Adam Echelman

After withholding roughly $900 million from California’s K-12 and adult schools, the U.S. Education Department said Friday that it will release the money starting next week. But schools must agree to certain conditions first.

President Trump cut AmeriCorps, laying off over 5,600 of California’s public service workers. Because of a lawsuit, the state’s program can restart, at least temporarily, but schools and disaster relief sites are still reeling from staffing shortages.

2025 is shaping up to be a banner year for legislation aimed at boosting new housing construction. Rental rights bills are facing an “uphill battle.”

San Diego’s community college district finds itself directly in Trump’s crosshairs: Its “pride centers” were the only items called out by name in the administration’s plan to slash more than $10 billion of federal spending on education.

Following CalMatters reporting, California’s Republican representatives are calling for the U.S. Department of Education and Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate how California’s community colleges are handling financial aid fraud.

Federal programs offer financial aid and counseling to low-income and first-generation college students. California was allowed to include students without legal status, which the Trump administration is now ending.

In 2019, his first year in office, Gov. Gavin Newsom launched the Cradle-to-Career Data System, a new state entity that aims to track students’ progress from preschool through employment. The data system was supposed to release its first public dashboard last spring.

California’s community colleges are experimenting with a new model, known as competency-based education, but at one school, it’s created a divide between faculty and college administrators.

In numerous lawsuits, conservative professors and students allege that California’s community colleges are hindering their right to free speech under the First Amendment.

California voters passed Proposition 3, which enshrines the right to marry into the state’s constitution. While same-sex marriage is already legal, Prop. 3 ensures that LGBTQ+ couples can continue to marry even if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns landmark cases.

This November, California voters will decide on Proposition 2, a $10 billion education bond. Some community colleges are counting on the money to fix critical buildings and protect the safety of students.

Adults without high school diplomas can attend community college, but few of them receive financial aid, even when they’re eligible. A new proposal from Gov. Gavin Newsom and California Community Colleges Chancellor Sonya Christian aims to fix that. But it may be too late.