Adult education hard-hit by changes in school spending rules, study finds
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Adult education programs were hard-hit by changes in spending rules for school districts struggling to keep basic operations going during California's budget crisis, according to a new study released Thursday.
The spending mandates for formerly required programs, such as adult education, ended when the state slashed targeted funding for them by 20% in 2009, while also approving steep cuts to basic education dollars.
Local school officials took advantage of new-found flexibility by reducing spending on suddenly optional offerings by well more than 20%.
Eight of the 10 school districts in the study “reduced adult education programs, often sharply,” wrote the researchers.
“Spending on core instructional materials, including textbooks, was also reduced in the majority of districts," the report stated. "Special instructional activities for gifted and talented students were