With Tueday's school board loss, charter advocates recalculate
WINS!!!
After Tuesday's defeat of another of their candidates to the Los Angeles school board, charter school advocates are rethinking how to support local candidates.
"The area where I would like to see us continue to make strides is reliably marshalling a grassroot support of voters," said Gary Borden, executive director of the California Charter School Association Advocates.
Alex Johnson garnered 13,153 votes, losing George McKenna by less than 2,000 votes during Tuesday's runoff. District One being home to about 15,000 charter school students.
Johnson ran on a message of reform, advocating for the expansion of charter schools and tying test scores to teacher evaluations, amongst other criteria. He was much more successful in attracting independent expenditures, garnering $860,000, more than four times the outside financial support as McKenna.
The charter school advocacy arm alone donated $275,000 to Political Action Committees supporting Alex Johnson - more than five times the starting annual salary for Los Angeles teachers, and by far the greatest contribution from a single entity in this election.
"This is the second largest school district in the country, and has the largest number of charter schools nationwide," Borden, executive director of CCSA Advocates said. "The decisions that school board makes about charter schools is quite important."
McKenna's primary financial backer was a Political Action Committee supported by the teachers union.
McKenna benefited from name recognition. His time as principal of Washington Prep High School was the subject of a 1986 TV film staring DenzelWith Tueday's school board loss, charter advocates recalculate | 89.3 KPCC:
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