Harris has long been outspoken on her support of public education. Here are some of the more well-known facets of her K-12 policy platform:

• Teacher pay. In 2019, arguing that the issue of underpaid teachers is a “crisis” with “disastrous consequences,” Harris called for $13,500 raises for teachers by the end of her first term. Her goal was to close the teacher pay gap, or the difference between what teachers are paid and what those with comparable college degrees and experience are paid.
• Opportunity funding. Harris has called for increases to Title I funding (federal funds for schools serving students from low-income families) and disability funding (currently funded well below authorized levels) to ensure equal access. In 2022, she launched the “Generation Fund,” a $50 million investment to support every low-income public school student and baby born into poverty. She has also called for more funding for Head Start, which provides federally subsidized preschool to low-income children.
• Anti-culture wars. Harris has spoken out publicly against “culture war” legislation, including book bans, attacks on LGBTQ+ educators and students, and mandates to teach revisionist history. In 2023, after the Florida State Board of Education approved educational guidelines that included the idea that enslaved people benefited from their enslavement by learning specialized skills, Harris flew to Florida and delivered a blistering speech to condemn the new guidelines.
• Harris would almost certainly be a fierce advocate for school desegregation and racial equity initiatives. In 2019, when both Biden and Harris were competing for the Democratic nomination for president, Harris challenged Biden on his record on school desegregation, sharing her personal experience with a public school integration program as a child.
• Support for teachers. In 2019, for the first time in three decades, 30,000 educators in Los Angeles went on strike for smaller class sizes, more counselors and librarians, and a full-time nurse in every school. Harris expressed explicit support for the strike, tweeting, “Los Angeles teachers work day in and day out to inspire and educate the next generation of leaders. I’m standing in solidarity with them as they strike for improved student conditions, such as smaller class sizes and more counselors and librarians.” After six days, educators reached a deal which included pay raises, full-time librarians for middle and high schools, a commitment to full-time nurses at every school, and the establishment of thirty community schools.
• Student representation. In 2019, she proposed increased funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), especially to train black teachers. She contended that if a child has had two black teachers by the end of third grade, they’re one-third more likely to go to college, saying, “Investing in public education and in HBCUs matters.” This year, the Biden-Harris administration announced a new record in federal support for HBCUs, including federal grants, contracting awards and debt relief.
• Universal education. During her 2020 presidential campaign, Harris advocated for universal preschool, calling education “a fundamental right” that proper funding would help guarantee. This shows a deep understanding that early childhood education offers significant benefits that last a child’s entire life. Harris also supports debt-free college education, endorsing free college plans at federal and state levels as far back as 2017.