Voters in Marin County have long been willing to pass parcel taxes to fund their schools. In 2016, taxes faced unprecedented opposition from local activists; taxes in Kentfield and Mill Valley were defeated or passed by previously unheard-of narrow margins, respectively. What changed? This case study uses district financial and demographic data as…

In 2013 California adopted a new watershed state finance policy, the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) to drive more resources to students with higher needs, create more spending flexibility, and let districts decide how to spend substantial new dollars. Our analysis examines financial data from nearly all California school systems to clarify…

The PPIC Statewide Survey delivers nonpartisan, objective, advocacy-free information on the perceptions, opinions, and public policy preferences of California residents. PPIC invites input, comments, and suggestions from policy and public opinion experts and from its own advisory committee, but survey methods, questions, and content are determined…

California offers an array of state and federally funded early care and education (ECE) programs for children birth to age 5, particularly those living in or near poverty. However, California's ECE system is complex and fragmented, often making it difficult for policymakers, providers, and families to understand. This brief, which is based on the…

Early care and education (ECE) can have a positive effect on many aspects of children's development, including the language, literacy, mathematics, executive functioning, and social-emotional competencies needed for a smooth transition into kindergarten and later life success. But for many families, high-quality ECE is out of reach. California has…

Policymakers know that improving teaching in our schools requires a systemic look at many policies related to educator effectiveness. For example, teacher preparation programs need to be dramatically improved and strengthened, but without accompanying reform in compensation, even highly effective and innovative schools of education are unlikely to…

This report identifies what are thought to be smart ways to redesign career paths and compensation for California teachers. It is known which changes are most likely to improve both teaching quality and student achievement, because these changes address what really matters in schools and what motivates teachers. These are not the traditional and…

This report presents descriptive data on administrators' salaries at the University of California and California State University, faculty salaries at the California Community Colleges, and salaries of University of California medical faculty. Part 1 presents an overview of faculty salaries in the California Community Colleges and estimates the…

This report, required by the California state legislature, reviews policies and resultant compensation levels for executives in California public higher education and its community colleges. The report notes that for 1999-2000 average compensation for executives in community colleges increased by 6.8 percent for chancellors of multi-college…

This report presents descriptive data on faculty salaries at the California Community Colleges and administrators' salaries at the University of California and the California State University. Part 1 presents an overview of faculty salaries in the California Community Colleges and estimates the mean salary of full-time regular contract faculty at…

This report presents a series of data tables on staffing and salaries for the California Community Colleges. The first five tables present the number of employees by primary occupational activity; the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees by occupational activity; the number of employees by type of assignment; percent distribution and…

This report presents fall 1989 demographic, staffing, salary, and workload information on California community college employees, based on data collected from 70 of the 71 districts in the state. First, tables present the total number of district employees by primary occupational activity; the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees by…

This policy brief examines programs from California and elsewhere in the United States for attracting and retaining quality preschool and child-care staff and places these programs within the broader context of K-12 reforms. While this brief is specifically aimed at early-childhood-education planners and policymakers, it contains information for…

Data are presented on faculty salaries in the California community colleges, and selected administrative salaries at the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU) for 1985-86. Section I looks at faculty salaries for the California community colleges, including information on average salaries and salaries of part-time…

This report presents the California edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's 2008 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook." The 2008 "Yearbook" focuses on how state policies impact the retention of effective new teachers. This policy evaluation is broken down into three areas that encompass 15 goals. Broadly, these goals…