An empty classroom at Redondo Union High School after the campus closed Monday, March 16 to prevent the spread of coronavirus. They are utterly dependent on how much money the state budget allocates each year under Proposition 98, a formula adopted by voters in 1988 that only a few wonks in and around the Capitol profess to understand – and even they often disagree.
California experienced rapid population growth over the last two decades of the 20th century, due to a wave of migration from other states and a baby boom. That translated into a 50% increase in K-12 school enrollment, eventually topping out at 6.3 million kids. The inexorable decline in enrollment is exacerbated by a startling large number of students who may be enrolled but are chronically absent – what once was known as playing hooky.
“High levels of absenteeism among the youngest students is particularly concerning since absenteeism tends to have a snowball effect: a student is more likely to be chronically absent in later grades if they are chronically absent in earlier ones,” PPIC’s report noted.