Follow the Money - IV - Looking Ahead: The Future of the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program in Los Angeles County - Policy Brief

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by James

Over the past four years, California invested nearly $14 billion in the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P) to fund enriched learning outside the regular school day, with support extending at least through the 2025-26 fiscal year. This fourth brief in a series examines how ELO-P resources are distributed across Los Angeles County, assessing equity and effectiveness, accountability and implementation gaps, and whether ELO-P could support attendance recovery under new state policy. It focuses on the funding formula’s 75% UPP cliff and its consequences for districts and statewide allocations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages9

Reading Time23 min

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Looking ahead: The future of the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program in Los Angeles County

ELO-P Funding Formula Cliff

Equity implications of the 75% UPP threshold

Funding uncertainty for Tier 2 districts

Recommendations for a more stable Tier 2 formula

Follow the Money (IV) Looking ahead: The future of the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program in Los Angeles County By Patrick Murphy ™ ® Over the past four years, California has invested nearly $14 billion in the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P) to provide enriched learning opportunities that fall outside of the regular school day. The state has committed to continue funding the program through at least the 2025-26 fiscal year, with indications that this support may become an on-going one. This brief is the fourth in a series examining the distribution of ELO-P resources in Los Angeles (LA) County. Our aim is to inform key program constituencies and school administrators by identifying how ELO-P funds are being allocated, with the goal of supporting equity, effectiveness, and high-quality implementation. This installment looks both backward and forward--highlighting key issues for policymakers to consider when shaping the program’s future. Specifically, we examine: • The equity implications of the funding formula • Accountability and implementation gaps • The potential use of ELO-P for attendance recovery under new state policy The ELO-P Funding Formula Cliff The ELO-P funding formula targets students in transitional kindergarten (TK) to grade sixth, with the goal of providing additional dollars to students with the greatest needs. To accomplish this, it borrows from the structure of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) . As outlined in our first brief, the ELO-P formula estimates the number of high needs students in the target grades by multiplying the district’s prior year unduplicated pupil percentage (UPP) by its TK-6 average daily attendance (ADA) . That number is multiplied by a set dollar amount to determine a district’s total ELO-P allocation. Districts with a UPP of greater than 75% receive a higher per student allocation (Tier 1) than districts that fall below that threshold (Tier 2) . That difference is substantial – about $700-900 per student – and creates a notable cliff at the break point (see figure) . Per Pupil ELO-P Funding in LA County School Districts Source: Author’s calculations based upon CDE apportionment, enrollment (DataQuest), and CALPADS unduplicated pupil data. How does that difference play out in LA County? It is worth examining the impact both on individual districts as well as for the county as a whole. In terms of individual districts, consider two of similar size, Rowland Unified and Norwalk-La Mirada Unified. Using the method embedded in the ELO-P formula, both have about 5,600 TK-6 grade students who would be included in the unduplicated pupil count. Despite nearly identical counts of high-needs students, Rowland received $5 million more than Norwalk-La Mirada for their ELO-P allocation in 2024. This difference is because Norwalk-La Mirada fell just 1.2 percentage points below the Tier 1 threshold. | 2024-25 school year | Rowland Unified | Norwalk-La Mirada Unified | | --- | --- | --- | | TK-6 enrollment 6,842 7,614 Unduplicated pupil percentage, UPP (2023) 82.3% 73.8% High needs TK-6 students (enrollment * UPP) 5,631 5,617 2024 ELO-P allocation ($) $12,801,301 $7,738,059 | | | | Calculated dollars per high-needs student | $2,274 | $1,378 | Source: Author’s calculations based upon CDE apportionment, enrollment (DataQuest), and CALPADSunduplicated pupil data. While the funding structure attempts to target resources to students with the greatest needs, the abrupt cliff at 75% UPP raises significant equity concerns. For Norwalk-La Mirada the absence/presence of about 93 students in calculating their UPP becomes amplified into a $5 million difference in funding from the state. At the school district level, $5 million is “real money.” The total state apportionment for Norwalk-La Mirada for 2024-25 (including LCFF, special education, etc.) was $171 million. An additional $5 million represents a nearly 3% increase over its total state fun

FAQs

What is the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P) and why is it funded?

ELO-P provides enriched learning opportunities outside the regular school day. State funding is intended to continue at least through the 2025-26 fiscal year.

How does the ELO-P funding formula create an equity problem?

The formula uses a 75% UPP cutoff to assign Tier 1 versus Tier 2 allocations. Small differences near the threshold can produce large funding gaps for similarly needy districts.

What does the brief recommend for Tier 2 districts?

It recommends the state determine a stable funding formula for Tier 2 districts’ ELO-P allocations, so they can plan programs and adjust staffing with more predictability.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by James