OCDE Newsroom

South Junior High 2026 Civic Learning Award of Excellence

Anaheim Union’s South Junior High earns state’s top Civic Learning Award

Vicky Nguyen May 4, 2026

OCDE invites schools to apply for next round of Orange County Impact Schools program

Ian Hanigan May 4, 2026

Weekly roundup: ABC7 spotlights Oxford Academy eighth-grader’s AI tool for eye alignment condition, and more

Madeline Gray May 1, 2026

Katrina Edmunds is presented with the Outstanding Career Awareness Educator Award.

OCDE now accepting nominations for Outstanding STEM Educator awards

Nathaniel Martinez May 1, 2026

Dr. Stefan Bean speaks on a stage during The Wooden Floor’s Step Beyond Annual Breakfast, with blue lighting, curtains and a podium in the background.

County superintendent shares message of resilience and support at Step Beyond Annual Breakfast

Ian Hanigan April 30, 2026

Weekly roundup: Edison High mural pays tribute to civil rights icons, districts prepare to redraw voting boundaries, and more

Ian Hanigan July 2, 2021

Edison High recently celebrated the completion of a powerful campus mural depicting figures from the 1960s civil rights movement. Graduating...

Westminster Principal Amy Sabol with Sylvia Mendez

Westminster High School dedicates new learning pavilion in honor of Sylvia Mendez

Ian Hanigan July 1, 2021

Sylvia Mendez knows a thing or two about breaking barriers. But, as she noted Wednesday, this may have been her...

Defying the odds: OCDE’s alternative education program celebrates nearly 700 graduates

Nichole Pichardo June 30, 2021

Language divides, homelessness, pregnancy, single parenting, and social and academic challenges are just some of the hurdles the 2021 graduating class of OCDE’s alternative education, or ACCESS, division has faced. But navigating these obstacles — plus the stresses related to...

Lowell Joint School District Jim Coombs outside the district's offices

Welcome to OC! Lowell Joint becomes the first school district in California to switch counties

Ian Hanigan June 28, 2021

Along with running its own alternative and special education programs, the Orange County Department of Education provides support and fiscal...

Weekly roundup: Costa Mesa students place second at national engineering competition; Newport-Mesa USD appoints a new interim superintendent; and more

Nichole Pichardo June 25, 2021

The Math Engineering Science Achievement — better known as MESA — team from Costa Mesa Middle and High School recently...

Irvine middle schoolers take top honors at virtual National History Day finals

Nichole Pichardo June 22, 2021

A pair of middle schoolers from Irvine has earned first place in the 2021 National History Day competition, which was held virtually, June 13-19. Erin Hwang and Nagyung (Anna) Cho of Sierra Vista Middle School took top honors in the...

Fullerton Joint Union High School District offices

New superintendent announced for Fullerton Joint Union High School District

Ian Hanigan June 21, 2021

The Fullerton Joint Union High School District has found its next superintendent. The district announced that Dr. Steve McLaughlin has...

Weekly roundup: OC spellers shine at Scripps National Spelling Bee, students win energy-efficient vehicle competition, and more

Ian Hanigan June 18, 2021

A pair of eighth-graders from Orange County advanced all the way to the quarterfinals of the 2021 Scripps National Spelling...

2021 Tustin Unified Voices United Honor Choir

Voices United: Tustin Unified fifth-grade honor choir celebrates resilience during a challenging year

Nichole Pichardo June 17, 2021

While looking back at graduations, celebrations and promotions from across the county, OCDE Newsroom staff recently came across a video featuring a chorus of young voices from the Tustin Unified School District. As we listened to the choir sing...