This work comprises three articles centered around access and equity in California with a lens toward school inputs, interrogating the extent to which coursework as well as local planning efforts support student learning and progress. Using descriptive analysis, Chapter 1 examines the availability and accessibility of rigorous English courses for the census of seniors in public high schools across student and school characteristics. Findings reveal that while nearly all students enroll in college preparatory courses, college-level course enrollment is still distributed unevenly across both schools and students, emphasizing that policy must continue to focus on reducing inequitable availability and access to advanced coursework given its ties to college enrollment and attainment. Chapters 2 and 3 examine education during the COVID-19 pandemic, centering on efforts to ensure educational continuity. Through a multi-phase, mixed methods approach, Chapter 2 explores how the educational system moves toward recovery in the midst of crisis, leveraging state-level policy and district-level planning documents to identify both who and what was centered in decision-making. Results suggest that, during a crisis, equity is at the forefront of both policy and planning, threaded through accessibility to instruction as well as academic and socio-emotional supports, particularly for students from special populations. Relatedly, Chapter 3 utilizes a novel dataset constructed from district-level website information to examine how school districts adapted policies and practices in the early period of the coronavirus pandemic, finding that while districts clearly communicated their plans to meet students' basic needs, information was often limited about instruction, assessment, and attendance. Together, these analyses contribute to the literature on access and equity in K-12, underscoring that students' educational trajectories are steered by the strategies and actions taken at the local level and spotlighting the factors educational and policy leaders should remain attentive to in the future. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]