With roughly 58.9% of California fully or partially vaccinated, state decision-makers look to fully reopen the state. Naturally, legislators began debating on a school reopening plan, including safety protocols for COVID-19 prevention as well as funding. Read on to discover what the resulting new bill entails with regards to additional funding and how parents can influence how those funds are spent.
What is Assembly Bill 86?
Recently, Governor Newsom and the California state legislature reached a deal on a final school reopening plan, laid out in Assembly Bill (“AB”) 86. In order to encourage schools to reopen, AB 86 provides state funding incentives for schools to bring students back on campus for in-person learning before the school year. These incentives are IN ADDITION to what schools already receive, and aimed to provide supplemental learning.
How does Assembly Bill 86 allocate state funding?
In total, AB 86 provides $4.5 billion dollars in funding to Local Educational Agencies (“LEAs”), including public school districts and charter school networks. Traditionally, the state uses the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) to determine how much money each school receives.
However, with regards to AB 86, LEAs receive funding based on the number of days students are on campus for in person learning. Funds will be allocated for Expanded Learning (i.e. out of school “hours” support for students who have disproportionately suffered academic hardships during the pandemic)
Currently, schools have until June to submit their proposals for expanded learning to the California Department of Education. By law, AB 86 dictates that schools must consult parents in the decision-making process, before a proposal with this template, can be submitted.
This means that talks around expanded learning committees are being formed right now and we need parents to be at the table.
How can you get involved?
While the funding is there, it’s up to parents to decide how the money will be spent on and be included in the plans. As stated, schools have until June 1st to turn in a budget proposal. That means that parents have time to be part of the committees and speak on what’s needed for OUR kids.
To get involved, reach out to your school principal or school district, let them know who you are, and ask them how they plan to include parents like you to decide how Assembly Bill 86 funds will be used.
If you’re having trouble, check out our sample email that you can send to your local school leaders. You may also call your school leader and use our phone script below.
There are a lot of parents advocating for their students and ensuring funds are spent on what students need. If you would like to get further involved, please contact Maria Madrigal at [email protected].
Email your school leader using this template
Dear, (School Leader Name or District Name),
My name is XX and I have XX (number of children) in XX (district) who attend XX (name of school/schools). As a parent, this year has been incredibly challenging and I am deeply concerned about the academic and social-emotional effects of the pandemic on my students and all of the students across our district and California.
I understand this is a very challenging time for school leaders as well with most schools returning back to in-person learning and I hope that things are going as smoothly as possible.
I wanted to reach out with regards to AB 86, in particular the section about extended learning. The deadline for districts to submit plans for how the federal and state funds will be used is quickly approaching on June 1, 2021. I am wondering how parents like myself have already been involved and can increasingly be involved in the decision-making process for how these funds will be spent. I believe it’s essential to have parent voices – particularly voices of low-income parents of color, English learners, and students with learning differences deeply involved in these decisions.
Please let me know your thoughts. I look forward to hearing from you soon. If there is any way I can assist you during this transition back to school, please let me know. You can reach out via email or call me at (phone number). Thank you!
Sincerely,
(Your Name)
Call your school leader using this phone script
Hello (School Leader Name or District Name),
My name is XX and I have XX (number of children) in XX (district) who attend XX (name of school/schools) and I’m calling to ask about AB 86, in particular the section about extended learning.
The deadline for districts to submit plans for how the federal and state funds will be used is quickly approaching on June 1, 2021. I am wondering how parents like myself can get involved in the decision-making process for how these funds will be spent?
I look forward to hearing from you soon. You can reach me at (phone number). Thank you!
Innovate Public Schools is a nonprofit community organization that builds the capacity of parents and educators working together to create excellent and equitable public schools.