John Fensterwald

San Jose

Editor-At-Large at EdSource

Reporter/Editor at Large @EdSource – comprehensive site exploring news, views, policies & data of California early ed, K-12, higher ed #CAStudentsMatter

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Articles

Legislature rejects ‘draconian’ cuts to UC and CSU, keeps TK-12 funding intact

2 weeks ago | sfchronicle.com | Emma Gallegos |Amy DiPierro |John Fensterwald

Students bike past UC Davis Memorial Union. California’s public universities in January were told by Gov. Gavin Newsom to expect an 8% ongoing funding cut, a figure he revised down to 3% in May. Andri Tambunan/Special to The ChronicleStudents outside the J. Paul Leonard Library at San Francisco State University. Lea Suzuki/The ChronicleThe Legislature is challenging Gov.
High school redesign, dropping enrollment’s silver lining plus more budget miscellany

3 weeks ago | localnewsmatters.org | John Fensterwald |Zaidee Stavely

INSIDE EVERY GOVERNOR’S VOLUMINOUS state budget are items that, while not headline-grabbing, are newsworthy and illuminating. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s May budget revision for 2025-26 is no exception, as four examples illustrate. One invites districts to redesign high schools; another adds a billion dollars to spur growth in learning. A third is a quick fix for a legal obstacle to help young English learners; a fourth reveals an important long-term funding trend. Here are the details.
High school redesign, dropping enrollment’s silver lining plus more budget miscellany

3 weeks ago | flipboard.com | John Fensterwald

1 hour agoA Chinese Harvard graduate's speech calling for unity in a divided world, delivered days after the US vowed to "aggressively" revoke Chinese students' visas, has sparked mixed reactions in the US and her home country. "We don't rise by proving each other wrong. We rise by refusing to let one another …
Legislative Analyst’s Office criticizes Newsom’s education budget for risky funding practices

3 weeks ago | edsource.org | John Fensterwald

Sen. John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, right, listens as Ken Kapphahn of the Legislative Analyst's Office critiques Gov. Gavin Newsom's proposed education budget at a hearing on May 22. Credit: State Senate Media Archive Top TakeawaysA drop in project state revenue projections from January to May, while avoiding cuts, would compound a dilemma. Newsom also would increase funding for early literacy and after-school programs.
High school redesign, dropping enrollment’s silver lining plus more budget miscellany

3 weeks ago | edsource.org | John Fensterwald

Credit: Allison Shelley for EDUimages Top TakeawaysDeclining enrollments are painful for districts, yet may yield revenue options for the state. With $15 million, districts would brainstorm new concepts for high schools of the future. There’s a catch-22 for English learners who are too young to be tested. Inside every governor’s voluminous state budget are items that, while not headline-grabbing, are newsworthy and illuminating. Gov.
No cuts for schools, more funding for early literacy in Newsom’s revised budget

1 month ago | stocktonia.org | John Fensterwald |Diana Lambert |Emma Gallegos |Amy DiPierro |Diana Lambert |Karen D'Souza | +3 more

TK-12 schools and community colleges can expect the same funding in 2025-26 that they received this year, plus a small cost-of-living adjustment, and there will be a big boost for early literacy, Gov. Gavin Newsom revealed Wednesday in the revision to his January state budget plan.
No cuts for schools in the state budget

1 month ago | smdailyjournal.com | John Fensterwald |Diana Lambert |Emma Gallegos |Amy DiPierro

Schools and community colleges will be shielded from the pain facing other state services because of the revised forecast of a $12 billion drop in state revenues — which Newsom blamed on the “Trump slump,” the president’s erratic tariff and economic policies that are affecting California. For the University of California and California State University, the news was better than anticipated.
No cuts for schools, more funding for early literacy, in Newsom’s revised 2025-26 budget

1 month ago | edsource.org | John Fensterwald

Gov. Gavin Newsom presents his revised 2025-2026 state budget during a news conference in Sacramento on May 14, 2025. Credit: AP Photo/Rich PedroncelliTK-12 schools and community colleges can expect the same funding in 2025-26 that they received this year, plus a small cost-of-living adjustment, and there will be a big boost for early literacy, Gov. Gavin Newsom revealed Wednesday in the revision to his January state budget plan.
Districts still have learning recovery money: Why not spend it on tutoring?

1 month ago | stocktonia.org | John Fensterwald

A recent visit to Alpha: Cornerstone Academy, a TK-8 charter school in San Jose, offered a glimpse of high-impact tutoring. It was during the intervention period in third grade, when teacher specialists work in small groups. In one corner, four girls and a boy in their maroon Alpha school shirts sat around a horseshoe table, listening intently through earphones to their personal tutor from Ignite Reading, a growing Oakland-based public benefit corporation operating in 20 states.
A policy analyst forecasts how the May state budget revision will impact school funding

1 month ago | edsource.org | John Fensterwald

Ahead of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s release of his revised 2025-26 budget on Wednesday, John Fensterwald checked in with longtime budget watcher Rob Manwaring for his thoughts on what to expect. Manwaring is a fiscal and policy advisor for the nonprofit advocacy organization Children Now. TranscriptEvery year, by May 15, the governor has to revise his proposed budget, and this is when the budget season really kicks off.

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John Fensterwald @jfenster

15 May 25

What's in (big money for early literacy) and what's not (nothing for ethnic studies) in @GavinNewsom's May revision? A readable summary of TK to UC by my colleagues #CAbudget #CAed https://t.co/uYWYFqipl4

John Fensterwald @jfenster

3 May 25

Regents name University of Texas Chancellor James Milliken as next UC president #CAed by @michaelburke47 @amydipierro https://t.co/q3iCUf9hYa

John Fensterwald @jfenster

3 May 25

RT @LashericaT: Federal funding cuts to @AmeriCorps could devastate 87 local programs across California. https://t.co/eFncMKyRqD via @eds…

John Fensterwald

Articles

Legislature rejects ‘draconian’ cuts to UC and CSU, keeps TK-12 funding intact

High school redesign, dropping enrollment’s silver lining plus more budget miscellany

High school redesign, dropping enrollment’s silver lining plus more budget miscellany

Legislative Analyst’s Office criticizes Newsom’s education budget for risky funding practices

High school redesign, dropping enrollment’s silver lining plus more budget miscellany

No cuts for schools, more funding for early literacy in Newsom’s revised budget

No cuts for schools in the state budget

No cuts for schools, more funding for early literacy, in Newsom’s revised 2025-26 budget

Districts still have learning recovery money: Why not spend it on tutoring?

A policy analyst forecasts how the May state budget revision will impact school funding

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