OCDE Newsroom

Five OC students shine a light on Japanese American artist with award-winning documentary

Nathaniel Martinez September 22, 2026

What parents should know about e-bikes and youth safety in Orange County

Ian Hanigan September 22, 2026

OCDE’s Innovation Funding Initiative readies for round two, offering up to $525,000 per project

Ian Hanigan September 21, 2026

Weekly roundup: Former student donates Little Free Library to Centralia Elementary School District campus, and more

Madeline Gray September 18, 2026

Project GLAD® Coordinator Jennifer Salas goes over language development strategies for teachers to utilize in their own classrooms.

REGISTER NOW: Project GLAD® to offer Foundations and Secondary Foundations Training this fall

Nathaniel Martinez September 18, 2026

OCDE’s Inside the Outdoors offers virtual summer camp

Nichole Pichardo July 27, 2020

While many summer camps have been canceled, Inside the Outdoors — OCDE’s unique, hands-on environmental education program — is offering...

Weekly roundup: Volunteer tutors in OC go virtual, closing the digital divide, and more

Ian Hanigan July 24, 2020

Young Leaders of Orange County (YLOC) is a group that was established in 2011, comprising mostly high school volunteers who...

Local districts that had tentative plans for summer graduation ceremonies announce cancellations

Ian Hanigan July 23, 2020

As graduation plans were being modified in the spring amid COVID-19 concerns, a handful of Orange County school districts were holding out hope that they’d be able to stage traditional, in-person celebrations for the class of 2020 sometime this summer....

Weekly roundup: Irvine teacher makes distance learning fun; CA schools will start school year with distance learning, and more

Nichole Pichardo July 17, 2020

An Irvine teacher proves that while distance learning isn’t a replacement for in-person learning, that doesn’t mean it can’t be...

Governor’s new mandate means OC schools will likely start 2020-21 with distance learning

Staff reports July 17, 2020

Orange County schools, along with campuses in 32 other counties on California’s COVID-19 watch list, can expect to start the...

Dr. Mijares speaks with NBC News; discusses recommendations for restarting school

Nichole Pichardo July 16, 2020

Orange County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Al Mijares joined MSNBC on Thursday morning to discuss OCDE’s recommendations for safely restarting school this fall. During his interview with NBC News’ Erin McLaughlin, Dr. Mijares said the Orange County Department of Education...

An image of Orange County Superintendent Al Mijares

County superintendent issues statement on OC Board of Education meeting

Staff reports July 13, 2020

Orange County Superintendent Dr. Al Mijares issued the following statement in response to the OC Board of Education’s July 13...

California Department of Education unveils student assessment tool for educators

Ian Hanigan July 13, 2020

State education officials have developed a new online resource to help schools assess student learning levels when classes resume. The...

Weekly roundup: Fanning family helps Brea move forward, districts make reopening plans, and more

Ian Hanigan July 10, 2020

Bringing a graceful end to a controversy that had divided the Brea community, the grandchildren of the late William E. Fanning asked district officials to remove the former superintendent’s name from an elementary campus. Brea Olinda Unified’s Board of Education...

Orange County school districts to receive PPE for students and staff

Nichole Pichardo July 9, 2020

This week, the OCDE received its first shipment of personal protective equipment from the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, or...