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Monday, October 7, 2013

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L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy defends iPad program in TV special






Education Headlines

Monday, October 7, 2013

Capo classified employees reluctantly accept new contract

A new labor deal with Capistrano Unified School District’s chapter of the California School Employees Association includes more furloughs. The union’s president says members are unhappy.

Sacramento-area school buses go high-tech

Within weeks, nearly 2,000 students boarding buses in the Folsom Cordova Unified School District will be able to swipe a card over a bar-code reader that is linked to GPS tracking.

Galt elementary school district settles bus rider lawsuit

The Galt Joint Union Elementary School District has agreed to pay $75,000 to settle a claim filed by the father of a special-needs student who claimed he was sexually assaulted by a peer on a school bus.

Romero: Parent-trigger law is "Little Engine that Could"

The author of the California law that allows parents to force sweeping changes at failing schools stands by it, warts and all.

L.A. Unified students need iPad keyboards to take state tests

Keyboards will be necessary for Los Angeles students to take new state standardized tests on iPads, an additional cost in the $1-billion effort to provide tablets in the nation's second-largest school system, The Times has learned.

L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy defends iPad program in TV special

Los Angeles schools Supt. John Deasy took on critics of his $1-billion iPad program this week in a live call-in segment of a show on the L.A. Unified School District-owned television station.

Alameda County: Lawsuit's lasting and positive impact on state, local schools

Alameda County and public schools statewide that serve poor children have much better facilities, more textbooks and more appropriately qualified teachers than they did seven years ago, according to a study released this week by the American Civil Liberties Union.

LAUSD firings mount since Miramonte scandal

The Los Angeles Unified school board has voted to fire 127 educators and accepted the resignations of 110 more since February 2012, when the Miramonte sex-abuse scandal triggered a crackdown on misconduct, according to district officials.

LAUSD unearths suspected misconduct in search of old personnel files

A review of 40 years’ worth of Los Angeles Unified personnel files that cost $400,000 over the past 20 months led to the resignations of two teachers and the recommendation that two more be fired for misconduct, according to district officials.

Baron: After dropping out, a diploma and a job from Oakland charter school

Not a single student at one of Oakland’s public high schools has to be there. They all arrive by choice – willingly, happily, sometimes desperately – at Civicorps Academy, a charter school for young adults who have aged out of traditional high school but aren’t too old to want another crack at earning a high school diploma.

Tech titan's high-grade gift to S.F. middle schools

Some months ago, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee and schools Superintendent Richard Carranza met with Salesforce.com founder Marc Benioff to ask the tech titan for some financial support to boost access to technology in the city's 12 middle schools.

L.A. school board to review $1-billion iPad project

The Los Angeles Board of Education has scheduled a special Oct. 29 meeting to review efforts to provide iPads to every student and teacher in the nation's second-largest school system.
Friday, October 4, 2013

Report: California school districts spend less on students than before recession

California school districts spend an average of $873 per student less now than they did in 2008, according to a report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Walters: Two California school bills show teacher union power

Two bills demonstrate the immense influence that the teachers union enjoys in the Legislature and the lengths to which ambitious politicians will go to endear themselves to the powerful union.

Bid for state-owned Agnews land submitted by Santa Clara Unified, city of San Jose

Anticipating thousands of new students from 32,000 freshly built homes, the Santa Clara Unified School District and the city of San Jose renewed their efforts Thursday to buy land vacated by a former state mental hospital to build two schools and create a regional park.

Newport-Mesa superintendent shares district's goals, shortfalls

Superintendent Frederick Navarro on Thursday shared a few of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District’s goals this year and the challenges he and other administrators are trying to overcome.

Anaheim school apologizes for making girl remove NRA T-shirt

A high school student who grabbed a National Rifle Assn. T-shirt in her hurry to find something to wear to school was later confronted outside class by campus officials who forced the student to remove her shirt or face possible disciplinary action, the girl’s parents said.

Fensterwald: School police under greater focus

A new law that encourages alternatives to police involvement in school discipline matters was signed by Gov. Jerry Brown this week, just days after the U.S. Department of Justice awarded $44 million to beef up the number of police officers in schools nationwide, including California.
Thursday, October 3, 2013

Critics blast Sonora High School pool project

Concerned community members attending the Sonora Union High School District’s board meeting Tuesday questioned whether the district is legally allowed to spend bond money on building a new aquatics center.

State won't hear appeal of Cayucos student transfer decision

The California Department of Education won’t even consider ruling on a petition to transfer Cayucos high school students to the San Luis Coastal Unified School District from Coast Unified School District in Cambria, effectively killing that transfer movement by parents.

Santa Ana Unified reveals contract for new superintendent

Santa Ana Unified School District officials were reluctant last week to share their new superintendent's salary contract, one that makes Rick Miller one of the highest-salaried school district superintendents in California, based on the latest figures from the state Department of Education.

Brown signs bill to restrict costly school borrowing deals

Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Wednesday to prevent school districts from entering costly bond deals such as a 2009 Folsom Cordova Unified agreement that requires about $18 in payments for every $1 borrowed.