State
State’s nonpartisan Legislative Analyst highly critical of Governor’s proposed budget
The LAO predicts much greater market volatility than the January Budget Proposal
California’s Director of Finance Joe Stephenshaw presented Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed budget for the coming 2026–27 fiscal year on Jan. 9. Describing it as a workload budget that does not include new programs but funds existing programs, the overall budget is projected at $348.9 billion with overall estimated reserves of $23 billion. Of the projected $23 billion in reserves, $4.1 billion is proposed for the Proposition 98 Rainy Day Fund.
County
Resources
Governance
What’sInside
Resources
Governor calls for state education agency reorganization
Proposal echoes CSBA’s call for better state alignment and accountability
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Jan. 8 a reorganization plan that he says will improve support and oversight of the state’s schools by moving responsibility for managing the California Department of Education (CDE) to the State Board of Education. This move echoes CSBA’s call for the state to align its agencies to move beyond disconnected and sometimes conflicting programs, policies and budget decisions.
Staff
Chief Communications Officer:
Troy Flint | tflint@csba.org
Troy Flint | tflint@csba.org
Editorial Director:
Kimberly Sellery | ksellery@csba.org
Staff Writers and Contributors:
Alisha Kirby | akirby@csba.org
Heather Kemp | hkemp@csba.org
Chris Reefe | creefe@csba.org
Christopher Maricle | cmaricle@csba.org
Dana Scott | dscott@csba.org
Dustin Bindreiff | dbindreiff@csba.org
Marketing & Communications Director:
Monica Griffis | mgriffis@csba.org
Graphic Design & Branding Director:
Kerry Macklin | kmacklin@csba.org
Graphic Designers:
Thairah Singharath | tsingharath@csba.org
Amanda Moen | amoen@csba.org
Officers
President:
Dr. Debra Schade | Solana Beach SD
Dr. Debra Schade | Solana Beach SD
President-elect:
Sabrena Rodriguez | Ventura USD
Vice President:
Jackie Thu-Huong Wong | Washington USD
Immediate Past President:
Dr. Bettye Lusk | Monterey Peninsula USD
CEO & Executive Director:
Vernon M. Billy
The California School Boards Association is the essential voice for public education. We inspire our members to be knowledgeable leaders, extraordinary governance practitioners and ardent advocates for all students.
California School News (ISSN 1091-1715) is published 11 times per year by the California School Boards Association, Inc., 3251 Beacon Blvd., West Sacramento, CA 95691. 916-371-4691. $4 of CSBA annual membership dues is for the subscription to California School News. The subscription rate for each CSBA nonmember is $35. Periodicals postage paid at West Sacramento, CA and at additional mailing office. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to California School News, 3251 Beacon Blvd., West Sacramento, CA 95691.
News and feature items submitted for publication are edited for style and space as necessary.
President’s Message: Dr. Debra Schade
Reflections on leadership, service and love for the job
The hard work and great rewards of trusteeship
February has always felt like a month that invites reflection. It begins, for me, with a birthday, an annual pause that naturally brings perspective. It includes Valentine’s Day, a reminder that love is best measured by action, not words. And it closes with Presidents Day, when we remember leaders like Washington and Lincoln and the enduring idea that a healthy democracy depends on people willing to serve something larger than themselves. All of that makes February a fitting moment to reflect on the soul-filling work of school board governance and my deep, abiding love for public education.
School board service is not glamorous. It lives in evening meetings after long workdays, in carefully reading reports, in listening to public comment and in weighing decisions that rarely offer simple answers. Yet there is something profoundly meaningful about this work. To sit at a board table is to hold a community’s trust and to help shape conditions where children can learn, grow and thrive. Over time, I have come to understand that this is not just governance, it is stewardship.
Governance
The governance team’s role in March 15 staffing layoff notices
These formal announcements require strict legal compliance
As California’s educational landscape evolves, school districts must adapt to fluctuating revenues and student populations. One critical aspect of this dynamic environment is the mid-March staff layoff notices, often necessary to ensure fiscal stability and align resources with student needs. For trustees, understanding the March 15 notice process is essential, as these decisions profoundly impact both district operations and the lives of employees and students.
The March 15 notice is a formal announcement from a school district to employees that they may be released for the following school year. Governing board members must be aware that this process has strict legal requirements. Assembly Bill 438 (2022) expanded the layoff procedures for permanent classified employees to mirror those of certificated employees, adding complexity to the governance team’s responsibilities.
COUNTY
CSBA Counties Governance Workshop focuses on serving vulnerable students
A pre-workshop Masters in Governance for COEs course will be offered
The 2026 CSBA Counties Governance Workshop will focus on a core responsibility of county boards — serving homeless and foster youth.
Happening March 11-12 at the Sheraton San Diego Resort, the workshop’s first time in San Diego, attendees will take part in informative and impactful general sessions, micro-trainings, activities, meal functions, networking opportunities and more.
GOVERNANCE
President signs Secure Rural Schools Act into law
Years of consistent CSBA advocacy pay off
President Donald Trump validated a sustained and ultimately successful CSBA advocacy effort in support of the nation’s rural schools and communities when he signed S356, the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) Reauthorization Act (Crapo, R-ID), on Dec. 18, 2025. Secure Rural Schools provides payments to counties and public schools on federal forest land, sustaining services and school programs and preventing the closure of numerous isolated rural schools. Nationally, more than 4,400 rural schools across 41 states receive SRS funds.
resources
Stockton USD aims to improve support for African American students
Black History Month is a time to focus on student achievement and support for this population
Stockton Unified School District (SUSD) has prioritized a goal based on community engagement and parent advisory council input to address historical inequities affecting African American students. The district recognizes longstanding disparities in educational outcomes between African American students and their non-Black peers, citing structural and instructional barriers as contributing factors.
county
CSBA Counties Governance Workshop preview: Supporting vulnerable youth
From March 11-12, county leaders will gather in San Diego to strengthen governance practices
Ken Berrick, Alameda County Board of Education president, and founder and CEO of Just Advocates, will participate in a session at the 2026 CSBA Counties Governance Workshop, March 11-12 in San Diego, on supporting foster youth along with André V. Chapman, CEO and president of Fostering Promise, a nonprofit that aims to ensure every young person aging out of foster care has access to a successful future.
LEGAL
Employee free speech rights challenges are fact intensive
Courts must balance individual rights with schools’ interest of efficient operations
Holdings from multiple courts throughout the country have underscored that the legal analysis of an individual school employee’s speech rights are complex considerations that are highly fact specific. Cases such as the recently decided Thompson v. Central Valley School District out of the Ninth Circuit emphasize the fact-intensive nature of these cases and provide helpful guidance for local educational agencies when considering regulation of their employees’ speech rights. The Ninth Circuit ruled in favor of the district when it found that the employee’s First Amendment interests were overridden by the school district employer’s interest in maintaining a safe and inclusive school environment.
RESOURCES
New AI Taskforce briefs support smart decision-making in AI adoption
All CSBA AI resources aim to guide responsible innovation and ethical use
CSBA’s AI Taskforce: Education in the Age of Artificial Intelligence has developed four new publications designed to support public schools in adopting artificial intelligence (AI) in a manner consistent with their educational mission, as well as with the privacy and safety of students in mind. With AI emerging as the dominant development of the current age and a transformative element in public schools, CSBA’s resources offer critical knowledge and tools for the integration of AI into the work of school districts and county offices of education.
resources
Building a career pathway for students and a mental health pipeline for schools
Career technical education can benefit students and the LEAs they graduate from
Career Technical Education (CTE) Month offers the perfect opportunity to spotlight the important programs throughout California that are providing students with hands-on career and academic skills, and even the soft skills necessary for success in the modern workplace, such as critical thinking, communication, teamwork and leadership.
Sacramento County Office of Education’s (SCOE) School-Based Mental Health and Wellness career pathway aims to solve two problems. First, officials hope to build a diverse mental and behavioral health workforce that can meet the needs of students throughout the districts the COE serves.
policy
Supporting highly mobile students and students with disabilities
CSBA has consolidated similar sample policies to ensure ease of access
Today, many students experience multiple school moves over the course of their education due to housing instability, foster placements, moves related to family members serving in the military and more. When this happens, there is the risk of disruption to student learning, poor educational outcomes, loss of social support and difficulty adapting to a new school curriculum and environment. According to the National Institute of Health, “Students experiencing at least one move over a 12-month period have a roughly 50 percent decreased likelihood of obtaining a high school diploma by the age of 25.”
Governance corner
Practical tips from our MIG faculty
Starting on a strong note
As a new calendar year begins, many engage in the annual tradition of setting resolution goals for 2026. This is a great time to reflect on the previous year’s performance and to set intentions for the year ahead — not only at home or work, but also in your role as a trustee. How might you strengthen your trusteeship? Areas to consider might include:
- Learning more about district systems like finances or student achievement.
- Developing a better understanding of the rules of order that govern your meetings.
- Improving how well you prepare for board meetings.
Governance
State Board dives deep into accountability measures and improving equity
CSBA offers comments about state cohesion and accountability
The California State Board of Education (SBE) kicked off 2026 with a Jan. 14 meeting that included a review of the 2025 California School Dashboard and 2024–25 Data Release, approval of the 2026 Accountability Workplan and a study session on the College/Career Indicator (CCI).
UpcomingEvents info: 800-266-3382
Attention: For more information about events, visit www.csba.org/TrainingAndEvents.
Virtual Events
Feb. 19-20 | Executive Assistant (EA) Tau: Governance 2A/2B
Feb. 27 | Ethics Assembly Bill 2158
March 16 and April 18 | MIG Course 2: Student Learning & Achievement/Policy & Judicial Review
March 17-19 | Legislative Action Week
In-person events
Thanks for reading our February 2026 newsletter!