Report Expensive Children in Poor Families: The Intersection of Childhood Disabilities and Welfare By Marcia K. Meyers, Henry E. Brady, Eva Y. Seto Oct 1, 2000 Although disabilities affect children of all income groups, poor children are far more likely to suffer from them. In this study, Marcia K. Meyers, Henry E. Brady, and Eva Y. Seto provide important new estimates of the private costs and public effects of childhood disabilities among welfare recipients. Based on over 2,000 interviews with household heads in Los Angeles, Alameda, San Joaquin, and San Bernardino Counties, their estimates cover direct expenditures by families and indirect costs due to employment reductions. They also examine participation rates in public assistance programs and estimate the likelihood that families with disabled children will exit these programs to independence. They conclude that public assistance may be an essential part of an income-packaging strategy for many of these families.
Report Students with Disabilities and California’s Special Education Program By Stephen Lipscomb Jan 29, 2009 Students with disabilities are entitled by law to free, appropriate special education services, and in 2006–07, more than 10 percent of California’s total school enrollment used these services, at a cost of about $9.3 billion. This report provides basic information about California’s students with disabilities and its special education programs. It examines disability rates and trends, the educational environment, student performance on state assessments, and California’s financial commitment to special education, including detailed information about spending activity and the funding process.
blog post Remote Learning for English Learners and Special Needs Students during COVID-19 By Niu Gao, Laura Hill Apr 10, 2020 As districts across California roll out distance learning plans, educators must develop alternate methods to effectively serve English Learners and students with special needs.
blog post Testimony: Special Education Finance in California By Paul Warren Mar 28, 2019 Research associate Paul Warren discusses rising school district costs for special education as well as options for strengthening state funding in this area.
Report Federal Formula Grants: Education Programs for Disabled Children By Tim Ransdell Sep 1, 2003 This report first examines the structure of the three grants used to allocate the bulk of federal funding under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to states and school districts. It then reviews recent program funding history and, finally, it discusses the operation of funding formulas and applies various funding-change scenarios to illustrate alternative state allocations.
blog post Debate over How Special Education Is Funded By Laura Hill, Patrick Murphy, Paul Warren Apr 18, 2017 A series of meetings demonstrated the difficulty of improving special education in this large and diverse state.
blog post Improving Special Education in California By Paul Warren, Laura Hill Sep 25, 2018 More accountability could improve inequities in special education funding in California.
Report Distance Learning Strategies in California Schools By Niu Gao, Laura Hill, Julien Lafortune Apr 14, 2021 Learning gaps are a growing concern after a year of online instruction. During the pandemic, uneven distribution of resources may have widened gaps and led to learning loss for some students. Our survey outlines how California school districts addressed remote learning and their strategies to improve instruction in the 2020–21 school year.
blog post Exploring the Spike in Chronic Absenteeism among K–12 Students By Laura Hill, Emmanuel Prunty Mar 29, 2023 Nearly one in three California public school students were chronically absent in 2021–22, a share that is almost triple that in 2018–19. Rates of chronic absenteeism were highest among Black, Native American, and Pacific Islander students.
Report Assessing Transitional Kindergarten’s Impact on Elementary School Trajectories By Julien Lafortune, Laura Hill Oct 23, 2023 California’s Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program provides an early year of schooling within the K–12 system. Launched a decade ago with limited eligibility, TK will soon be open to all four-year-olds. Taking stock of the program’s impact so far—especially among multilingual and special education students—can help TK expansion succeed.
