blog post Student Homelessness Rises to Pre-Pandemic Levels By Brett Guinan, Julien Lafortune Feb 26, 2024 Nearly a quarter million K–12 students in California experienced homelessness at some point during the 2022–23 school year. After three years of declines, the state's homeless student population has returned to pre-COVID levels.
blog post Testimony: California’s K–12 Digital Divide Has Narrowed, but Access Gaps Persist By Niu Gao Feb 21, 2024 At an Assembly Education Committee hearing on addressing students’ post-pandemic needs, PPIC senior fellow Niu Gao discussed the role that federal, state, and local efforts have played in increasing digital connectivity and outlined key challenges that remain.
blog post Chronic Absenteeism in K–12 Schools Remains Troublingly High By Emmanuel Prunty, Laura Hill Feb 20, 2024 The rate of chronic absenteeism in California schools declined slightly during the 2022-23 school year but is still double what it was prior to the pandemic. Districts that have conducted student outreach in partnership with community organizations have had promising results in bringing down absenteeism.
blog post Learning Recovery Is Uneven for Urban and Rural School Districts By Saayili Budhiraja, Thomas Pearson, Emmanuel Prunty, Niu Gao Feb 14, 2024 Half of California's K–12 students are enrolled in urban or rural districts. Compared to the rest of the state, these districts have seen a slower pace of recovery from pandemic learning loss.
blog post Video: Eel River—Reconnecting Salmon and People By Sarah Bardeen, Cameron Nielsen Feb 12, 2024 The Eel River once hosted one of California’s great salmon runs, but a combination of factors decimated those populations. Now, planned dam removals might help restore salmon—but how will these changes affect river communities? Filmmaker Cameron Nielsen spoke to people on all sides of the issue in this visually arresting short documentary
