Education

Under his May budget plan, Newsom wants the UC and CSU to get more state student housing in 2023-24, but the universities would have to borrow the money through bonds. The state would pay the interest on the bonds annually. Legislative analysts say the state may be overcommitting given far lower projected tax revenues.

The UC Student Association is calling for California to spend millions more on disability services at the university, as disabled students report long wait times to access the academic accommodations they say they need to succeed. On some campuses, students say they have waited months for accommodations — such as recorded lectures and extra time for assignments — to be approved by university disability specialists, who are responsible for as many as 600 students at a time.

As the state moves to require dyslexia screening in public schools, experts say teachers need to embrace the “science of reading” approach that emphasizes phonics.

Newsom is closing and downsizing prisons across the state, putting the future of over a thousand incarcerated students at risk. College administrators say they have few resources to help.

In the latest of our ‘Ask CJN’ series, Cal State Northridge student Isabella Warren asks what colleges are doing to support students on academic probation. That probation status is supposed to be a wake-up call for students, but campuses vary in their approach. Some, we found, are experimenting with new ways to reduce the stigma and retain students.

With thousands of homeless and food insecure students, state legislators funded new programs to offer support to community colleges. CalMatters asked each college how it’s going.

Tens of thousands of undocumented students in California are potentially eligible for financial aid from the state and public universities. But only 14% of undocumented students actually receive it, according to a recent report by the California Student Aid Commission. Students, counselors and the commission itself are calling for improvements in the application process and greater support for undocumented students trying to navigate it.

Students at high-poverty schools pose challenges that can cause many newer teachers to leave. But some teachers with decades of experience stay at those schools because they believe they can make a difference in students' lives.

More than a year of mudslinging between the higher education systems has led to delays and anger over the issue of awarding bachelor’s degrees at community colleges. Legislators, frustrated by the lack of progress, are getting involved.

Undergraduate student assistants at California State University are mounting a union organizing campaign, calling for more work hours, paid sick time and higher wages.