The Local Control Funding Formula, executed in part through the Local Control and Accountability Plans, allows California school districts to allocate funds based on their needs as identified through goals and action items. This research project sheds light on the extent to which the funds have been utilized in the classroom and at the school…

Although environmental education (EE) scholars celebrate the diversity of organizations that engage in this work, the challenge remains how to bring these organizations together. Over the last decade, scholars have called for building bridges, but we still know very little about organizational networking and integration processes in EE. In this…

The role of a school district superintendent demands a balance of professional leadership and political astuteness. Individuals in this role possess distinct skills, values, and beliefs essential for navigating its complexities. This mixed-method phenomenological study employs self-reported values, decision-making styles, and interviews to explore…

The purpose of this study was to identify how school districts are allocating and providing services and support for foster youth as documented in the California Local Control and Accountability Plans (LCAP) under the Local Control Funding Formula. The study sought to identify specific and unique supports intended solely for foster youth. A…

This collection of reflections serves as a companion to the California Collaborative's report, "Keeping the Main Thing the Main Thing: Lessons About Effective School Board Governance From Napa Valley and San José Unified School Districts." The report describes the experiences, practices, and learnings from two school boards in California…

Substantial research has clearly established the relationship between school attendance and indicators of student achievement over time in large, urban cities using longitudinal studies. However, there is an insufficient amount of literature that focuses on an immediate relationship in smaller, suburban areas with differing demographics. This…

Over the past five years, enrollment has declined at nearly three-quarters of California school districts, and losses are expected to continue across nearly all regions through at least the next decade. The California Department of Finance (DOF) projects enrollment to fall below 5.2 million by 2032; the federal government projects an even larger…

Public school districts across California struggle to upkeep and modernize their school facilities. For many districts, aging inventory, coupled with limited capital funding opportunities, has led to school facilities with ballooning deferred maintenance problems and classrooms that do not appropriately support modern instructional practices.…

We describe the contours of one leadership preparation partnership between a university and urban high school district, to demonstrate the affordances that have allowed the partnership to process and weather challenges. Critically, we describe the actual work of collaboration, presenting one extended example of learning-in-action. As such, the…

Although charter schools are frequently afforded flexibility from many state laws that govern traditional public schools, a growing number of charter school teachers have now unionized and introduced collective bargaining to the charter sector. Using data from a detailed content analysis of teacher CBAs from California, we compare the…

Across the United States, there is an increased interest in improving school climate, reflecting a deepening understanding of the foundational role that school climate can play in supporting students' well-being, learning, and development. School climate is constructed from norms, expectations, and interpersonal relationships that come together to…

Throughout the research conducted for WestEd's recent brief, "Schools Can't Do It Alone: Developing Sustainable Systems of Care for School-Based Behavioral Health in California," local educational agencies (LEAs) expressed a need for technical assistance (TA) in a variety of areas to improve student behavioral health outcomes. Needed…

The dissertation examines elementary school principals' experiences of getting hired for their current position. The participating principals self-reported leadership skillsets. Next, they were asked to what degree they felt they possessed and were able to display the skillset. The results give readers, and future researchers, a glimpse of what…

Student absenteeism is a persistent concern in K-12 education. Not only are the negative academic and social consequences of excessive absenteeism well documented, but states, districts, and schools are increasingly being held accountable for student attendance. As research indicates that disruptions in students' learning contexts may exacerbate…

This article traces the state takeover and neoliberal reconstruction of a mid-size urban school district in the California Bay Area. Aligning with research on social networks in school reform, it identifies three organizational nodes of power operating within the takeover and post-takeover landscape: venture-philanthropic capital, the Teach for…