By Sherry Griffith, Vernon M. Billy and Wesley Smith “When parents entrust a child to public schools, the system accepts a special responsibility to protect and enrich the student. That responsibility includes safeguarding personal information – a right guaranteed by state and federal law. Yet, […]
State’ s Schools Are Still Underfunded
by Chris Ungar “A recent report released by the California School Boards Association and its Education Legal Alliance found that California is underfunding K-12 schools by as much as $42 billion annually. The study looks at state funding levels and what it would actually take […]
The Power of Partnership: The Vital Role Family Resource Centers Can Play in Schools
by Fiona Lavelle Family Resource Centers, known as FRCs, are community-based organizations that provide comprehensive family support services to children and their families. Centers work in deep partnership with parents, teachers, school officials, and a vast network of service providers to facilitate lasting personal and […]
Averting a Student Mental Health Crisis in Our Classrooms
by Alicia Rozum Jared, a high school Junior had been acting different. Typically an excellent student, he started falling asleep in class or putting his head down on the desk. He seemed “out of it”, his chemistry teacher wrote, referring Jared to his high school’s […]
Lessons Learned at AEC
by Hector Camacho, (courtesy of San Mateo Daily Journal) A recent report from the California School Boards Association indicates that California schools are underfunded by approximately $42 billion every year. Filling that gap would bring our state to a position of adequate funding for public […]
Summer Matters at CSBA
by Katie Brackenridge Summer learning programs are popping up all over the state. School board members and superintendents are replacing traditional summer school programming with a more interactive and engaging approach called summer learning. Using a combination of funding streams, including Local Control Funding, these […]
Engaging Families from the Classroom Out
By Teneh Weller I remember being a new 5th grade teacher, full of excitement and hope. I had the opportunity, in some small way, to change the world. I had a vision that all of my students, no matter where they started out, would reach […]
New Adult Education Program Benefits District Students
by Alan Helfman School districts looking to leverage student success would be well-advised to look to $525 million on the table. The funds are from the California’s Adult Education Block Grant. This grant provides significant discretion for local planning and implementation as part of the […]
Call to Join the California Community Schools Network
by Deanna Niebuhr A few years ago, I worked with a team to write a Healthy Start grant proposal for an elementary school. The principal understood that this proposal writing process presented an opportunity to offer her students a valuable leadership experience. To give students […]
Survey shows California school wellness programs are bearing fruit
by Dr. Lynn Silver Statewide and local efforts to support healthier schools and students have blossomed from Humboldt to Imperial Counties. These efforts are bearing fruit today. California school districts are approving and implementing increasingly innovative wellness policies and practices. To gauge progress on school […]