at school sites

18 Oct
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CSBA’s “New Laws for California Schools” series highlights new laws signed in 2019 affecting K-12 education. New laws are effective Jan. 1, 2020, unless otherwise noted. The What’s New for 2020 report on all new laws affecting education is available at www.csba.org/whatsnewfor2020. Senate Bill 223 (Hill, D-San Mateo) is nicknamed “Jojo’s Act,” named for a teenager in South San Francisco who suffers from Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy that causes debilitating seizures. Lennox-Gastaut is one of a number...

Small District Spotlight: Big Sur Unified School District

3 Oct
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Eleven students were enrolled in the single K-12 school that comprises Big Sur Unified School District during the 2017–18 school year. The feeling that everyone is family is so ingrained that officials often have to remind students who have been there almost their entire lives not to call teachers by their first names — although there is some leeway, as long as the formal “Mr.” or “Miss” is used as well. School leaders believe it’s the family dynamic naturally fostered...

Poll shows a majority of California voters support stricter vaccination law

2 Oct
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latino student
While protests at the State Capitol throughout this year’s legislative session surrounding Senate Bill 276 (Pan, D-Sacramento) — a bill that tightens up California’s restrictions on vaccine exemptions for public and private school attendance — grabbed headlines around the state and garnered national media attention, a new poll conducted for the Los Angeles Times shows a majority of Californians support the new law, regardless of political affiliation, income levels, education attainment and where they reside. The UC Berkeley Institute of...

CDE Virtual Town Hall lets districts and county offices speak directly with State Superintendent

1 Oct
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State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, in partnership with county offices of education throughout the state, hosted a virtual town hall on Sept. 24 where local educational agencies spoke about some of the unique challenges they face in ongoing efforts to close the achievement gap for California’s most vulnerable students. Thirteen county offices of education acted as physical host locations where attendees could engage in an interactive live exchange with both Thurmond and Chief Deputy Superintendent Lupita Cortez Alcalá....