The CSBA Candidate Review Committee encourages CSBA members to participate in this year’s election process for the offices of CSBA Vice President and President-elect.

In each of my roles as a teacher, principal, administrator and school board member, I’ve learned there is no substitute for firsthand experience when it comes to understanding and meeting the needs of students, staff and families. Of course, all educators should have a strong grasp of theory, but abstract knowledge cannot compare to the lessons learned when you are observing, communicating and interacting with the people that make our schools work.

Recently, I had just such an opportunity when I took a tour of school districts on California’s beautiful Central Coast. It was a wonderful and illuminating experience and reinforced my belief that model practices exist in schools all across the state. Our challenge is to support, uplift and replicate these strategies to ensure student success is the norm in every school district and county office of education.

For three days in March, more than 300 board members and superintendents representing school districts and county offices of education from across California came together once again to meet virtually with more than 100 state legislators and their staff.

During CSBA’s annual Legislative Action Week, members brought their lived experience to the Capitol to shine a light on the top issues facing their schools and students. In response to the ongoing health and safety concerns related to construction at the Capitol building in Sacramento, CSBA once again offered this flagship event virtually. Similar to last year, the virtual format allowed a record number of school board members to share their perspective with legislators in Sacramento.

CSBA believes in recognizing the extraordinary work school districts and county offices of education engage in across California through the association’s Golden Awards Program. The application period opened on March 31 and will close on June 27.

These awards honor the hard work and dedication of governing boards and district staff in creating innovative programs that improve student achievement and well-being in the state’s preK-12 public schools. They also recognize effective governance and boardsmanship of an individual board member and the important role education journalists play in creating awareness in the community.

The status of federal guidance, state legislation and court cases are currently in flux; the following article provides information about immigration enforcement, including responding to immigration enforcement, as of March 2025.

In January 2025, the Department of Homeland Security rescinded a long-standing practice that prohibited immigration enforcement actions in and around “sensitive” areas such as schools. This change has left some students and families feeling less safe in their communities, including while at school. According to the Migration Policy Institute, an estimated 133,000 public school students in California are undocumented.

The impacts of climate change are felt throughout schools in California through extreme heat, wildfires and floods that affect the everyday lives and education of students. Research has shown that rising temperatures and disruptive weather patterns can harm students’ access to school, their health and the finances of local educational agencies.

In 2024, Ten Strands partnered with the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence and UndauntedK12 to support district and county leaders with resources and tools for managing the impacts of a changing climate to adapt and become climate resilient. This partnership highlighted practices and tools for managing climate impacts by leading districts and county offices of education through webinar learning sessions and case study spotlights. The findings and resources were summarized in a brief, “Climate Adaptation and Resilience at California’s K–12 Schools: Actions and Recommendations for State and District Leadership.”

On Jan. 28, 2025, the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) issued its decision in Rocklin Teachers Professional Association v. Rocklin Unified School District (PERB Dec. No. 2939), which provides insight regarding local educational agencies’ obligation to bargain “parental notification” policies. These policies generally require staff to notify a student’s parent/guardian if the student took certain actions related to their gender expression/gender identity — such as asking to be referred to by different pronouns, to use a different name, or to use facilities inconsistent with the sex the student was assigned at birth. These policies have sometimes resulted in high-profile litigation. This is, in part, because some California agencies — most notably the Office of the Attorney General and the California Department of Education (CDE) — have determined that parental notification policies violate Education Code Section 220’s prohibition on gender identity/gender expression discrimination, as well as the rights to privacy and equal protection guaranteed by California’s Constitution. Such policies may also run afoul of Assembly Bill 1955, which, effective Jan. 1, 2025, prohibits policies requiring the disclosure of students’ gender identity or expression without their consent unless required by state or federal law.

The California State Board of Education (SBE) took up a short but dense agenda during its March 5 meeting that saw action on items related to Student Score Reports (SSRs), the California School Dashboard Science Indicator and its potential use for accountability, and more.

In one of the most anticipated agenda items, the board approved proposed revisions to the SSRs with amendments for the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP), also known as Smarter Balanced Summative Assessments, for English language arts and mathematics, California Science Test (CAST), and Initial English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC).

Local educational agencies that have been involved in the complaint process know how complicated it can be. Whether it is Title IX, the Williams Act, or a Uniform Complaint Procedure (UCP), following the prescriptive steps can be confusing and burdensome. Just deciding which of the complaint procedures an LEA must use hinges on the facts of the complaint received. Complaints of sexual harassment, for example, must be evaluated pursuant to the federal Title IX procedures, while complaints concerning student fees should be addressed by the state mandated UCP policies. To properly evaluate a complaint is to first determine which type of complaint it is, and which procedure to use.

Much of the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence’s (CCEE) board meeting on March 13 focused on discussions around direct technical assistance (DTA) as the state has seen an increase in eligible districts.

In 2021, there were seven local educational agencies across 25 county offices of education receiving DTA from CCEE, compared to 54 in 2024, which requires support from the entire organization to manage cases as well as contractors. according to Executive Director Matt Navo.

The last two full weeks in April and September are known annually as High School Voter Education Weeks.

The first, observed this year from April 14-25, is a time for local educational agencies to foster a sense of civic awareness in future voters and inspire eligible 16- and 17-year-olds to preregister to vote so they are automatically able to participate in elections when they are 18, according to the California Department of Education.

“I feel happy when I finish a test in school. I am happy that I am going home this year. I feel happy about all the things I am learning and got taught while being locked up. I feel happy that I am going to finish high school this year,” wrote one student whose words were featured in the inaugural edition of Sonoma County Youth Voice magazine.

Released in January by the Sonoma County Office of Education, the 82-page literary magazine includes dozens of poems from students at the local juvenile justice center where the COE operates the educational programming for grades 7-12.