Outside groups disappointed over LA Unified’s search process
Sure, they can go to any of the communitymeetings. Sure, they can fill out asurvey online. But, ultimately, outside groups say they want a seat at the table when deciding the next LA Unified school superintendent.
At a special session after a closed session on Tuesday, the school board voted against a proposal to create a separate community panel of seven people, each school board member appointing one. The proposal by MónicaGarcÃa, who was lobbied heavily by many of the groups, was voted down 5-2.
“We are very disappointed the board turned down another opportunity to let community organizations have a say in picking the next superintendent,” said Sarah Angel, the managing regional director of the California Charter Schools Association. “We proposed a plan that wasn’t quite as harsh as the one MónÃca Garcia proposed, and we still hope there is a way to be move involved.”
The board faced a more open proposal by board member Mónica Ratliff that would have allowed the entire community to meet the finalists of the superintendent search. That was voted down by a 4-3 vote.
“We think that something in between those two ideas would work the best,” said Angel, whose group was one of the signatories to the CLASS (Communities for Los Angeles Student Success) letter that originally asked for wider community participation in the search. Some of the groups, like CCSA, had to request to be included to give their input into the search.
Sara Mooney, of United Way LA, said, “The school board made a non-welcoming vote for community involvement. They are against sharing responsibilities for the community to be involved in the choice of the next superintendent. We are disappointed.”
Like some of the other community organizations, Mooney said the United Way had to ask to have a meeting with search firms and was not among the groups picked by the school board members to be involved in the process. Mooney said she has spoken to parents who feel as if they have no say in the process “and feel like they already have a list and what their input is makes no difference.”
A few coalitions of educational groups have appealed to keep the search confidential but include a committee of community groups to help screen the finalists. Several board members said they feared that such a process would diminish responsibilities that the board was elected to carry out.
But what exactly do these scores tell us? It turns out that much depends on which scores one chooses to focus on, what time frame one looks at, and whether one looks at growth in scores rather than at scores at fixed points in time.
For now, the community outreach appears lacking, say some of the groups.
“I have been disappointed in the student turnout for some of these sessions,” saidMelanie Kimes, the youth organizer of the Community Coalition. “I was in a group where only 15 students showed up.”
Also speaking before the board after their decision on Tuesday was Konstantin Outside groups disappointed over LA Unified's search process - LA School Report:
