Rodriguez becomes first charter operator on L.A. school board
Ref Rodriguez on Tuesday became the first person from the charter-school movement to be elected to the Los Angeles Board of Education.
His win, against one-term incumbent Bennett Kayser, came after a bitter and expensive campaign notable for negative attacks by outside groups attempting to affect the outcome.
In the west San Fernando Valley, incumbent Tamar Galatzan lost to Scott Schmerelson. In an area running from South Los Angeles to the L.A. Harbor, incumbent Richard Vladovic defeated Lydia Gutierrez.
Only hours after the polls closed, observers were trying to interpret how Rodriguez won election to the seven-member school board.
Rodriguez, the co-founder of a large charter-school organization, ascribed the outcome to the positive message of his campaign and the hard work he and supporters put in.
“What I'm most proud of is that we ran a campaign about the real issues that our kids face, the real needs that our communities have and the ability to open the doors of our schools and connect them back to the community,” Rodriguez told supporters Tuesday night. "This is what this was all about. The rest of the noise was just a bunch of noise."
Charters are free, publicly funded schools that are exempt from some rules that apply to traditional campuses. Most are non-union.Rodriguez becomes first charter operator on L.A. school board - LA Times:
