6-12-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District):

How LAUSD plans to spend $4.58 billion on district schools

Ever wonder how much money your local LAUSD school gets? Here’s a way to find out. Click here, and what you see is LA Unified’s $4.58 billion school-by-school spending plan for the 2014-2015 academic year. Each line item reflects a category and shows whether its funding is restricted, which means the money can only be used for that purpose, or unrestricted, which allows the school more discretion

2 40min 

New flexibility for LA Unified’s breakfast in the classroom

Actress Sofia Vergara promoting Breakfast in the Classroom programPhoto courtesy L.A. Fund A successful program aimed at providing free classroom breakfast to low-income students in Los Angeles Unified has quietly made a change: it will now allow schools with more affluent populations to use alternative approaches to feeding kids in the morning. The program known as “Breakfast in the Classroom” (B

by Yana Gracile / 9min hide  //  save

Citing Vergara, union watchdog group urges parents to sue

Just in case parents around the country missed the decision in Vergara v. California, a union-watch group in Washington is spreading the word. The Center for Union Facts, a nonprofit, ran an ad in today’s USA Today that urges parents and school reform advocates to to follow Vergara’s lead and sue when teacher unions block reform efforts. Judge Rolf Treu decided in favor of the nine student plainti

2 39min 

A change in communications for LAUSD’s Tom Waldman

Tom Waldman, the communications director Tom Waldman is moving on, although he’s not going far. The Director of Communications for LA Unified is stepping into a new role with the district: the newly created post as Executive Director of Board Communications. Taking on the role, which was Superintendent John Deasy’s idea, means Waldman will work with the school board, exclusively. He will field all

3 by Vanessa Romo / 1h 

Morning Read: Vergara ruling likely to repeat in other states

Teacher tenure ruling in California is expected to intensify debate The landmark court decision on Tuesday finding California’s teacher tenure laws unconstitutional is likely to lead to a flood of copycat lawsuits in other states, shifting the battleground on the issue from the legislatures to the courts. NY Times Why that ruling against teacher tenure won’t help your schoolchildren Commentary: T

2 1h 

6-11-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD

LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): New state money helping LAUSD expand services for foster youthThe new state funding formula that is sending more money into LA Unified is enabling the district to expand programs for foster youth, a group of students who have been under-served by the district for years. The LAUSD student population curren

by mike simpson / 30min 

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 6-12-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit:

HERE IS THE LAUSD SUPERINTENDENT’S PROPOSED $4.58 BILLION SCHOOL-BY-SCHOOL BUDGET FOR SCHOOL YEAR 2014–2015 – still not covered is $2 billion+ in administrative+operations costs

Posted on June 12, 2014 1:57 pm by LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1lf2hhL Ever wonder how much money your local LAUSD school gets? Here’s a way to find out. Following is LA Unified’s $4.58 billion school-by-school spending plan for the 2014-2015 academic year. Each line item reflects a category and shows whether its funding is restricted, which means the money can only be used for that

by smf / 41min hide  //  save

SPECIAL MEETING OF THE LCFF PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE: Friday, June 13 – 9AM to Noon

Location PCSB - Auditorium 1360 W Temple St Los Angeles, CA 90026

by smf / 1h 

LCFF/LCAP: LA Schools Parent Committee Battling District to Elect Its Own Leadership

Annie Gilbertson| Pass / Fail | 89.3 KPCC http://bit.ly/1oj2SXG Photo by Derek Bruff via Flickr Creative Commons June 11th, 2014, 4:21pm  ::  The Los Angeles Unified School District has warned members of two parent committees if they organize their own leadership, as they would like, they'll be breaking the law. ●●see 4LAKids: UPDATE: LAUSD RESPONDS TO REQUEST FOR “AUTHENTIC PARENT

by smf / 1h 

News Analysis: WILL TENURE RULING SHOW UP IN CLASS + smf’s 2¢

by Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times | http://lat.ms/SQMcsc A Superior Court judge has given L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy what state lawmakers have denied him: more authority over who is hired and fired. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) June 11, 2014, 10:08 PM  ::  When the Los Angeles school district was rocked by the largest abuse scandal in its history two years ago, Supt. John Deasy

by smf / 26min 

Hiltzik: WHY THAT RULING AGAINST TEACHER TENURE WON’T HELP YOUR SCHOOLCHILDREN ANY MORE THAN DEASY’S iPADS

Who's behind the teacher tenure verdict? Millionaires. Think they have your kids' interests at heart?   by Michael Hiltzik in the LOS ANGELES TIMES | http://lat.ms/Uws2VK   Isn't he really the problem? L.A. Schools Supt. John Deasy, awaiting the Vergara verdict on Tuesday. (Damian Dovarganes / AP) June 11, 2014, 3:59 PM  ::  Tuesday's ruling by Los Angeles County Superior Court

by smf / 52min hide  //  save

YESTERDAY

RORY PULLENS CONFRONTS TO CHALLEGES OF ART, MONEY AND LAUSD + smf’s 2¢

Posted on  LA SCHOOL REPORT by Vanessa Romo | http://bit.ly/1lnTOgo Rory Pullens June 10, 2014 9:40 am  ::  For years Rory Pullens has been the one who got away. LA Unified offered the former TV writer/producer turned educator, the top post at the district’s premiere arts high school —Ramon C. Cortines School of the Visual and Performing Arts –  and he turned it down. Twice. But the stars

by smf / 13h 

VERGARA: Damage assessment, Punditry, Gloating and Aftershocks …24 hours after (multiple stories)

“The most important court case you've never heard of" smf: while the LibDems gloated over the fall of Eric Cantor in Virginia on Tuesday there was political news of a distinct red state flavor on the blue state left coast. Progressive education policy in general – and teacher’s unions specifically - took a hit and the voice of The Billionaire Boys Club - who would ®eform public education on

by smf / 13h 

VERGARA v. CALIFORNIA: The official tentative decision

Vergara v. California: Tenative Decision (6/10/2014)

by smf / 13h 

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 6-11-14

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: Daily News: SOME LAUSD EMPLOYEES TO GET 9 PERCENT SALARY HIKES + smf’s 2¢By Thomas Himes, Los Angeles Daily News | http://bit.ly/UtJYAv 6/10/14, 8:54 PM PDT |Delving into several costly employee salary issues, the Los Angeles Unified school board on Tuesday approved salary increases ranging up to 9 percent for some district workers to offset higher pens

by mike simpson / 0min 

Budget deal shifts payments to cover mandate claims :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet

Budget deal shifts payments to cover mandate claims :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet:



JUNE 12, 2014

Budget deal shifts payments to cover mandate claims

by Tom Chorneau

(Calif.) A tentative budget agreement still under negotiation would delay Gov. Jerry Brown’s plan to pay off all the money owed schools from past apportionment deferrals and use some of those dollars – perhaps as much as $450 million – to begin paying down the estimated $4.5 billion in unpaid mandate claims.

Legislative leaders and the governor have agreed to use the administration’s revenue projections for next year – not the higher estimates offered by the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst, according to memos released by the Budget Conference Committee.

Additional spending on education programs includes $250 million more than the governor proposed in May for the Local Control Funding Formula and another $300 million that would be shared between new support for child care programs as well as career technical education.

The proposed deal would provide overall Proposition 98 funding of $60.9 billion, consistent with what the governor proposed in May. The agreement also includes the administration’s plan to shore up the teacher pension system and creating a rainy day fund.

If state revenues do begin to approach the numbers suggested by the LAO – as much as $2.2 billion higher than the governor’s estimates – the proposed budget agreement contemplates a trigger to pay off about $900 million in deferral debt.

At issue, however, is a last-minute budget proposal to cap the amount of money districts may set aside for economic uncertainties – a nod, some say, to public employee unions opposed to tying up money in reserves.

The Education Management Group, which represents school boards, administrators and superintendents, fired off a letter to law makers and members of the Brown administration Budget deal shifts payments to cover mandate claims :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet:

Free online course arms parents with basics to get involved in education issues | EdSource Today

Free online course arms parents with basics to get involved in education issues | EdSource Today:

Free online course arms parents with basics to get involved in education issues

June 12th, 2014 | 1 Comment | 
By John Fensterwald

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Ed100 walks parents through a range of California school issues and policies in 10 chapters divided into  manageable subsections. Source: Ed100.org

A joke around Sacramento is that it takes a Ph.D. in Proposition 98 to understand how California schools are funded and governed.

The truth is that agood short course is probably all that’s needed for the basics of California’s complex education policies. And now there is one – Ed100.org.

Created by Jeff Camp, a former Microsoft Corp. manager and a longtime champion of public involvement in schools, Ed100.org is a free, 10-chapter online course that people can explore and complete at their own pace. The California PTA and the Full Circle Fund in San Francisco partnered with him.

The goal, said Camp, is to cut through education jargon and help prepare parent leaders – and parents who may not yet know that they’ll be called on to be leaders – with basic information they need “to be influential and smart.” At that stage, they’ll be able to “confidently interact with anyone who makes decisions on education,” he said in an interview.

Camp, who is a parent himself, went through the process a decade ago when he wanted to know more about education policies. He said he constantly felt as if he were jumping into the middle of a book – without context and background, let alone knowledge of the acronyms that educators and policy makers tend to use – to understand the nature of the issues and conflicts. Camp served on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Committee on Education Excellence, which recommended significant changes in governance and finance in 2008. He also chairs the Education Circle of the Free online course arms parents with basics to get involved in education issues | EdSource Today:

 

Vergara ruling’s strong words in the end will make little difference - by Peter Schrag / commentary

From the start, the Vergara case (Vergara v. California) was more significant for its political implications than for the possible benefits it would gain for the poor and minority students on whose behalf it was ... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit the Edsource Today website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

by Peter Schrag / co... / 31min 

6-12-14 Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Online:

Anti-Tenure People Try to Have it Both Ways

...flaws in reasoning... were in full bloom from the minute Judge Treu announced that court was in session. How else to explain the paradox by which teacher tenure laws apply to the state’s wealthiest school districts and its poorest, but only violate the civil rights of students in the latter? Or how about the related and even paradoxier claim beloved by Students Matter fans, including Arne Dunca

by ed notes online / 13h hide  //  save

Daily Howler, a former inner city teacher in Baltimore, gets to the heart of what's wrong with the common core

Given our large achievement gaps, how can any set of “standards” make sense for all kids in a single grade? The gaps are very large in our schools. How can any set of “standards” be appropriate for all students?This is the world’s most obvious question. Through twenty years of the “standards movement,” we’ve never seen it asked.According to the Common Core, everyone should be taught the same math—

by ed notes online / 15h 

6-11-14 Ed Notes Online

Ed Notes Online: Call for Ban on high-stakes field testing, 11 AM Rally/Press Conference Today at Tweed: Call for Ban on high-stakes field testing, 11 AM Rally/Press Conference Today at Tweed  PUBLIC ADVOCATE FOR THE CITY OF NEW YORK Letitia JamesFor Immediate Release: June 10, 2014                                                Media AdvisoryContact: Aja Worthy-Davis, (212) 669-4813, adavis@pubad

by mike simpson / 0min