News Briefs | FYI
January 13, 2025
Oceanside USD launches solar power initiative
The Oceanside Unified School District Board of Education has approved an ambitious solar power initiative that will bring clean, renewable energy to district facilities at no cost to the district. This forward-thinking project is being implemented in partnership with Veregy, an energy solutions provider, through a Power Purchase Agreement. This project, approved at the Nov. 12 board meeting, marks a significant step towards energy efficiency and sustainability for OUSD, with expected annual savings of over $500,000.
The approved project will place solar arrays in parking lots across OUSD’s campuses, generating electricity that will be sold to the district at a fixed, competitive rate. Through the PPA structure, Veregy will cover all costs associated with designing, installing and maintaining the solar systems, allowing OUSD to benefit from substantial energy savings without upfront financial investment. This initiative supports OUSD’s goal of reducing energy usage and creating a more efficient, environmentally responsible footprint for district facilities.
“This partnership with Veregy represents OUSD’s commitment to sustainable, fiscally responsible energy solutions that directly benefit our schools and community,” said OUSD Superintendent Julie Vitale in a news release. “We are proud to be leading the way in implementing renewable energy solutions that align with our environmental goals and provide significant cost savings to the district.”
Educators support cell phone restrictions in school
Educators overwhelmingly support restricting student cell phone use during the school day, according to a new national survey.
On Oct. 17, the Association of American Educators released survey results revealing that 70 percent of educators support a ban on cell phone use during the entire school day, and another 26 percent support a ban on cell phone use only during class time. Less than 2 percent of survey respondents supported policies permitting unfettered cell phone use.
Furthermore, 70 percent of respondents ranked cell phones in schools as one of the top five concerns educators face for the school year. From a list of common concerns, cell phone use ranked second behind only student achievement as the greatest concern. Other top concerns selected by respondents include educator burnout and the impact of teacher shortages, both of which ranked well above gun violence and grade inflation.
According to educators, by far the most important reason (53 percent) to ban cell phones during the school day is that they are a distraction from learning. The second highest reason cited by 26 percent of the respondents is that cell phones, especially social media, negatively affect a student’s mental and/or emotional health.
Results are not weighted and based on 1,517 professional educator completed surveys, the vast majority of which are by classroom teachers in public district schools.
Survey: Cultural conflict is disrupting public schools
A new survey of 467 school superintendents across the nation finds two-thirds experiencing moderate to high levels of culturally divisive conflict that is disrupting school districts, negatively impacting schools and classrooms, and needlessly costing schools millions of dollars that could better be used to serve students.
The survey, “The Costs of Conflict, The Fiscal Impact of Culturally Divisive Conflicts on Public Schools in the United States,” examines the societal and fiscal cost of culturally divisive conflicts that have wracked schools in recent years, such as those over LGBTQ+ issues, teaching about race and racism and efforts to ban books.
Conducted by a team of researchers at UCLA, the University of Texas at Austin, American University, and UC Riverside, the survey offers insight into the level and frequency of conflicts and the personal toll and disruptive impact on school districts of misinformation and hostile and violent rhetoric and threats. In what the researchers believe is the first study to do so, the research analyzes the financial costs incurred by school districts in responding to culturally divisive conflict, estimating the cost for the nation’s public schools at approximately $3.2 billion during the 2023-24 school year.
“This research makes clear that culturally divisive conflicts in the nation’s schools are generating fear, stress and anxiety that is disrupting school districts and taking a personal toll on the educators and staff members who work in them,” said UCLA Education Professor John Rogers, the lead researcher for the survey, in a news release. “Sadly, as superintendents have told us, the cost of these conflicts not only has a financial impact but is also eroding teaching and learning and undermining the trust between schools and the communities so essential to our democracy and civic life.”
Of the 467 superintendents responding to the survey, almost all experienced some sort of culturally divisive conflict during the 2023-24 school year. The conflicts have had a direct impact on the well-being of superintendents. In survey responses and follow-up interviews, superintendents told of personal threats to themselves and their staff. Fifty percent of superintendents reported they experienced at least one instance of harassment in the 2023-24 school year. Ten percent received threats of violence, and 11 percent experienced property vandalism.
Such culturally divisive conflict likely has a direct impact on superintendent turnover. The “Cost of Conflict” survey found that among those superintendents who have sought out another position in the last year, 42 percent indicated their decision was related to school board conflict, stress and politics.
The report is published by the Institute for Education, Democracy and Access at the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies and is available at https://content.acsa.org/the-costs-of-conflict.
Bid threshold raised to $114,800 in 2025
The inflation adjusted bid threshold for K-12 school districts in 2025 has been increased from $114,500 to $114,800, according to the California Department of Education.
Effective Jan. 1, school district governing boards have to competitively bid and award any contracts involving an expenditure of more than $114,800 to the lowest responsible bidder. Contracts subject to competitive bidding include purchase of equipment, materials or supplies to be furnished, sold or leased to the school district and repairs as defined by Public Contract Code.
This threshold does not apply to construction services — the bid limit for construction projects remains at $15,000 and is not adjusted for inflation.
FYI
Strike preparation training available to ACSA members
Are you prepared? ACSA offers strike preparation training to school districts. The assistance includes step-by-step guidance on what to expect and how to prepare should a strike occur. To make an appointment with an ACSA strike expert, please contact memberservices@acsa.org.
CAAASA to hold annual conference in Los Angeles
The California Association of African-American Superintendents and Administrators will hold its 2025 statewide professional development summit March 26-28, 2025 at the Loews Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles. The theme is Promoting Black Student Achievement: Programs and Policies to Fulfill the Promise of Brown.” Sessions will highlight research, evidence-based strategies, resources and solutions that accelerate educational growth for African-American and other students of color. Keynote speaker will be Bettina L. Love, professor at Columbia University and author of “Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal.” Register at www.caaasa.org/2025conference.
Free webinar series explores news and media literacy
The CDE is continuing to work with the News Literacy Project in conjunction with county offices of education in Santa Clara, Fresno, and San Diego, and the California School Library Association to bring you a series of free virtual webinars with resources for educators to help hone their students’ news and media literacy skills. Upcoming webinars: Feb. 20: Artificial Intelligence Awareness and the Research Process; March 20: Algorithms, Building Search Habits; April 17: Making Sense of Data. For more information, visit newslit.org/ca-doe-fy25-webinar-series-flyer.