Report Targeted K–12 Funding and Student Outcomes By Julien Lafortune Oct 6, 2021 As students return to the classroom, record-high funding through the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) will help California districts address gaps after a year of remote learning. In this report, we examine school and district spending against trends in student outcomes to offer insight into whether the LCFF is meeting its goal of improving equity in education.
blog post Unhealthy Air May Threaten Educational Outcomes By Laurel Abowd, Julien Lafortune, Paulette Cha Sep 16, 2021 Exposure to air pollution—already a concern for children’s health—may also contribute to lower academic achievement.
blog post Video: Improving Career Education Pathways into California’s Workforce By Stephanie Barton Sep 7, 2021 PPIC research fellow Shannon McConville and an expert panel discuss how training programs could be designed to help more students complete credentials and advance in their careers.
blog post Helping California Schools Open Safely By Laura Hill, Mary Severance Aug 25, 2021 We spoke with Dr. Naomi Bardach, head of California’s Safe Schools for All initiative, about how this cross-agency effort is helping K–12 schools to safely return to in-person instruction.
blog post K–12 Enrollment Declines Vary across Districts By Julien Lafortune, Emmanuel Prunty Jun 16, 2021 Public school enrollment in California declined by nearly 3% between 2019–20 and 2020–21. Drops in enrollment vary across school districts, though there is little evidence that the size of the decline is related to reopening, demographics, or other district-level factors.
blog post Digging into Enrollment Drops at California Public Schools By Julien Lafortune, Emmanuel Prunty May 14, 2021 Statewide, public K–12 enrollment declined nearly 3%—or over 160,000 students—in 2020–21, with kindergarten numbers falling the most.
Report Vote-by-Mail and Voter Turnout in the Pandemic Election By Eric McGhee, Jennifer Paluch, Mindy Romero Apr 12, 2021 Many states changed their policies to increase voting by mail and reduce the risk from COVID-19 during the 2020 election. In California, officials took extra steps to facilitate vote-by-mail and accommodate in-person voting. This report analyzes how these policy shifts affected voter turnout in California and the nation.
blog post Pandemic or Not, Teen Mental Health Is Fragile By Paulette Cha Mar 4, 2021 Teen mental health in California had been declining prior to COVID-19. Stressors from the pandemic may be making things worse.
Report California’s Future By Ellen Hanak, Laura Hill, Hans Johnson, Caroline Danielson ... Jan 15, 2021 This multi-topic publication highlights the state’s most pressing long-term policy challenges in several key areas: criminal justice, economy, education, safety net, and water and a changing climate.
blog post Commentary: To Help Address Learning Disparities, Boost Internet Access for Low-Income Students By Niu Gao, Julien Lafortune, Laura Hill Jan 6, 2021 Since the COVID-19 pandemic began last spring, California has made substantial progress in expanding access to digital devices needed for K–12 distance learning. But inequities in access to broadband internet remain a challenge.
