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Superior Court judge denies lawsuit that claimed teacher evaluations must include student test scores
A judge in Northern California on Monday denied the claims in a lawsuit that challenged school districts that don’t use student test scores as part of teacher evaluations. Students Matter, the nonprofit organization that filed Vergara v. California, sued 13 California school districts last year, saying those districts were not in compliance with the Stull...
By Sarah Favot | September 19, 2016
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State supreme court could decide today whether to take up Vergara teacher tenure case
The California Supreme Court’s decision on whether to take up Vergara v. California, a landmark ruling that challenged teacher tenure and declared some school employment laws unconstitutional, could come as early as this afternoon. Today is the court’s last scheduled conference before the Monday deadline to say whether it will review an appellate court’s ruling in the...
By Sarah Favot | August 17, 2016
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JUST IN: Judge denies LA Unified request to dismiss lawsuit filed by fired teacher Rafe Esquith
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge Wednesday denied LA Unified’s request to dismiss a lawsuit filed by well-known former fifth-grade teacher Rafe Esquith, who was fired in October. Esquith filed the defamation lawsuit against the district in August after he was placed on paid leave and assigned to “teacher jail” pending an internal investigation after a...
By Sarah Favot | July 13, 2016
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JUST IN: LAPD investigates Esquith, lawyers ‘declare war’ on LAUSD
LA School Report has confirmed that an LAPD sex crimes unit has an open investigation of celebrated teacher Rafe Esquith involving allegations of “inappropriate touching.” Meanwhile, Esquith’s attorneys are striking back with threats of additional lawsuits and a “declaration of war against LAUSD.” One of Esquith’s attorneys, Ben Meisales, said, “This continued defamation by LAUSD...
By Mike Szymanski | August 14, 2015
Investigation: Nearly 1,000 Native Children Died in Federal Boarding Schools
Podcast: What a Mentorship Mindset Can Do for Student Motivation
Black and Hispanic Voters Say Democrats Aren’t Focused Enough on K-12 Education
Teen Activist Rhea Maniar on the Power of Abortion to Turn Out Young Voters
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LAUSD employees file lawsuit against SEIU over union dues
*UPDATED Several LA Unified workers have filed a federal class-action lawsuit against the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 99 over what they say is an improper collection of their full dues. In the complaint, which was prepared with free legal assistance by the National Right to Work Foundation (NRWF), the employes claim SEIU Local 99 union...
By Craig Clough | October 22, 2014
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JUST IN: Judge orders state intervention at Jefferson HS
* UPDATED A California superior court judge ordered the state to step in at LA Unified’s Jefferson High School and fix an array of scheduling problems that have left many students without proper classes and educational time since the school year began in August. In his decision, Alameda Superior Court Judge George Hernandez, Jr. wrote that “the court finds that unless...
By Craig Clough | October 8, 2014
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Morning Read: LA Times Sues for Teacher Ratings
Times Sues LAUSD for Info on Teachers The Los Angeles Times claims Los Angeles Unified School District is violating public records law by refusing to release records tying teachers, by name, to the expected and actual test scores of their students. Courthouse News Service LA Schools to ‘Shake It Up’ With the Rest of California As...
By Hillel Aron | October 18, 2012
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Morning Read: Common People
• LAUSD to Begin Phasing In Common Core Curriculum Standards: The standards, the first ever national standards for public school curriculum, have been adopted by all but five states. Lots of changes are coming, including: basic algebra and geometry starting in kindergarden (!), less literature and more informational reading, and more integration of math and english....
By Hillel Aron | August 6, 2012
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Cortines Suit Raises Board Questions
A shocking (and graphic) Courthouse News Service story from last week details many of the allegations made by Scot Graham against former LAUSD superintendent Ramon Cortines, including, perhaps most damning to the district, that his claims were never investigated “due to the district’s “culture of sexual abuse, stealth and secrecy.” Graham also claims that Cortines “had targeted other...
By Hillel Aron | August 2, 2012