Education Trust—West

The Education Trust–West Responds to Governor Brown’s May Budget Revision

OAKLAND, CA (May 14, 2013) – Arun Ramanathan, Executive Director of The Education Trust—West, issued the following statement in response to Governor Brown’s May budget revision:


“The Education Trust—West applauds Governor Brown for his May budget revision. We are pleased that the Governor remains committed to his Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) proposal that would transform California’s antiquated and inequitable education finance system to a system based on student need.  We also applaud the Governor for providing additional funding to school districts to support the immediate implementation of the Common Core State Standards. We believe that this investment is in alignment with the Local Control Funding Formula and has the potential to transform teaching and learning in our schools and classrooms. We are similarly pleased that the Governor has strengthened his LCFF proposal to increase fiscal transparency and help ensure that supplementary and concentration funding benefits low-income students and English Learners. We commend Governor Brown for his commitment to educational equity and encourage the Legislature to support LCFF.”

 

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The Education Trust—West Issues Statement on Passage of California Budget

(OAKLAND, CA) The Education Trust—West issued the following statement regarding the passage of a budget for the state of California:

“The Education Trust—West is pleased that our state leaders have passed a state budget package.  However, after waiting 100 days through the state’s longest-ever budget impasse, we expected more.  This budget falls far short of the real solutions we need to solve our state’s annual budget deficit.  With K-12 education and other social services receiving the most severe cuts, our neediest children and families will once again bear the greatest sacrifice. Now more than ever, we must invest in our children or we risk the future of California.  We are long past the time for excuses and truly hope that our next Governor and Legislature can work on finding sustainable, long-term budgetary solutions that allow us to put kids first.”

EQUITY ALERT: As White House Convenes Summit on Community Colleges, New Equity Alert Reveals Too Few California Students Transfer to Four-Year Institutions

(OAKLAND, CA)  As the White House convenes the first-ever Summit on Community Colleges today, a new Equity Alert by The Education Trust—West reveals that an inexcusably low number of California community college students actually transfer to a four-year institution in order to earn a bachelor’s degree.  The Equity Alert, titled California Community Colleges: Lost in the Path to a Bachelor’s Degree, focuses on a cohort of those students who showed intent to transfer to a four-year college. According to the findings, after two years, only 6 percent of students system-wide who have shown an intent to transfer to a four-year institution were actually able to do so.  In particular, the rates of transfer for African-American and Latino students are unconscionably low. Only 4 percent of African-American students and 3 percent of Latino students who show intent to transfer actually transfer after two years.

Ed Trust—West Applauds Signing of Legislation to Help California Schools Identify Students at Risk of Academic Failure or Dropping Out

(OAKLAND, CA) The Education Trust—West applauds Governor Schwarzenegger for signing Senate Bill 1357 into law yesterday.  Authored by Senate President pro tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), the law includes attendance data in California’s longitudinal data system and moves the state towards the development of the attendance-based early warning systems that are critical for identifying students at risk of dropping out or graduating with low-levels of college or career readiness. 

Statement by California’s Leading Child Advocacy Groups on Budget Standoff

(OAKLAND, CA) – Enough is enough.  California’s state budget is now more than 80 days overdue, marking the record for the longest budget impasse in our state’s history.  Today, California’s leading advocacy groups, including Alliance for a Better Community (ABC), Californians for Justice Education Fund, Children Now, Education Trust—West, InnerCity Struggle, and Public Advocates call on state leaders to pass a budget that protects education and provides funding for other critical services for children in poverty and their families.

New Ed Trust—West Reports Dissect the Continuing Crisis in Achievement and Opportunity for African-American and Latino Students in California Schools

(OAKLAND, CA)  Two new reports from The Education Trust—West, a statewide education advocacy organization, demonstrate the disturbing impact of California’s failure to close opportunity and achievement gaps plaguing African-American and Latino children who together now make up almost 60 percent of the state’s student population.  In Opportunity Lost: The Story of African-American Achievement in California, 2010, and Futures At Risk: The Story of Latino Student Achievement in California, 2010, the group reveals a number of local school districts successfully dispelling the myth that African-American and Latino students cannot perform at grade-level or make great gains toward proficiency.  The reports call on California policymakers to no longer be satisfied with convening task forces that highlight problems everyone knows exist, and recommend that state leaders instead focus on finally implementing high-impact solutions that have long been avoided or ignored.