After Los Angeles Unified delivered 3,200 pink slips to teachers and employees last month, the United Teachers Los Angeles has the temerity to strike for higher pay. As one of the most fiscally distressed school districts in America, drowning in an $11.4 billion unrestricted net deficit, hemorrhaging students, and still without its own superintendent due to ongoing...
Last year, the federal government passed a law that created a tax credit for contributions to Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs). SGOs are nonprofits that fund student educational opportunities through scholarships. If California opts in, students in the state would benefit from expanded scholarship programs, all without needing to spend any state or local government dollars....
The U.S. Department of Education announced this week that its investigation into the California Department of Education found that state policies that pressure schools to keep secrets from parents violate federal law. Specifically, the DOE said the “California Department of Education (CDE) is in continued violation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)—a federal law...
Earlier this month, Governor Gavin Newsom submitted his proposed 2026-27 budget to the legislature, weighing in at nearly $349 billion. His budget plan came one day after he gave the last State of the State address of his term, in which he touted California’s “record-breaking” education spending. Newsom painted California as a model for “nation-leading...
America’s schools won’t recover through more spending or slogans, but through a return to proven basics—clear instruction, firm discipline, accountable teaching, and classrooms focused on learning. As someone who attended public school in the 1950s and 1960s, taught in elementary and middle schools in the early 1970s, and then from 1984 until I retired in...
According to EdChoice, about 1.5 million students are now enrolled in voucher, educational savings account (ESA), and tax-credit programs, nearly doubling the number from just three years ago. Education Week reports that 30 states and the District of Columbia now have at least one private school choice program. Of those, 19 states have at least...
The latest news on history, civics, and patriotism in our public schools is a mixed bag. In the early days of our republic, George Washington understood that civic education was essential for preserving freedom. More recently, the late Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor reminded us that civic knowledge isn’t inherited genetically but must be...
As California wallows in continued low student performance, a new study shows that school choice is making a positive difference in student outcomes in Arkansas. Recently released scores on California’s state tests in English and math show huge proportions of students failing to achieve proficiency in the basic subjects. More than half of California students...
And in so doing, has helped demonstrate why California’s schools, once among the best in the nation, are now among its worst. California has a problem with antisemitism in its public schools, but the proposed remedy — a massive new regulatory agency outlined in a bill on the governor’s desk — will do approximately nothing to...
The 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results for Grade 12 reading are out — and the numbers are grim. Only a staggering 35 percent of high school seniors nationwide were proficient in reading. Nearly one in three graduates struggles to draw basic conclusions from a text, a skill essential for everything from voting...
SACRAMENTO — As charter school advocates wait for the California legislature to complete their work before session ends this weekend, the following is a summary of the most important developments regarding charter school bills in the California legislature. Since the Senate Pro Tem waived Joint Rule 61, any bill that was amended within 72-hours will...
With schools back in session and the state budget finalized, the question of what California spends on public education — and what it delivers in return — is at the forefront of many parents’ and taxpayers’ minds. California has among the highest per-pupil spending in the nation, but questions persist about whether California families are...