Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek issued an executive order aimed at preventing additional erosion of classroom instructional time as districts respond to budget pressures and post-pandemic learning needs. The state’s districts average 165 school days versus a typical 180, and the executive order focuses on instructional hours—Oregon requires fewer hours in both K-8 and upper grades than the national average, according to an ECONorthwest analysis. The order also references chronic absenteeism, which the study found is above the national average for 2023–24. The directive asks the Oregon Department of Education to push the state board of education to prioritize policies that stop further reductions and requires districts that cut instructional time for the current and next school years to submit plans to restore time to 2024–25 levels by the start of 2027–28. Although the policy is K-12, it directly shapes the pipeline into higher education by affecting students’ academic preparation in reading and math and the quality of college readiness signals.