{"id":4486,"date":"2026-07-14T10:06:47","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T10:06:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4486"},"modified":"2026-07-14T10:06:47","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T10:06:47","slug":"walters-does-crowning-californias-governor-the-education-czar-mean-academic-results-will-improve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4486","title":{"rendered":"Walters: Does crowning California\u2019s governor the education czar mean academic results will improve?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In late June, after only a few minutes of discussion, both houses of the Legislature completely overhauled how California manages the nation\u2019s largest public school system and its nearly 6 million students.<\/p>\n

Read more Asking Eric: How honest do I have to be about my uncontrollable hunger?<\/a><\/p>\n

The votes for\u00a0Assembly Bill 181\u00a0\u2014 21-4 in the Senate and 52-4 in the Assembly \u2014 reflected a bipartisan consensus, rare for major issues, that the system has been failing California\u2019s children. The votes were based on an implicit, perhaps even desperate, hope that streamlining administration might raise the state\u2019s mediocre levels of academic achievement.<\/p>\n

The measure\u00a0demotes the elected state superintendent of schools\u00a0from the head of the state Department of Education to a member of the state school board and replaces the superintendent with an \u201ceducation commissioner\u201d appointed by the governor.<\/p>\n

Assemblywoman\u00a0Darshana Patel, a San Diego Democrat, research scientist and local school board member, cogently expressed that hope during the Assembly\u2019s brief floor debate.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t keep doing the same thing and expect different outcomes for our students, our schools and our communities. They are the ones who are the real victims of this misalignment of our systems and structures,\u201d she said, adding, \u201cThe proposal before you today would promote a more coherent policy making. The change will allow policy makers and the public to hold the governor accountable for educational outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The last sentence of her remarks is the key element. While the governor has always been an important member of California\u2019s complex education leadership structure, the multitude of other participants has made it easy to pass the buck when academic test results and other measures expose academic shortcomings.<\/p>\n

Suddenly undoing many decades of managerial status quo, as first proposed in Gov. Gavin Newsom\u2019s state of the state address last January, is a remarkable feat unto itself. Doing so over the opposition of the California Teachers Association elevates it to a minor political miracle.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe proposal would divert attention away from the real needs of students and schools by introducing a significant governance change that is both unnecessary and counterproductive,\u201d the powerful union wrote in a statement before AB 181\u2019s approval. \u201cThis proposal does nothing to improve student outcomes or strengthen public education.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Harriette Cole: My beloved great-aunt stayed silent when I was insulted<\/a><\/p>\n

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For decades, the teachers association and other education unions have easily gotten their favored candidates for state superintendent elected. And those chosen officials have faithfully echoed the unions\u2019 position that the key to increasing outcomes is allocating more money.<\/p>\n

School funding has increased sharply since the turn of the century, but test scores have not followed suit. Some categories, such as elementary school reading levels,\u00a0remain embarrassingly low.<\/p>\n

The first hint that change was on the table came late last year, when Policy Analysis for California Education, a consortium of education faculty at five major universities, issued a\u00a0lengthy critique of the current system. The report said California\u2019s complicated m\u00e9lange of state and local authority \u201coften results in overlapping responsibilities, fragmented authority, and challenges in ensuring streamlined decision-making.\u201d<\/p>\n

By design, the consortium\u2019s recommendations closely resembled Newsom\u2019s proposal and the final legislation.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

The obvious question is if streamlining education governance and making the governor accountable, at least on paper, for academic outcomes will merely rearrange chairs on a sinking ship, or actually generate more achievement for the\u00a0$25,000-plus that the new state budget will be spending\u00a0on each public school student.<\/p>\n

California\u2019s education establishment has been reluctant to change its mantra that more money is needed to boost results and equally reluctant to embrace improvements in instructional techniques, such as using phonics to upgrade elementary reading ability.<\/p>\n

The onus will be on Newsom\u2019s successor, most likely Xavier Becerra, to become the new schools sheriff in town.<\/p>\n

Read more Miss Manners: I wore white to the shower. Did I deserve this treatment?<\/a><\/p>\n

Dan Walters is a CalMatters columnist.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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