When California implemented the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), its core principles were to increase local decision-making authority and reduce historical funding inequities across school districts. Although these core principles were established with the intention to benefit schools in California, the new funding is having a tremendous impact on Career Technical Education (CTE). Prior to the implementation of LCFF, CTE programs received a dedicated, or categorical, funding stream. Under the LCFF provisions,districts are allowed to use the funding in any way that they wish.
CTE programs differ from other educational programs in public schools due to the fact that participation is an option. A report released by the California Legislative Analyst’s Office in 2014, states that the lines are increasingly blurred between career technical education and career pathway curriculum already put in place in local schools. This overlap, along with the fact that districts are still recovering from budget cuts, is causing a decreased incentive for schools…show more content… In order to return to prior funding levels, the LCFF restores funding to 2007-08 funding levels, adjusted for inflation. It uses the previous per student funding method, which assigns a dollar amount of funding per year to each student in a district. This is “base” funding, and is similar to prior funding methods. However, LCFF adds additional per student funds based on specific types of students, identified as “targeted” students. “Targeted” students are defined as those who are English Learners, eligible to receive a free or reduced-price meal (FRPM), foster youth, or any combination of these factors. The greater the percentage of these students a school district has, the higher their per student funding will be. Additionally, more funding is provided the higher the grade level of the student, based on certain
