California’s draft Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan is now open for public comment. The plan details how California will adhere to the requirements of the federal education civil rights law. So, how did the state do? We took a look at the ESSA plan and looked for 5 big things:

• Ambitious, long-term goals for student success
• How each schools are performing overall, and as compared to other schools
• A meaningful plan for school improvement
• A plan to address resource inequities
• A plan to address educator equity

Overall, we think the plan is thin on details, makes too few commitments, and falls short on equity. The good news is that state has the opportunity to make changes before it submits the plan to the U.S. Department of Education in September of 2017. In our new equity alert, we provide recommendations for the state on needed improvements on each of the 5 big things.