This bill designates February 26, 2026, as "Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day" to highlight the importance of encouraging young women to pursue careers in engineering. The measure serves as a commemorative resolution rather than creating new laws or funding requirements. It does not alter existing policies or directly affect government operations, but instead establishes a specific date for awareness and celebration.
This measure would proclaim March 2026 as Arts Education Month and urge all residents to become interested in and give full support to quality arts education programs for children and youth.
This bill designates the week of March 2 through March 6, 2026, as "School Breakfast Week." It serves as a ceremonial proclamation to raise awareness about school breakfast programs without changing any laws or funding. The measure directly affects schools and communities by encouraging focus on nutrition initiatives during that specific time period. As a commemorative resolution, it does not alter policy or require new actions from government officials.
This bill designates March 22, 2026, as California STEAM Robotics Day to recognize the importance of robotics within science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics education. The measure directly affects schools and educational organizations across the state by providing a specific date for them to host events or activities focused on robotics. It does not create new funding, change laws, or mandate specific actions, but rather serves as a formal proclamation to raise awareness about the field. The legislation was passed by the state legislature and signed into law as part of the 2026 statutes.
This measure would recognize February 2026 as the centennial anniversary of Black History Month, urge all citizens to join in celebrating the accomplishments of African Americans during Black History Month, and encourage the people of California to recognize the many talents of African Americans and the achievements and contributions they make to their communities to create equity and equality for education, economics, and social justice. The measure would recognize the significance in protecting the fundamental human rights enshrined in the United States Constitution and its Amendments, the United States Bill of Rights, and the California Constitution, as specified. The measure would also affirm the commitment of the Legislature all people are equal and shall be treated with respect and dignity and shall enjoy the equal application of the law for which the Legislature has been entrusted.
This Senate Resolution officially recognizes March 2, 2026, as Read Across America Day in California. The measure is sponsored by the Senate and aligns with the California Teachers Association to promote literacy and reading among students. It commemorates the national campaign that encourages participation from educators, families, and community leaders on Dr. Seuss's birthday. The resolution does not create new laws or funding but serves as a formal acknowledgment of the event's importance to education.
Existing federal law establishes the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer for Children (Summer EBT) program, under which pupils who are eligible for free and reduced-price school meals receive $40 per month, with specified adjustments, during summer months for grocery benefits. Existing federal regulations require, by 2025, the designated state agency to make a Summer EBT application available to households whose children are enrolled in schools participating in the National School Lunch Program or the School Breakfast Program and who do not already have an individual eligibility determination. Existing state law requires the State Department of Social Services, as the lead agency in partnership with the State Department of Education, to maximize participation in the Summer EBT program. Existing law requires the governing board of a school district and the county superintendent of schools to make paper applications for free or reduced-price meals available to pupils at all times during each regular schoolday. Existing law authorizes those entities to make an application electronically available online if the online application complies with certain requirements, including, among others, the inclusion of links to certain internet websites providing information on, and applications for, other government programs, such as CalFresh. This bill, the Stop Child Hunger Act of 2025, would require, upon an appropriation made by the Legislature, the State Department of Education, with support from the State Department of Social Services, to comply with the above-described federal regulations by developing, and providing families with, a statewide application that is made available through a single statewide internet website that enables families to submit federally required information relating to the Summer EBT program, as specified. The bill would require the internet website to, among other things, have the capability of routing a family's completed information to the family's local educational agency to determine Summer EBT eligibility. The bill would require the governing board of a school district, a county superintendent of schools, and the governing body of a charter school to make the above-described paper applications available if required by federal law and guidance, as specified. The bill would require the governing board of a school district, a county office of education, the governing body of a charter school, or a school food authority that provides an application online for free or reduced-price meals, as described above, to also provide links to the internet website providing information about the Summer EBT program. To the extent that the bill would create new duties for local educational agencies or county or other local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
This Senate Resolution designates February 2026 as Montessori Month in California to honor the educational contributions of Dr. Maria Montessori and the state's Montessori schools. The measure recognizes the Montessori Method's focus on child development, independence, and peace education, and acknowledges the presence of hundreds of public and private Montessori schools across the state. Additionally, the resolution encourages the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to work toward creating certification pathways for Montessori-trained educators to obtain Child Development Permits.
This Senate Resolution recognizes and celebrates school board members across California for their work in public education. It declares January 2026 as School Board Recognition Month to honor the dedication of nearly 5,000 locally elected school board members who serve on over 1,000 school districts and county offices of education. The resolution urges community members to support local school boards and work together to improve the education system for all children. This is a commemorative measure rather than a policy change, as it does not alter existing laws or regulations.
(1) The Leroy F. Greene School Facilities Act of 1998 provides for the adoption of rules, regulations, and procedures, under the administration of the Director of General Services, for the allocation of state funds by the State Allocation Board for the construction and modernization of public school facilities. The act permits a school district to apply for hardship assistance in cases of extraordinary circumstances. The act requires, for health and safety projects for school facilities that are determined by the Department of General Services to pose an unacceptable risk of injury to occupants in the event of a seismic event, a school district to demonstrate that certain conditions are satisfied, including that the school facilities are needed to ensure the health and safety of pupils if the health and safety of pupils is at risk. This bill would apply the above-described provisions to health and safety projects for school facilities that are determined by the Department of General Services to pose an unacceptable risk of injury to occupants in the event of a wildfire, flood, or other state of emergency proclaimed by the Governor, and would specify that the above-described condition includes ending the disruption to the delivery of educational services due to damage to, or destruction of, school facilities. The bill, for projects approved under these provisions, would authorize a school district to employ any project delivery method authorized under existing law to support concurrent coordination and approval by the State Department of Education, the State Architect, and the State Allocation Board for expedited permitting, approval, and construction processes, and would authorize those state agencies to use machine learning to automate nondiscretionary aspects of those processes. The bill would also authorize a school district to use machine learning to prepare documents and materials for the permitting process for these projects. (2) Existing law requires the State Department of Education to take specified actions relating to the construction of school facilities, including to establish standards for use by school districts to ensure that the design and construction of school facilities are educationally appropriate and promote school safety. This bill would require the department, the Division of the State Architect, the Office of Public School Construction, and the State Allocation Board, beginning July 1, 2026, and every 5 years thereafter, to engage the Government Operations Agency to collaboratively review the processes relating to school design and construction to identify short-term, intermediate, and long-term improvements that can be made to those processes. The bill would require those entities, on or before December 1, 2026, and every 5 years thereafter, to submit a report to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature that identifies process changes to streamline how local educational agencies receive the approval required for school construction and secure state funding. The bill would require the report required on or before December 1, 2026, to also address specified priorities, including, among other things, implementation of specific timeframes for the Division of the State Architect to review submitted proposals and the development of an alternative project delivery method specific to the need to expedite school reconstruction and repair in the aftermath of an emergency.
