Cayla J. v. California

Challenging the State of California’s Failure to Ensure Equitable Access to Education During the Pandemic

All students in California have a fundamental right to education under the California Constitution. But throughout our State’s history, this access has been denied to students of color and students from low-income backgrounds – a situation that worsened markedly during the COVID-19 pandemic. California’s extended period of remote schooling, which began in March 2020, exposed deeply embedded inequalities in the State’s education system.

During this period and in its aftermath, the State of California neglected its responsibility to safeguard access to education for all students. The State’s failure to ensure access to digital connectivity and devices and to provide necessary academic and social-emotional supports forced families to navigate a lengthy period of remote instruction with little support. This situation widened the opportunity gap for lower-income and Black and Latinx students – a gap that will persist until the State provides leadership and planning to remediate the harms experienced by these students during remote schooling.

In November 2020, students and community-based organizations joined together to sue the State of California for failing to fulfill its constitutional duty to ensure equitable access to education. The suit sought to redress major deficiencies in California’s remote schooling program, including unequal access to necessary technology and academic and social-emotional supports.

Presently, the lawsuit seeks intervention from the State – including oversight, assistance, and enforcement – to provide critical relief to the families and students it left behind during the pandemic. Plaintiffs aim to ensure that all California schoolchildren receive the necessary resources and support to make up for the learning time they were unlawfully denied.

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