LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy is seeking to leverage the district's move toward teacher-accountability standards into more freedom on how to spend tens of millions in federal dollars. (File photo by John McCoy/Staff Photographer)
LOS ANGELES -- With California unable to get a waiver from the No Child Left Behind law, LAUSD and nine other districts have launched an effort to create their own data-based accountability systems -- and have more freedom in how to spend tens of millions in federal dollars.No Child requires that students pass English and math tests by 2014-15 -- a standard that many of the state's education leaders believe is unrealistic.
LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy met Wednesday with Education Secretary Arne Duncan to discuss granting waivers to a consortium of 10 districts that together serve more than 1 million students. Long Beach Unified is also part of the consortium, which calls itself the California Office to Reform Education.
"We had a fantastic meeting," Deasy said in a phone interview from Washington, D.C. "Secretary Duncan said he welcomes the opportunity to work with us, which I