LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District):
Findings of USC poll on teachers at odds with earlier survey
Press conference after Vergara ruling A Washington, D.C. polling firm has expressed disagreement with some of the findings in the PACE/USC Rossier School of Education poll that was released yesterday. The USC poll showed public opinion favored the decisions reached in Vergara v. California, striking down teacher protection laws. In a memo sent to LA School Report, Lake Research Partners said its o
School bond measure may appear before CA voters on Nov. 4
Via Sac Bee | By Jim Miller A multibillion dollar water bond isn’t the only borrowing measure that could show up on voters’ ballots this fall. This week, legislation that would place a state school bond before voters Nov. 4 cleared another legislative committee with support from both sides of the aisle. Yet there remain multiple unknowns about Assembly Bill 2235: the amount of the bond, whether it
LAUSD board set to revoke Urban Village Middle School charter
Another charter school may be biting the dust. Urban Village Middle School in Baldwin Hills is likely getting its charter revoked after failing to remedy a slew of violations identified by LA Unified’s Charter Schools Division. The school board, which will vote on the issue at the regular board meeting on Tuesday, gave the school months to address a long list of infractions and says “it continues
LAUSD using new ‘equity index’ to restore arts to areas of need
The plan to expand arts access for students across LA Unified and restore nearly $16 million in arts funding will include data gathered in a new Arts Equity Index, a tool to identify schools in greatest need of arts instruction. School board member Steve Zimmer, who proposed the idea at the board meeting Tuesday, called it the most comprehensive arts inventory the district has ever taken. To deter
Morning Read: Former Obama aides let fly at teacher tenure
Obama alums join anti teachers union case Teachers unions are girding for a tough fight to defend tenure laws against a coming blitz of lawsuits — and an all-out public relations campaign led by former aides to President Barack Obama. The Incite Agency, founded by former White House press secretary Robert Gibbs and former Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt, will lead a national public relations d
JUN 26
Poll: CA voters oppose teacher tenure and layoff laws
Press conference after Vergara decision A new poll shows that two-thirds of California voters agree that the state should get rid of “Last in, First Out,” a teacher tenure policy that requires the newest K-12 teachers be laid off first, regardless of merit. Just 17 percent said layoffs by reverse seniority should continue. The poll was conducted by the USC Rossier School of Education and Stanford-
LA Unified creating online tool for parents to track student progress
In the coming school year, LA Unified plans to launch the Parent Access Support System Portal (PASSport), an interactive online tool to make it easier for parents to get more involved in their children’s education. As a one-stop portal, it’s designed to give parents access to real time student information and district resources as well as services that are specific to their children to help them b
Morning Read: Federal intervention coming for CA special ed
California special ed to get federal intervention The U.S. Department of Education said Tuesday that California special education programs need federal intervention, citing the lack of significant academic progress for students with special needs. California is one of three states, along with Texas and Delaware, designated for a one-year program of intervention. EdSource Lawmakers: Students need
JUN 25
Gov. Brown signs teacher dismissal bill into law
Via Reuters | By Sharon Bernstein California Governor Jerry Brown on Wednesday signed a law adding “egregious misconduct” to the list of fireable offenses for public school teachers, weeks after a judge said it was too hard to fire incompetent teachers in the most populous U.S. state. Both houses of the legislature unanimously passed the law just days after a Los Angeles Superior Court judge court
Bill to create teacher tenure for small districts dies in committee
Lorena Gonzalez, California Assemblywoman A bill that sought to create teacher tenure for California’s smallest school districts died in committee today when the bill’s sponsor, Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, could not generate enough support for passage by the Senate Education Committee. The bill would have required school districts with fewer than 250 students to grant tenure to teachers after t
California’s services for disabled students ranks low
Via LA Times | Howard Blume California ranks in the bottom rung of states in the academic achievement of disabled students, according to new federal rankings released Tuesday. The new system rates only 18 states and U.S. territories as meeting federal standards, compared with 41 under the old rules for evaluating state programs. The prior method of ranking looked more at process, such as whether s
Vote for LAUSD board president set for July 1, as planned
The LA Unified school board decided yesterday to hold its annual election for president in the traditional fashion, with an Annual Meeting on July 1, when the six members will choose their leader for the coming school year. While that’s business as usual, it precludes the possibility that a newly-elected board member for District 1, will cast a vote. As the top vote-getters in a primary, George Mc
Morning Read: Jerry Brown signs teacher pension fund bill
Jerry Brown signs teacher pension fund bill Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation Tuesday to begin paying down an estimated shortfall of more than $74 billion in the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, acting on the last of a raft of budget-related bills ahead of the July 1 start of the next fiscal year. Sac Bee New York state challenge planned on teacher tenure law A new advocacy group l
LAUSD board rejoices in passing ‘best budget’ in seven years
LAUSD board members Monica Garcia, Tamar Galatzan and Superintedent John Deasy An extraordinary year for LA Unified came to an extraordinary end yesterday as the school board unanimously approved — and with minimal debate — its largest budget in seven years. The six board members played musical chairs congratulating one another and Superintendent John Deasy for a job well done. Members were espec
JUN 24
JUST IN: LAUSD school board passes $7.2B budget unanimously
The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education unanimously approved a $7.27 billion budget for the 2014-15 school year, ending a tumultuous year for the district and Superintendent John Deasy. The budget represents the first in seven years that does not include cuts from the previous year. It reflects a $332 million injection of statewide revenue over last year, as a result of the state’s new Local Co
JUST IN: Courtni Pugh, executive director of SEIU 99, steps down
Courtni Pugh, Executive Director of SEIU Local 99 The Executive Director of SEIU Local 99, LA Unified’s school workers union, announced today she is stepping down to take a job in Sacramento. Cournti Pugh, who’s been at the helm of the local union for four years, announced her plans today on SEIU’s website and Facebook page. Pugh said she is leaving “to immediately work to elect pro-worker legisl
Calculus camp at LACES drawing in more LAUSD students
Robert Vriesman The popularity of calculus classes at the Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies (LACES) has skyrocketed, thanks in large part to a unique calculus camp that combines learning with outdoor fun and adventure. Every year, seniors and juniors at LACES, a high-performing school that serves grades 6-12 and has an API of 897, attend the camp, but this isn’t your typical camp. It’s a fou
LA Unified board nearing finish line on 2014-2015 budget
Superintendent John Deasy The long road toward finalizing LA Unified’s budget for the 2014-2015 school year ends later today (maybe) when the school board votes to approve Superintendent John Deasy‘s $7.2 billion spending plan. The new budget reflects not only added support from the state but also new guidelines for how to use the money, which is earmarked to assist students with the greatest need
LIVESTREAM coverage of today’s LAUSD School board meeting
The Curriculum Instruction and Assessment Committee of the LA Unified School board will meet today starting at 10 a.m., followed by a special board meeting at 4 p.m., where the board will adopt the District’s Final Budget and the Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP). For Curriculum and Assessment meeting agenda, click here, and materials, here. For Special Board Meeting agenda, click here, and
In LAUSD board race, McKenna extends his victory over Johnson
George McKenna George McKenna‘s victory in the June 3 school board race has grown bigger than the initial results showed. According to the latest update from the LA County clerk’s office, released yesterday, McKenna finished with 19,802 votes — 4,360 more than the unofficial results that were announced hours after the polls closed. The new totals gave him 44.6 percent of the vote, compared with th
SEIU rolls out OASIS wellness program at 4 LAUSD schools
Via KPCC | By Annie Gilbertson The union representing Los Angeles school employees — cafeteria workers, custodians, teachers’ assistants and others — is launching a pilot program to help students at four schools get access to counseling and health care. They say their workers can help provide a missing link. “Optimizing Access to Services, Inspiring Success,” or OASIS, will train employees to coor
Morning Read: Toward what end is ‘parent trigger’ moving?
Parent-trigger efforts: At a crossroads? A standstill? A dead end? Parent-trigger campaigns have spurred changes at six schools in southern California, only one of which involved a full charter school conversion. Every successful parent union had the backing of the Los Angeles-based Parent Revolution, the nonprofit group formed to promote the law, teach parents how to organize into unions and fund
JUN 23
LA Unified teachers, on average, rank 5th nationally in salary
LA Unified teachers are the fifth-highest paid among the nation’s largest school districts, according to the latest data collected by the National Council for Teacher Quality (NCTQ). The top four are districts for paying teachers with a bachelor’s degree and five years of experience are Chicago ($62,046), New York ( $52,278), Hawaii ($50,728) and Houston ($47,273), with LA Unified next, at $46,794
Commentary: Vergara decision on tenure — and our union
Cartoon by David Granlund I came to education out of the business world. Before entering the classroom, I was making my way up the corporate ladder at a Fortune 500 company. But then, over 15 years ago, I realized that I wanted a job where “success and advancement” would mean changing more lives, not just earning more money. That’s why I came into teaching, and why I stay. So as someone who deeply
LAUSD board may wait for new member before electing president
Incumbent Board President Dr. Richard Vladovic In its final meeting of the 2013-14 fiscal year, the LA Unified school board may decide to break tradition by delaying the annual vote for board president. Normally, board members elect a new leader for the coming year during a summer meeting prior to the start of the next academic year. But the members may push back this year’s vote until after the A
Morning Read: LA program helps foster youths graduate
Program helps L.A. County foster youths become high school grads A program in Los Angeles County has been aiming to reverse against aspirant graduates living in the foster care system. It began as a pilot program in Supervisor Gloria Molina’s Eastside district in 2008 and expanded countywide two years ago. Under the initiative, a group of social workers tracks the academic progress of foster child