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Fact Sheets


Fact Sheet
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Fact Sheet
| To fully grasp the complexities of education funding in the United States and understand why money matters, it is essential to examine the unique challenges American schools face, the costs associated with providing a high-quality education, and research on the impact of increasing and decreasing education funding.
Fact Sheet
Stressed teacher sitting at a desk in a classroom.
Fact Sheet
| Low pay and high credentialing costs make it difficult to build a diverse, stable teacher workforce. Policies reducing student loan debt can ease financial barriers for teachers while improving recruitment and retention. Federal strategies, supported by state and local actions, can address these strains and strengthen the teaching profession.
Fact Sheet
Two high school students working together on a laptop.
Fact Sheet
| California’s Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), enacted in 2013, created a simpler and more equitable K-12 education finance system. Research indicates it has helped to improve student outcomes and points to challenges in its fiscal design and opportunities to strengthen it.
Fact Sheet
A teacher helping a student on a laptop.
Fact Sheet
| Equitable funding is vital to meet the needs of all students including English learners and low-income students, enabling targeted supports like bilingual education and social services. Understanding funding approaches and the resources needed to ensure meaningful learning opportunities is key to assessing whether states provide adequate support for student success.
Fact Sheet
A teacher helping students finger paint.
Fact Sheet
| California has recently invested over $1 billion in targeted strategies to address teacher shortages. These efforts aim to expand the teacher pipeline in critical areas, make preparation programs more affordable and accessible, and attract well-prepared educators to high-need schools. Data indicate these programs are helping to build the pipeline.
Fact Sheet
A teacher holding a plant while students view it with a microscope.
Fact Sheet
| Summer learning plays a vital role in supporting students year-round. Recognized by the federal government as a key strategy for recovering from pandemic-related learning disruptions, it was supported through ESSR funds, which have now been spent or committed. Moving forward, lessons can be learned from states that have sustained their efforts.
Fact Sheet
Collage of two photos that feature women speaking in a classroom setting.
Fact Sheet
| Texas has made compelling progress in seeding, sustaining, and scaling up paid teacher residencies as a strategy for building robust statewide teacher pipelines. Continued policy action is necessary to support existing residency programs and launch new ones.
Fact Sheet
A teacher speaking with a student in a classroom.
Fact Sheet
| As California works to better serve all students it has recently added a new long-term English learner (LTEL) category to its accountability dashboard. New research on LTEL characteristics, locations, and academic performances will be key to helping LTELs reach English proficiency.
Fact Sheet
A group of students working collaboratively on an assignment in a library.
Fact Sheet
| Studies link positive school climate to lower teacher attrition rates and several positive student outcomes, including increased academic achievement and attendance, higher graduation rates, and improved behavior. As a result, more schools and districts are collecting and using climate data to improve school environments and inform policy and practice.
Fact Sheet
Let’s Talk: Starting a Conversation About Teacher Turnover
Fact Sheet
| This interactive tool allows policymakers and practitioners to estimate the financial cost of teacher turnover and then make informed policy decisions and investments that better attract, support, and retain a high-quality teacher workforce.