Despite expansions in children's health insurance programs, rates of uninsurance in California continue to be high. Noting that absenteeism due to poor health is associated with school failure and asserting that schools offer an established framework on which to build a coordinated approach to enrolling children in health insurance programs, this report identifies four sets of California initiatives on which policymakers and schools could build school-based programs. The initiatives discussed are built on an existing platform, provide access to the target population, have the capability to offer comprehensive services, present opportunities for sustainability, and have the potential to include a tracking and evaluation mechanism. Section 1 of the report provides a rationale for school-based approaches to children health insurance program enrollment and describes current California efforts. Section 2 presents guidelines for building school-based health insurance programs. Section 3 describes several sources of funding that program planners may wish to pursue. Section 4 describes initiatives on which policymakers or schools could build school-based health insurance outreach, enrollment, utilization, and retention programs: (1) Healthy Start; (2) Proposition 10--First 5 California; (3) National School Lunch Program; and (4) the use of health coordinators. Throughout the report, examples are provided to illustrate how health insurance programs may be implemented in schools. Because some of the options may require legislative, policy, or procedural changes, Section 5 offers recommendations for schools and for policymakers to maximize the effectiveness of children's health insurance efforts in California. (Contains 46 endnotes.) (KB)