2018–19 budget proposal fulfills LCFF funding target

With a steady stream of state revenues filtering in throughout the final weeks of 2017, all eyes in the California education world were focused on the January budget release in anticipation of Gov. Jerry Brown fully funding the Local Control Funding Formula — the signature education law of his second go-round as California’s governor — to hit the LCFF funding target in his final year in office.

Gov. Brown hit that target when he delivered a proposed LCFF investment of approximately $3 billion in his 2018–19 budget proposal. In his final budget, released in January, Gov. Brown again reiterated his call for prudent fiscal planning and safeguarding against a looming recession by bolstering the state’s reserves — a deposit of $3.5 billion maxes out the Rainy Day Fund at the constitutional limit of 10 percent of tax revenues ($13.5 billion).

Beneath the fanfare of LCFF hitting its funding target two years ahead of schedule lies a budget that is sturdy for K-12 education, but still will leave California in the bottom tier nationally for education funding.

New laws regarding student board members; hiring practice

A pair of new laws pertaining to student board members took effect on Jan. 1, 2018. Both laws aim to bolster the role of students on governing boards and to give students a stronger voice on matters that come before the body.

Neither law changes the existing processes for boards to create a student board member position, nor does either law require boards to create a student board member position if such a position does not already exist. Further, both laws apply only to public votes and public information — neither law applies to closed session votes or materials used in closed sessions.

Beginning the year with appreciation

Welcome to 2018 and another year of increasing the influence that CSBA has on the public education agenda. It should come as no surprise to anyone reading this publication that school boards play a critical role in preparing students to be well-educated, civic-minded participants in democracy. That has been the vision here in California since the first Constitutional Convention was held in 1849. Back then, Robert Semple, a delegate from Solano County, shared that, “If the people are to govern themselves, they should be qualified to do it. They must be educated; they must educate their children; they must provide means for the diffusion of knowledge and the progress of enlightened principles.” That vision seems just as important today as it was nearly 170 years ago.

With roughly 5,100 individuals assuming that governing role, it seems very appropriate that we started the year by celebrating January as School Board Recognition Month — not necessarily because of the work that has already been done, although the importance of that can never be overstated, but because of the enormity of the work that is about to be done. I see it as a thank you statement in advance. Thank you for setting the direction and giving your guidance to the staff so that they can set about the work of creating schools that best represent the vision of the local community.

State must improve the California School Dashboard

By CSBA CEO & Executive Director Vernon M. Billy and Education Trust–West Executive Director Ryan J. Smith

California has always been a state of dreamers and idealists. That’s part of our legacy and a reason for our success. Yet, as our state’s long trail of innovators have shown us, success takes more than ideas — it also requires careful implementation. California’s school funding model is based on a powerful idea: improve outcomes by directing more resources to high-need students and use a multiple-measure accountability system that supports local decision-making. Unfortunately, the reality of the system doesn’t match the vision.

In January, the State Board of Education heard feedback about the California School Dashboard — an online tool that shows how schools and districts are performing. The state says it’s “the next step in a series of major shifts in California K-12 schools, changes that have raised the bar for student learning, transformed testing and placed the focus on equity for all students.”

New fact sheet on California’s education funding available

Despite a growing economy, California trails behind nearly every other state in terms of the resources it devotes to education.

Critics at state board meeting say school dashboard missing the mark

California’s uneven efforts towards educational equity for all student groups was at the center of January’s State Board of Education meeting. At issue were two competing systems for measuring progress and identifying groups in need of help.

In December, the U.S. Department of Education sent feedback on California’s Every Student Succeeds Act plan that said the state needed to provide more information on how it met the ESSA requirement that schools in need of assistance be identified. Federal law also requires states to develop an improvement plan for the lowest performing 5 percent of schools.

At the January SBE meeting, board members instead said they would provide the federal government with more information on how the state’s new accountability system, the California School Dashboard, works to “clarify the issues raised.” The system tracks progress by school districts. Board members also stressed more patience as the Dashboard continues to evolve.

The DACA repeal and its impact on schools

On Sept. 5, 2017, the Trump Administration announced an end to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.