After months of negotiation and years of advocacy by CSBA and other educational advocacy organizations, the Governor and Legislature agreed to a $10 billion statewide school bond, which will be up for consideration by voters on the November ballot. This is a significant win for CSBA’s advocacy. Titled the Kindergarten through Grade 12 Schools and Local Community College Public Education Facilities Modernization, Repair, and Safety Bond Act of 2024, and adopted via Assembly Bill 247, it was jointly authored by Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi (D–Torrance) and Assemblymember Mike Fong (D–Alhambra).

In an interesting turn of events, because both Gov. Gavin Newsom and Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis were out of the state at the time AB 247 was passed, acting-Gubernatorial duties fell to Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire (D–Healdsburg) who is third in the line of succession. As a result, it was Sen. McGuire who signed AB 247, which effectively places the bond on the ballot.

The 2024 Annual Education Conference and Trade Show (AEC) is fast approaching and CSBA is thrilled to invite student board members to submit a proposal and lead a presentation for AEC participants. AEC will take place from Dec. 5-7 in Anaheim and offers a unique platform for student trustees to share insights, experiences and innovative ideas that can shape the future of education.

Student board member perspectives are invaluable. Their firsthand experience with the current educational landscape provides them with a unique vantage point that can contribute to meaningful discussions and solutions. Whether their interests lie in educational equity, digital innovation, student well-being or governance practices, student trustee contributions can influence educational policies and practices across California. All trustees should encourage their student board member to voice their ideas and engage with fellow students, educators and trustees in a collaborative and impactful environment at AEC.

While national media coverage tends to focus on urban and suburban schools, 14 percent of America’s TK-12 students attend rural schools. In California, 37 percent of all school districts are defined as rural, and they include some of the most productive and majestic lands on the entire continent. Yet, rural schools haven’t always received the attention or funding warranted by their contributions and the distinctive circumstances their students face.

As San Pasqual Valley Unified School District Superintendent Katrina Johnson León wrote in a column for the spring 2024 issue of our California Schools magazine, “The reality of rural districts is that we must make sure we are serving all populations while adjusting for service scarcity due to geographic isolation and policies, rules or regulations.”

School safety is an important and complex issue. From the physical infrastructure of school facilities to student well-being and mental health, safety issues run the gamut. Governance teams play a unique role in leading the way in fostering a safe and supportive school environment. Not only are governance teams tasked with reviewing and updating safety policies and procedures, such as Comprehensive School Safety Plans (CSSPs), but local educational agency leaders must also be informed and make decisions on myriad safety issues that their LEAs will likely face.

Senior Director of CSBA’s Research and Education Policy Development Department Mary Gardner Briggs noted, “Our members have been outspoken about their desire to address the safety of our public schools, and they want to be mindful of how to do so in their governance roles. The field has learned a lot in the past decade, so they’re also mindful of wanting to have data and resources that meet today’s circumstances.”

New survey findings show 97 percent of California local educational agencies and 88 percent of community-based organizations (CBOs) used Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P) funds to serve more students either by opening new programs or expanding existing ones.

Based on more than 100 surveys and 11 interviews with LEAs and community-based providers, the Partnership for Children & Youth found that ELO-P has significantly expanded program access for underserved students in both the summer and school year and is driving new investments in quality and staff.

In June, the California Supreme Court issued its decision in Legislature v. Weber (Weber). Weber analyzed the “Taxpayer Protection and Government Accountability Act” (TPA), an initiative originally slated for placement on California ballots this fall. The TPA proposed modifications to the California Constitution that would have significantly disrupted the ability of the Legislature, as well as state and local agencies, including local educational agencies, to collect taxes and fees.

The Legislature and Governor asked the Supreme Court to block the TPA from the ballot because the TPA’s proposed constitutional changes were too significant to be enacted through the initiative process. CSBA’s Education Legal Alliance (ELA) filed an amicus brief in support. In a significant victory, the Court agreed, finding that the TPA’s sweeping changes could not be enacted by ballot initiative, which requires only a majority vote of the electorate. Instead, the TPA’s changes could only be enacted through the more demanding procedures required for a constitutional revision — such as a constitutional convention followed by voter ratification. As a result, the Court ordered the TPA excluded from the ballot.

California school districts and county offices of education are required by July 1, 2025, to establish continuity plans to ensure students are provided instruction when natural disasters or other states of emergencies make in-person classes impossible.

As learning at K-12 campuses across the state has been disrupted by a pandemic and natural disasters like wildfires and flooding in the first half of the decade, the decision to mandate local educational agencies to include instructional continuity plans with their comprehensive school safety plans was solidified as part of the education omnibus budget trailer bill (Senate Bill 153) approved by Gov. Gavin Newsom in late June.

In April 2024, the U.S. Department of Education released revised regulations which support the implementation of Title IX, a federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in publicly funded educational programs and activities. Originally signed into law in 1972, Title IX sought to improve educational access and equity for women and girls. The 2024 revisions are the result of more than 240,000 comments received by the Education Department in response to the rules it proposed in 2022.

With these revised regulations, Title IX has been broadened to bolster existing protections against sex discrimination and sex-based harassment, clarify that prohibited discrimination and harassment extends to sex- and gender-related bases, ensure fairness in processing complaints, and require that Title IX grievance procedures are followed when investigating and resolving Title IX sex discrimination complaints, including sex-based harassment, based on conduct that occurred on or after Aug. 1, 2024. In anticipation of the Aug. 1, 2024, operative date, CSBA released a special update packet of sample policies. The following is a high-level look at the revised regulations and CSBA’s updates.

The State Board of Education (SBE) took action on several crucial items during the first day of its July meeting related to a new science metric for the California School Dashboard, eligibility criteria for Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) support determinations, assessment alternatives to identify English learners among the state’s youngest students and more.

On a warm summer day last September, some students in the Rescue Union School District in El Dorado County experienced having fun with their peers on the playground for the very first time. What made the difference? A new all-abilities playground at Jackson Elementary School that allows access for children with wheelchairs and walkers — all on their own.

Jackson Elementary hosts the mobility program in the district, with seven students in wheelchairs. While attempts to make the school as inclusive as possible for these students were in place, one glaring exception stood out to Principal Michelle Williamson.

While too early to fully gauge the impact of the Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF) on some of the state’s highest-need students, a June 20 brief from the Public Policy Institute of California found that there was an “impressive response from districts serving high-needs students” in securing funds at a time when children needed to be connected more than ever.

“School districts serving high percentages of English learners (ELs), Black and Latino students, and low-income students promptly responded to the funding opportunity that emerged in 2021 as the Emergency Connectivity Fund. They were able to secure higher levels of per-student funding than their counterparts, and they focused on services and equipment dedicated to expanding internet access more than purchasing devices,” the brief states. “Now that ECF is winding down, it is time to look ahead. How will districts fill the gaps left by ECF, and how can California make headway in improving digital literacy for high-needs communities?”

Local educational agencies in Sonoma County have been awarded more than $9 million in Golden State Pathways Program dollars to help students prepare for and pursue college and career opportunities post-high school.

The Sonoma County Office of Education, which acted as a lead agency in pursuit of a consortium grant, played a major role in encouraging and assisting school districts throughout the application process.

According to Louis Ganzler, assistant superintendent of School Culture and Partnerships, and Sharon Ferrer, director of College and Career, the COE did this in a number of ways, including hosting informational meetings on the program and its grant types (planning, implementation and consortium); helping with data compilation for sites; creating budget spreadsheets for schools in the consortium and helping school and district leaders with other budget-related questions and concerns; and offering in-person and virtual sessions to assist interested parties in drafting their grant proposals.