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.
Fact Sheet Arrests in California By Magnus Lofstrom, Brandon Martin, Andrew Skelton Jan 8, 2024 California’s overall arrest rate was historically low in 2022, but the felony arrest rate rose slightly for the first time since 2013. Arrest rates vary widely across counties.
Fact Sheet Law Enforcement Staffing in California By Brandon Martin, Magnus Lofstrom, Andrew Skelton Jan 8, 2024 Law enforcement is funded largely at the local level, and almost half of California’s law enforcement officers work for municipal police departments. Staffing levels continued to drop in 2022, though losses vary across agencies.
blog post Commentary: On California Funding Formula’s 10th Anniversary, Celebrate Progress but Double Down on Fairness By Julien Lafortune, Bruce Fuller Dec 1, 2023 Enacted in 2013, the Local Control Funding Formula shifted state K–12 dollars to increase support for districts serving greater shares of low-income students and English Learners. We look at advances in student performance under this funding approach—and where further work is needed.
