ETW Press Releases

(Oakland, CA) – The College Board released the results of the 2009 Advanced Placement (AP) tests earlier this week with their 6^th Annual AP Report to the Nation.

“These AP results serve as yet another example of how California’s schools are failing to teach our African-American and Latino students to the highest levels.  And they are another indicator of the wide and pervasive achievement gaps that plague our state,” said Arun Ramanathan, Executive Director of The Education Trust—West. 

Equity among students must mean that the d

(Oakland, CA) – “Today, Governor Schwarzenegger released the details of his budget plans for the fiscal year 2010 – 2011. After two straight years of dramatic and devastating cuts to public education – we applaud the Governor’s realization that we cannot dig our way out of our fiscal crisis by forcing our education systems to bear the brunt of the cuts.”

 “That said – we are deeply concerned about cuts to health and human services programs that will undoubtedly devastate the social safety nets of the very students that attend our highest-need schools.  Policymakers should not have to choose between protecting the services that ensure children are ready to learn and the classrooms where learning occurs.”

WASHINGTON (November 9, 2009) – The Education Trust and The New Teacher Project (TNTP) today released two reports  challenging states to focus on bold reforms to increase teacher effectiveness in their applications for federal “Race to the Top” funding.

OAKLAND, CA (October 14, 2009) - Today’s results from the 2009 National Assessment of Education Progress mathematics (NAEP) released by the U.S.

OAKLAND, CA (September 2, 2009) – Results from the 2009 California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) released today by the California Department of Education (CDE) show marginal statewide improvement across both English and Math and for all ethnic groups throughout the state.

Overall, 90.6 percent of the class of 2009 passed the exam – a mere 0.2 percent higher than the class of 2008.

OAKLAND, CA (August 20, 2009) - “Governor Schwarzenegger’s call for a special session on education today means that California may have a chance to participate in the “Race to the Top” after all.

The Governor is providing clear leadership and keeping his word that California will aggressively compete for every available stimulus dollar.

OAKLAND, CA (July 27, 2009)- “Friday, the U.S. Department of Education released regulations for its ‘Race to the Top’ fund that contained sobering news for California. Our state’s ban on using student achievement data to help measure teacher effectiveness threatens our eligibility to apply for portions of the $4.35 billion fund. California’s potential exclusion from this competitive grant process is a blow to students already burdened by massive budget cuts, as well as a forceful wake-up call to state leaders.

OAKLAND, CA (July 2, 2009) - “The Governor’s recommendation to suspend the minimum funding guarantee of Proposition 98 is a crippling blow to an already wounded system of education in the state of California.  

What’s more, this recommendation flies in the face of the peoples’ will.  Californians enacted Proposition 98 in 1988 understanding the integral connection between a quality education and the quality of our state.  Proposition 98 is the safety net that ensures even in times of budgetary difficulty – there is still some pot of money focused on the stat

OAKLAND, CA (May 12, 2009) — Today, the California Department of Education (CDE) released information on high school graduation and drop-out rates. The CDE reported a four-year graduation rate of 68 percent for the class of 2008. Continuing its use of the Statewide Student Identifier (SSID) system introduced last year, the state was able to reveal a more accurate accounting of the number of students who dropped out of California’s public schools.