Report Family Engagement Practices in California Schools By Rebecca London Jun 13, 2016 In their accountability plans, school districts must address family engagement, which can help improve academic outcomes—especially for disadvantaged students. This report identifies promising family engagement strategies from a review of 15 high-need districts in the state, noting that effective strategies are culturally appropriate and aim to support student learning at home. This research was supported with funding from the Evelyn & Walter Haas, Jr. Fund.
Report Funding California Schools When Budgets Fall Short By Julien Lafortune, Radhika Mehlotra, Jennifer Paluch Oct 5, 2020 Even as districts prioritize safety amid COVID-19, they face hard choices as they try to maintain services and balance budgets. By examining district reserves and spending, this report aims to understand how the Great Recession affected K–12 funding and how prepared districts are now to manage future cuts.
Policy Brief Policy Brief: Factors and Future Projections for K–12 Declining Enrollment By Julien Lafortune, Emmanuel Prunty, Stephanie Barton Dec 11, 2023 California counties serving higher shares of low-income, English Learner (EL), and Asian, Black, and Latino students expect greater enrollment losses in coming years. In the past, schools that closed due to falling enrollment had more low-income and EL students as well as lower test scores than the rest of the district.
blog post How Did California Schools Assess Student Learning in Fall 2020? By Niu Gao, Laura Hill, Julien Lafortune Mar 10, 2021 K–12 school districts used a variety of tools this past fall to measure student learning, with assessments developed locally—by teachers or districts—being the most common.
blog post Getting Students from High-Need Schools into the UC System By Jacob Jackson Jul 13, 2016 Improving completion rates in college prep classes may be the key to boosting the enrollment of disadvantaged students at UC.
blog post California Needs More College Prep Courses By Niu Gao Nov 30, 2017 To improve student readiness for college, districts and schools need to increase the number of college prep courses.
blog post Calculating High School Graduation Rates By Paul Warren Jan 19, 2016 One of the lesser known provisions of the new federal education law might force California to revise the way it deals with graduation rates at alternative high schools.
blog post Video: Reopening California’s Schools By Mary Severance Mar 9, 2021 An expert panel discusses reopening K–12 schools across the state for in-person instruction amid concerns about equity, learning loss, and physical and mental health.
blog post Public School Enrollment across California’s Regions, Past and Future By Julien Lafortune, Emmanuel Prunty May 10, 2023 While California public school enrollment has fallen for the sixth straight year, the trend varies across regions. Coastal areas have seen some of the largest drops in enrollment and are likely to experience continued declines.
