State Board president urges sustained recovery investments, TK rollout, community schools and teacher preparation

Linda Darling Hammond, president of the State Board of Education, testified to the Assembly subcommittee on the state's learning-recovery needs and priorities. She told lawmakers the cohort of students tested in 2023–24 included a larger share of children from low-income families than in prior years: "65 percent of our test takers in 2023–24 came from low income families," she said, noting that homelessness and other student needs have increased and that the population of English learners and students with disabilities showed higher needs upon entry.

Why it matters: Hammond asked the committee to consider where state investments are producing gains and where programs should be sustained or integrated into core funding. She pointed to evidence that tutoring, summer learning and community-school models are associated with stronger recovery outcomes in districts that implemented them effectively.

Key points from testimony: - Pandemic context and demographics: Hammond outlined rising student needs — poverty, homelessness and instances of higher need among newly tested English learners — and cautioned that these shifts complicate comparisons with pre-pandemic test results. - Program effectiveness: Citing national and state data, Hammond said districts emphasizing tutoring, expanded learning time and community schools showed larger improvements. She noted NAEP declines nationally but said California's decline was smaller and that some districts have regained ground. - Transitional kindergarten and early literacy: Hammond highlighted ongoing TK rollout and said most districts are offering full‑day TK (generally four hours or more) or wrapping TK with expanded-learning supports; she urged continued attention to ratios and workforce needed to meet TK requirements. - Community schools and braided funding: Hammond recommended integrating effective, locally driven community‑school models into the state's finance and reporting systems rather than leaving them as time-limited categorical grants; she cited evidence of improved attendance and early outcomes in grantee sites. - Teacher workforce and preparation: She urged continued investments in recruitment and retention — including national board certification, loan-repayment proposals and programs shown to increase teacher retention and effectiveness — and flagged the effect of pensions, healthcare and climate-driven school closures on district budgets and operations. - Middle-school design: Hammond recommended reconsidering traditional middle-school models, encouraging K–8 or redesigned middle schools that maintain advisory teams and adult relationships to prevent the achievement drop often seen at the middle grades.

Ending: Hammond urged lawmakers to harden successful investments into the system — particularly those that reduce chronic absenteeism, support early literacy and strengthen the teacher pipeline — and recommended investing in sustainable programmatic structures rather than only one-time grants.