SACRAMENTO – Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday unveiled a sweeping proposal to overhaul the way California education is governed, calling for structural changes he said would shift oversight from the Department of Education and redefine the role of the state’s appointed school chief.
The proposal, which is part of Newsom’s state budget plan to be released on Friday, would combine the policy-making State Board of Education with the department, which is responsible for implementing those policies. The governor said the change would better integrate education efforts from early childhood through college.
“California can no longer afford to roll back reforms that have been recommended for 100 years,” Newsom said in a statement. “These important changes will bring greater accountability, transparency, and consistency to the way we serve our students and schools.”
Few details were provided about how the role of the state superintendent of public instruction will change, beyond a greater focus on promoting coordination and alignment of education policy.
The changes will require approval from state lawmakers, who will be at the state Capitol on Thursday to deliver Newsom’s final State of the State address in his final year as governor.
The proposal would implement recommendations from a 2002 report by the state Legislature, titled “California’s Great Education System,” which described the state’s K-12 governance as disorganized and with “overlapping roles that sometimes work in conflict, to the detriment of educational services provided to students.” Newsom’s office said similar concerns have been raised repeatedly since the 1920s and echoed in a December 2025 report by the policy analysis center Policy Analysis for California Education.
“The sad reality of California’s education system is that very few schools can now provide the conditions in which the State can reasonably hold students to high standards, let alone prepare them to meet their future learning needs,” said a 2002 Legislature report. Those most affected are often low-income students and students of color, the report said.
“California’s education governance system is complex and often creates challenges for school leaders,” Edgar Zazueta, executive director of the Assn. of California School Administrators, said a statement provided by Newsom’s office. “As responsibilities and demands on schools continue to increase, educators need management systems designed to better support positive student outcomes.”
The current budget allocates $137.6 billion for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade education — the highest level of per-pupil funding in state history — and Newsom’s office said his proposal is aimed at ensuring that those investments translate into consistent support and improved outcomes across the country.
“For decades, the fragmented and dysfunctional structure that governs our public education system has hindered our students’ ability to succeed and thrive,” said Ted Lempert, president of the advocacy group Children Now, in a statement provided by the governor’s office. “Major change is important, and we are glad that the Governor is taking up this issue to improve the education of our children.”
