-
What Pamela Anderson’s night visit to the LA Unified school board was all about
Sometimes staying late at the LA Unified school board meetings has its benefits. Particularly when quirky things happen in only-in-LA moments. About 8:45 p.m. Tuesday late into the meeting, most of the audience members had cleared out of the school board auditorium and the 200 or so protesters outside were gone. There were almost as many...
By Mike Szymanski | June 16, 2016
-
‘Doomsday scenario’ cutting health benefits and increasing class sizes at LA Unified may be averted
The self-described “Doomsday scenario” laid out by LA Unified’s chief financial officer at Tuesday’s school board meeting could have resulted in the loss of 2,000 teacher and administrator jobs by next spring, an increase of up to nine students per classroom, and a halt to saving for teacher retirement benefits. But then, like the cavalry...
By Mike Szymanski | June 15, 2016
-
School board pays emotional tribute to Orlando victims and LGBTQ students
All seven of the LA Unified school board members, along with Superintendent Michelle King and Executive Officer Jefferson Crain, read the names of the 49 victims of the Orlando shooting massacre at the opening of the school board meeting Tuesday afternoon before each board member then read part of a resolution re-emphasizing their commitment to...
By Mike Szymanski | June 14, 2016
-
Will LAUSD bring back chocolate milk?
While discussing cost-saving measures and reducing waste in LA Unified food services, some school board members said they wanted to bring back flavored milk. Superintendent John Deasy banned chocolate and strawberry milk from the school menu five years ago after the school board voted it was too sugary for students. But now LA Unified School Board President Steve...
By Mike Szymanski | June 1, 2016
-
Affiliated charters: A successful model on its way out?
LA Unified has so many different kinds of schools it’s hard to keep them all straight. With such varied terms as affiliated charter, independent charter, magnet school, pilot school, continuation school, option school and others, it can be a challenge to understand what they are, what they offer and how they differ. This is the...
By Mike Szymanski | May 31, 2016
-
LAUSD administrative staff jumps 22 percent even as enrollment drops
Despite projected budget deficits reaching nearly half a billion dollars and steep enrollment declines, LA Unified’s certified administrative staff has increased 22 percent in the last five years, according to a superintendent’s report. The number of teachers has dropped 9 percent in the same period. And teachers and certified staff are aging toward retirement, heading toward...
By Mike Szymanski | May 18, 2016
-
Special ed: a big drain on the district’s budget, but a potential for attracting more students
Special education students present one of the biggest costs for LA Unified, but administrators are considering ways to capitalize on the district’s successes with that population. Half of the school board’s all-day special budget session at USC on Tuesday was spent discussing the costs of dealing with students with mild and severe disabilities. Special ed is identified...
By Mike Szymanski | May 18, 2016
-
District puts renewed emphasis on required ethnic studies courses
Anti-immigrant rhetoric going on in presidential politics and a potential state law have added a renewed emphasis on developing required ethnic studies classes in the LA Unified curriculum. An expert from the University of Arizona spoke to an LA Unified school board committee this week to explain the importance of ethnic studies in education. He brought...
By Mike Szymanski | May 5, 2016
-
Renowned educator warns that LA Unified’s future is ‘dire’
Internationally renowned education expert Pedro Noguera warned members of the LA Unified school board and superintendent that unless more serious measures are taken, the nation’s second-largest school district is destined to lose more students. “The future is dire,” Noguera told the Committee of the Whole on Tuesday afternoon. He pointed to entire neighborhoods in Philadelphia...
By Mike Szymanski | April 28, 2016
-
Dissecting success: Middle school teacher who sets science to rap music is honored
Science lessons set to rap music. Aspirations in envelopes pinned to the ceiling. And a commitment to live alongside students. Tunji Adebayo, who teaches 7th and 8th grade science at Lou Dantzler Preparatory Charter Middle School, was honored Monday night for his innovation and dedication at Teach For America’s “Celebrating Changemakers in Education.” “Tunji’s dedication to...
By LA School Report | April 26, 2016