March 15, 2023 - Presented to: Senate Committee on Education
February 19, 2021 - In this post, we analyze the Governor’s proposals to address teacher shortages, as well as his proposals to provide additional professional development for school staff. For each, we provide background, describe the Governor’s proposals, assess these proposals, and offer associated recommendations.
February 23, 2022 - In this post, we provide background on teacher shortages and recruitment, describe the Governor’s proposals related to these issues, assess these proposals, and offer associated recommendations.
October 24, 2022 - This post summarizes overall Proposition 98 funding and K-12 education spending in the 2022-23 budget package. It is part of our Spending Plan series, which contains posts focused on each major sector of the state budget.
February 16, 1999 - Analysis of the 1999-00 Budget Bill, Education Chapter
March 7, 2025 - In this brief, we assess the Governor’s 2025-26 educator workforce proposals and provide associated recommendations.
April 27, 2006 - State law establishes the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) and entrusts it with accrediting teacher preparation programs, credentialing teachers, and monitoring teacher conduct. In this report, we describe each of these three teacher-quality functions, identify related shortcomings, and propose various recommendations for overcoming them. The recommendations seek to simplify existing teacher-quality processes, reduce redundancies, strengthen accountability, and foster greater coherence among education reforms. Taken as a package, these recommendations would improve how the state ensures teacher quality and eliminate CTC.
February 16, 2023 - In this brief, we provide our analysis and recommendations regarding the administration’s proposals for using available 2021-22 Proposition 98 funds.
March 29, 2023 - This statutorily required brief evaluates the California Community College Teacher Credentialing Partnership Pilot Program, which the Legislature authorized in 2018 and funded in the 2019-20 budget. The brief provides background on teacher credentialing requirements and programs, describes the authorizing legislation’s requirements, provides our findings on implementation of the pilot, assesses the pilot, and makes an associated recommendation.
February 20, 2009 - The Supplemental Report of the 2007-08 Budget Act directed our office to reexamine the state’s teacher recruitment goals and assess the effectiveness of teacher recruitment programs designed to meet those goals. This report details our findings. Although the state has spent over $1 billion in teacher recruitment activities, virtually no information exists on the effectiveness of these programs. Research on the teacher workforce, however, suggests that improving teacher support and addressing uncompetitive salaries are the most promising strategies for recruiting and retaining teachers. Thus, we recommend education agencies focus their teacher efforts in these two areas.
January 26, 2018 - In this post, we answer many questions legislators and others commonly ask about K-12 education in California. We begin by providing information on the main components of California’s public school system. We then review the state’s K-12 accountability system. Lastly, we explain the basics of school finance in California.
November 16, 2022 - Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance