This Weekly Update provides members with the latest news from the association as well as important education-related developments. CSBA was recently the subject of a malicious cyberattack resulting in outages to some internal systems, including the primary CSBA website, training registration and email marketing systems. […]
Immediate college enrollment rate remains steady among high school graduates
There were minimal changes in the rates of high school seniors who enrolled in college immediately after graduation (the following fall) between 2024 and 2025, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center’s 14th annual High School Benchmarks report.
Research paper identifies best practices for school closures
A recent research paper by the National Demographics Corporation, a CSBA Business Affiliate, outlines best practices for closing schools in response to factors like declining enrollment, underused facilities, staffing challenges, aging campuses and tight budgets. “Closing Schools Without Breaking Trust: Best Practices for California School […]
State-level strategies to help districts address facilities issues
In 2024–25, roughly one in five districts (19 percent) had to cancel school days due to facilities issues, impacting 2 million students, according to a September report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
Analysis finds slowing rate of superintendent turnover
During the 2025–26 academic year, just 17.4 percent of the country’s 500 largest school districts experienced superintendent turnover, the lowest level observed by the ILO Group since before the pandemic, according to an analysis on the subject.
Gavin Newsom signs his last bill as California’s Governor
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s final legislative signing period came to an end on Sept. 30, 2026, before being termed out of office. In total, 1,160 legislative measures reached the Governor’s desk. All four of CSBA’s sponsored bills were signed into law.
New research looks at use of academic criteria in reclassifying English learners
Should academic criteria be used in the process of reclassifying multilingual/English learners (ML-ELs) as English proficient? The answer is not straightforward, according to research released Sept. 18 by the Brookings Institution. The study examined what happens to secondary school ML-ELs when a state brings academic content knowledge into the reclassification process.
Small Schools, Big Ideas: North Cow Creek School District Leader in Me
North Cow Creek School District, a single school-district located in the countryside of Palo Cedro, which serves about 280 TK-8 students, wants to ensure every student is ready to lead.
Latine students, families share what they want from California schools
Latine students make up more than half of California’s K-12 public school population, but the perspectives of this group and their families are underrepresented in research and policy conversations. The report What California’s Latine Students, Families and Communities Want From and For Their Schools, published under the umbrella of Stanford University’s Getting Down to Facts research project, takes a qualitative approach to the subject.
COE leaders hear inspiring stories and practices to serve and support students at CSBA Counties Conference
During the 2026 CSBA Counties Conference Sept. 25-27 at the Marina del Rey Marriott, county offices of education convened to share ideas and learn about initiatives taking place throughout the state, showcasing the leaders’ commitment to lifelong learning.