U.S. schools chief to discuss LAUSD probe
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan will be in Los Angeles today to announce the results of a yearlong federal investigation into possible civil rights violations of English-language learners and African-American students in LAUSD.
Duncan will share details of the investigation during today's regularly scheduled meeting of the Los Angeles Unified School District board. Superintendent John Deasy and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa are slated to attend the meeting and explain how they intend to fix problems that were discovered through the probe.
The investigation launched in March 2010 was aimed at determining whether the the nation's second-largest school district was providing English-
language learners equal access to educational opportunities offered other LAUSD students.
The probe entailed evaluating how English-learning students were identified, what programs allowed them to
School board set to consider reviving disbanded panels
A proposal designed to raise the public's awareness of high-profile issues facing Los Angeles Unified is set to be voted on today by the school board.
School Board member Bennett Kayser introduced a motion in July to reinstate the board's Budget and Audit Committee, the Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Committee and the Facilities Committee.
The panels were disbanded two years ago after board President Monica Garcia said were too expensive to operate.
But Kayser said cutting the committees sent the wrong message to the public.
Those interested in weighing in on the district's building boom, its budget, curriculum and student assessment now can do so only during a three- minute public comment period at LAUSD board meetings.
Like neighborhood councils, committee meetings would be held all over the district, to allow parents citywide to