Control (or Command) + F is your friend!

AB

Assembly Bill — A bill introduced in the California State Assembly that becomes state law if passed by the legislature and signed by the governor. Notable bills referenced in this project:

• AB 490 — California law establishing educational rights for foster youth, including school stability, immediate enrollment, and partial credit for coursework.
• AB 1200 — California law giving county offices of education fiscal oversight authority over school districts.
• AB 1505 (2019) — California law expanding district authority to deny charter school petitions based on fiscal impact, community interest, and program duplication.
• AB 1840 (2018) — California law providing one-time state payments to Oakland Unified and Inglewood Unified tied to fiscal conditions including school consolidation.
• AB 1912 (2022) — California law requiring financially distressed districts to conduct equity impact analyses and community engagement before closing schools.

ACOE

Alameda County Office of Education — The county agency that holds fiscal oversight authority over Oakland Unified School District.

ADA

Average Daily Attendance — A daily count of students physically present at school, which serves as the basis for California public school funding.

ASES

After School Education & Safety — A state-funded program that supports after-school academic and enrichment programming.

BSA

Budget Stabilization Account — A California state reserve fund that can be drawn on during economic downturns to maintain government services.

CAC

Special Education Community Advisory Committee — A district parent body that provides special education oversight.

CalPERS

California Public Employees' Retirement System — The state agency that administers retirement and health benefits for many district employees.

CAST

California Science Test — The state's required science assessment given to students in grades five, eight, and once in high school.

CBO

Chief Business Officer — The top financial executive at a school district, responsible for budgeting, accounting, and fiscal operations.

CCEE

California Collaborative for Educational Excellence — A state agency that provides support and technical assistance to struggling school districts.

CCSA

California Charter Schools Association — The statewide advocacy and political organization representing charter schools.

CCSPP

California Community Schools Partnership Program — A state grant program that funds community schools offering integrated student and family services.

CDE

California Department of Education — The state agency that oversees public schools and administers education policy and funding.

CDS Code

County-District-School Code — A unique identifier assigned by the state to every public school in California.

CEA

Common Equitable Assessment — A district-wide interim assessment used by teachers to measure student progress in specific subjects.

COLA

Cost-of-Living Adjustment — An annual percentage increase to school funding tied to an inflation index.

ConApp

Consolidated Application — California's combined application that school districts use to receive federal and selected state categorical funds.

COST

Coordination of Services Team — A school-site team that brings together teachers, counselors, and support staff to address individual student needs.

CSBA

California School Boards Association — A membership organization representing the state's elected school board members.

CSI

Two possible meanings:

• Continuous School Improvement — The district's internal division that supports school sites with instructional coaching, curriculum, and student services.
• Comprehensive Support & Improvement — A federal designation and grant for underperforming schools under the Every Student Succeeds Act.

CSM

Community Schools Manager — A school-site staff member who coordinates community partnerships and wrap-around services for students and families.

CTA

California Teachers Association — The statewide teachers' union representing public school educators.

CWP

Citywide Plan — The district's 2022 framework (formally the Community of Schools Citywide Plan) pairing fiscal stabilization with school quality improvements.

D-ELD

Designated English Language Development — A dedicated daily instructional block focused on language development for students learning English.

DELLS

District English Language Learners Subcommittee — A district advisory body focused on programs and services for students learning English.

EEIP

Educational Enhancement/Intervention Program — An internal district budget and position coding category used for certain teaching positions.

ELA

English Language Arts — The academic subject covering reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

ELL

English Language Learner — A student whose first language is not English and who is learning English as an additional language.

ELO-P

Expanded Learning Opportunities Program — A state-funded program that pays for before-school, after-school, and summer learning for eligible students.

EOY

End of Year — The end of the school year, usually used as a reference point for measuring student academic growth.

ESSA

Every Student Succeeds Act — The federal law passed in 2015 that governs K-12 education policy, replacing No Child Left Behind.

ESSER

Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief — Federal pandemic-era relief funds provided to school districts to address learning loss and reopening costs.

FCMAT

Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team — A California state agency that provides fiscal analysis and intervention support to financially distressed school districts.

FOSS

Full Option Science System — A hands-on elementary science curriculum used in many California schools.

FTE

Full-Time Equivalent — A staffing unit in which one position represents one full-time employee (so 0.5 is a half-time position).

FVP

Fiscal Vitality Plan — A 2018-2020 plan containing twenty-two recommendations to improve OUSD's fiscal health.

IEP

Individualized Education Program — A legally required written plan describing the special education services and supports for a student with a disability.

ILT

Instructional Leadership Team — A school-site team of teachers and administrators who lead instructional planning and improvement efforts.

ISTA

Intensive Support and Technical Assistance — A team from the Alameda County Office of Education that embedded in the district to support key fiscal initiatives.

K-5 / K-8 / K-12

Kindergarten through 5th / 8th / 12th grade — Standard grade-range designations used to describe school configurations and programs.

LAO

Legislative Analyst's Office — California's nonpartisan fiscal and policy analysis office, serving the state legislature.

LCAP

Local Control and Accountability Plan — A required district plan describing how a school district will use state funding to meet goals for students, especially high-need students.

LCFF

Local Control Funding Formula — California's primary funding formula for kindergarten-through-twelfth-grade schools, providing about 97% of unrestricted revenue through a combination of Base, Supplemental, and Concentration grants.

LCSSP

Learning Communities for School Success Program — A state-funded program supporting behavioral and social-emotional interventions in schools.

LEA

Local Education Agency — The legal term for a school district.

LTEL

Long-Term English Learner — A student who has been classified as learning English for six or more years without being reclassified as proficient.

MTSS

Multi-Tiered System of Supports — A school framework that provides layered academic, behavioral, and social-emotional interventions based on student need.

NPS

Non-Public School — A private school where a district places a student with disabilities when the district cannot provide appropriate services in-house.

OEA

Oakland Education Association — The teachers' union representing district educators.

OUSD

Oakland Unified School District — The public school district serving Oakland, California.

PBIS

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports — A school-wide framework for promoting positive student behavior through consistent expectations and reinforcement.

PCN

Position Control Number — An internal district code that tracks individual staff positions for payroll and budgeting.

PD

Professional Development — Ongoing training and learning for teachers and staff to improve their skills and practice.

PLC

Professional Learning Community — A group of teachers who regularly meet to analyze student work, plan instruction, and improve teaching practice together.

Prop 28

Proposition 28 — A 2022 California ballot measure providing ongoing state funding for arts and music education in public schools.

Prop 39

Proposition 39 — A 2000 California ballot measure requiring school districts to provide charter schools with reasonably equivalent facilities.

Prop 47

Proposition 47 — A 2014 California ballot measure that reduced certain nonviolent felonies to misdemeanors, with savings redirected to school behavioral programs.

Prop 98

Proposition 98 — A 1988 California constitutional amendment setting a minimum annual funding guarantee for kindergarten-through-community-college public education.

PSAC

Parent Student Advisory Committee — The district's advisory body that provides parent and student input on the district's accountability plan.

PSSSA

Public School System Stabilization Account — California's dedicated school-funding reserve, sometimes called the "Proposition 98 Reserve."

PTA / PTO

Parent Teacher Association / Parent Teacher Organization — School-based groups of parents and teachers who support school activities and fundraise.

RI

Reading Inventory — A literacy assessment used to measure student reading ability and growth over time.

S&C

Supplemental & Concentration — Extra funding within California's school funding formula that is restricted to increasing services for low-income students, English learners, and foster youth.

SBAC

Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium — The statewide standardized assessment system used to measure student achievement in English language arts and mathematics.

SBE

State Board of Education — California's top education policy-making body, whose members are appointed by the governor.

SDTL

Site Data and Technology Lead — A teacher at each school site who coordinates technology and data needs for the campus.

SEL

Social-Emotional Learning — Instruction and practices that help students develop skills like self-awareness, relationship-building, and responsible decision-making.

SELLS

School English Language Learners Subcommittee — The school-site companion body to the district-level committee for students learning English.

SELPA

Special Education Local Plan Area — A California regional structure, sometimes a single large district or a consortium of smaller ones, that plans and delivers special education services under state and federal law. Oakland Unified is its own single-district plan area.

SEPAC

Special Education Parent Advisory Committee — A parent-led advisory body focused on special education services at the district level.

SFEU

Special Fund for Economic Uncertainties — A California state general reserve fund used to cover unexpected costs.

SIPPS

Systematic Instruction in Phonological Awareness, Phonics, and Sight Words — A foundational reading curriculum used in early elementary grades.

SIS

Student Information System — The software platform used to manage student records, enrollment, grades, and attendance.

SpEd / SPED

Special Education — Specialized instruction and related services for students with disabilities, as required by federal and state law.

SPSA

School Plan for Student Achievement — The annual site-level plan, required by California law, that describes each school's goals, strategies, and budget.

SRP

Strategic Resource Planning — The district central office team that supports school budgeting and site-level funding allocations.

SSC

School Site Council — The elected site-level body that reviews each school's annual site plan and budget, as required by California law.

STIP

Short-Term Intermittent Personnel — A substitute teacher role that provides day-to-day classroom coverage when regular teachers are absent.

STRS / CalSTRS

(California) State Teachers' Retirement System — The state agency that administers pension benefits for California public school teachers.

T&L

Teaching and Learning — The district Board standing committee and central office functional area covering instruction, curriculum, and academic programs.

TK

Transitional Kindergarten — A California public school grade for four-year-olds, offered in the year before kindergarten.

TSA

Teacher on Special Assignment — A credentialed teacher placed in a coaching, intervention, or coordination role rather than a standard classroom.

TSF

Transitional Students & Families Unit — The district unit that serves foster youth, refugee and asylee students, and students experiencing unstable housing.

UPP

Unduplicated Pupil Percentage — The share of a district's enrollment that is low-income, learning English, and/or in foster care, which determines how much extra state funding the district receives.

VAPA

Visual and Performing Arts — An academic subject area covering visual art, music, theater, dance, and media arts.