With chronic absenteeism rates in California still hovering at about double where they were prior to the pandemic (22 percent compared to about 10 percent), communicating to families the importance of getting children to school is more important than ever. To aid local educational agencies […]
Author: Alisha Kirby
Engaging families can reduce political polarization in schools
District partnerships with parents are key to solving heightened political polarization in schools, according to an Aug. 10 brief from The Brookings Institution. From lawsuits to violent incidents at school events and board meetings, national surveys of K–12 educators — including district leaders, principals and […]
New data shows steep increase in special education students
The number of students in special education in the United States has doubled over the past 40 years, according to new data from the National Center for Education Statistics. The total number of students in special education increased from 3.6 million in the 1976–76 school […]
NCTQ analyzes state policies to diversify teacher workforce, offers recommendations
Throughout the country, many education leaders cite the importance of diversifying the teacher workforce, but fewer are actually putting policies in place to make it a reality, according to a new study. Researchers from the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) examined state recruitment and […]
Federal leaders announce K-12 cybersecurity guidance, resources and more
White House officials and the departments of Education and Homeland Security announced on Aug. 6 public and private initiatives to strengthen K-12 cyber defenses, as well as new guidance documents highlighting cybersecurity recommendations and promising practices from states and districts across the country. Jointly released […]
CSBA announces new Student Board Member Training program
Student board members are integral to ensuring student voice is heard and included in decisions made by local governance teams that, ultimately, impact tomorrow’s leaders. But how can the youngest members of California school district and county office of education governance teams come to the […]
Governor spotlights California’s embrace of local control, parental engagement
Gov. Gavin Newsom addressed reporters at an elementary school in the Elk Grove Unified School District on Aug. 14 to highlight the state’s “family agenda” centered around efforts to enrich and empower kids and parents in schools. Newsom discussed the billions of dollars being invested […]
Study finds progress toward academic recovery stalled in 2022–23, but with a few bright spots
Data from the most current school year shows persistent achievement gaps compared to pre-pandemic trends, except for the country’s youngest students who saw above average achievement gains, according to a report released July 11 by NWEA. Using data from 6.7 million U.S. public school students […]
Loss of free school meals results in lower participation
There has been a significant decline in student participation in school meal programs since the end of the national universal meals program, according to a report released in June by the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC). Survey findings from 91 large school districts in […]
Research highlights long-term economic impacts of addressing barriers to high school graduation
Addressing the systemic inequities that lead to higher rates of chronic absenteeism and disciplinary infractions and lower high school graduation rates among the most impacted student groups would benefit the children themselves, as well as society as a whole, according to a recent brief from […]











