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Chico Unified reports $4.8M for expanded learning, $3.5M block grant in 45‑day budget update
Summary
At the Aug. 20 meeting, Chico Unified reported a 45‑day budget update including roughly $800,000 for TK ratio changes, a $3.5 million student support discretionary block grant (one-time), and $4.8 million in expanded-learning funding; staff said most one-time dollars will be spent on time-limited priorities and planning is ongoing.
Chico Unified fiscal staff told trustees on Aug. 20 that state budget changes have added new funding streams to the district’s 2025–26 plan, including $4.8 million for expanded learning opportunities and a $3.5 million student support discretionary block grant.
“On the unrestricted side… the ratio change for our TK program … that was about 800,000 that’s coming in,” a fiscal director, Jacqueline, told the board during the district’s 45‑day budget update. She said the district also received restoration of a 10% cut to learning-recovery funding and a one-time student-support block grant of approximately $3.5 million.
Jacqueline and other staff explained the expanded learning allocation reflects the district’s move to Tier 1 funding under new state rules for districts with an unduplicated pupil count above 55%, producing about $4.8 million to support a TK–6 nine‑hour day and additional days outside the school year. Staff said there is a one‑year grace period for full implementation and the district aims to ramp up services in time for second semester.
Board members pressed staff on the distinction between recurring and one‑time dollars. Fiscal staff said the $3.5 million block grant is one‑time and must be spent by the state deadline; the $4.8 million expanded‑learning funds are ongoing under the state tiering but will require months of planning to stand up programs, adjustments to nutrition services and custodial schedules, and staffing considerations.
The district also reported initial student-enrollment snapshots—about 12,336 students in the first days of the year, compared with a first‑day snapshot of 12,445 a year earlier—and staff said numbers typically fluctuate before the October census date.
Next steps: staff will continue planning how to allocate one‑time funds (staff identified school safety as a potential priority) and return to the board with implementation details and timelines for expanded-learning rollout.
