There were plenty of kumbaya moments at the July 23 “Promising Practices” forum, called by LA Unified Superintendent Michelle King, leaving charter leaders cautiously optimistic it can lead to a new era of cooperation. More than 200 people from the LA Unified world attended the forum, which featured a series of workshops and discussion panels aimed...

* UPDATED Applications for six new charter schools will come before the LA Unified school board at its meeting tomorrow, the biggest wave of requests since the Broad Foundation proposed a plan to expand the number of charter schools in LAUSD. In addition, eight other charters are seeking renewals. While the board will not vote on...

As Los Angeles voters consider how to vote on two city charter amendments that would change the dates of city and LA Unified school board elections, one person they shouldn’t look to for guidance is Mayor Eric Garcetti. The measures would move the city and school board elections to November so that they would align...

Troubles encountered by the charter school operator, Magnolia Public Schools (MPS), at two of its eight charters in the LA Unified School District highlight a murky governance issue that legislatures in California and elsewhere have been slow to address. Should a parent company operate its charter school network as a single entity, as MPS does with...

Magnolia Public Schools (MPS) is going into a Los Angeles superior court tomorrow to ask a judge to keep open two of its schools that LA Unified wants to close. The district denied the renewal applications for Magnolia Science Academies 6 and 7 after an independent audit determined that MPS is insolvent. The audit uncovered...