KALW NewsRoom

Sacramento, CA (2008-06-03) The Sacramento School District seeks to reform its large high schools by creating smaller learning communities on school grounds.

Educating Gifted and Talented Students

San Francisco, CA (2008-06-03) In a time of budget cuts, public schools work to educate gifted and talented students.

LUCHA and Small School Reform

San Jose, CA (2008-06-03) The story of parent-driven reform in San Jose's Alum Rock School District

California's Education Budget Crisis

Davis, CA (2008-06-03) A look at how schools pushing for reform struggle in the face of statewide budget crunches.

The Newcomer's Education

Oakland, CA (2008-02-19) When it comes to educating recent immigrants, the needs of a family, a school, and the state can be at odds with one another. (Please note that the family in this piece is undocumented. The family members' names have been changed to protect their identities.)

KIPP Charter Schools

San Francisco, CA (2008-04-30) A profile of KIPP schools, which are a national charter school system focusing on educating low-income students.

The Controversial Light Brown Apple Moth Spray

San Francisco, CA (2008-04-23) Debate rages on over California's plans to spray Bay Area cities with a chemical this summer, to control the crop-damaging Light Brown Apple Moth. One of the biggest points of disagreement is whether or not the delayed-release pheromones pose a health risk to humans. Many parents and environmentalists are worried... but the state agencies in charge of the spraying insist it will be safe. Who's right?

The Black Exodus of 1858

San Francisco, CA (2008-04-23) The percentage of African-Americans living in San Francisco has been in decline for more than a decade, so that's hardly news. A fact you may not know, however, is that 150 years ago, the city's Black population dropped by more than 25 percent in just one week. Events are being held this week to commemorate that period, including one at San Francisco's Hyde Street pier...

The Transformation of Edna Brewer Middle School

Oakland, CA (2008-04-02) Five years ago, elementary school parents considering private schools for their children decided to work together to help their local public middle school thrive.

Jumpstart to Literacy

San Francisco, CA (2008-03-19) What's a tortoise got to do with literacy? San Francisco kids find out in a program designed to give them a leg up on learning.

Jobs for Youth

San Francisco, CA (2008-02-22) A non-profit program helps teens in need find good jobs with local businesses.

The Teens and Machines that help San Franciscans Vote

San Francisco, CA (2008-02-22) Voting in San Francisco would be much different, and probably much more difficult, were it not for new technologies and the people who know how to use them.

Yes! Reading

San Francisco Bay Area (2008-02-15) A Bay Area non-profit called "Yes! Reading" provides mentors to help elementary school kids develop literacy.

Oakland Teachers High Dropout Rate

Oakland, CA (2008-01-15) In Oakland most kids don't make it through high school. High violence, poverty and incarceration rates are just some of the factors that pull kids in different directions. As school becomes one of the few constants in student's lives, the burden of support falls heavily on the shoulders of teachers. But that kind of commitment takes energy and time, and in the Oakland unified school district nearly a third of the teachers, themselves, drop out.

Lennar Corporation and the Cleanup of Bayview/Hunters Point

San Francisco, CA (2008-01-15) San Francisco's southeastern neighborhoods, known as Bayview/Hunters Point, are some of the most beautiful parts of the city, with sprawling views of the Bay and downtown. But they are also some of the city's most environmentally hazardous. Heavy industry and military work have left a toxic legacy in the soil. Lennar Corporation has contracted to redevelop much of Bayview/Hunters Point, but first there must be a significant cleanup. What is, and is not, being done?

An Introduction to Lennar Corporation

San Francisco, CA (2008-01-08) One corporation is handling the redevelopment of several military bases around the Bay Area. And its presence, and motivation, is being questioned in San Francisco's Bayview/Hunters Point. Who is Lennar Corporation?

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors and John Q. Public

San Francisco, CA (2007-12-12) Part of the purpose of the board's public meetings is to allow ordinary citizens to bend the ears of elected officials. But that doesn't always happen to everyone's satisfaction.

The Hayward Fault is Set to Quake

San Francisco, CA (2007-12-12) The American Geophysical Union is holding its annual convention in San Francisco. That has drawn some 15 thousand people to the Moscone Center, and called attention to the high potential of earthquakes in the Bay Area.

Berkeley Schools Desegregation

Berkeley, CA (2007-12-03) 50 years after 'The Little Rock 9' first helped to integrate America's schools, districts across the country still find themselves heavily segregated. A recent Supreme Court ruling has many wondering if school segregation is here to stay. But in Berkeley, an integration plan has been working effectively for nearly four decades, and other school districts are taking notice.

Think College Now!

Oakland, CA (2007-11-30) Parents, teachers and administrators have gotten together to create a college prep elementary school in the Oakland Unified School District.