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Brown Urged to Veto Weakened Teacher Dismissal Bill*
Opposition to a teacher dismissal bill that was weakened through compromises in the California legislature is gathering steam as it awaits the signature of Gov. Jerry Brown. Today Gloria Romero, former state senator and head of California Democrats for Education Reform (DFER), is urging Brown to veto the bill. In an article published in the Orange...
By LA School Report | September 24, 2013
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Morning Read: Big Drop in Teacher Education Enrollment
Enrollment in teacher preparation programs plummets Enrollments in teacher preparation programs in California are continuing to decline at a precipitous rate, according to new figures prepared for the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. A report for the commission indicates that 26,446 students were enrolled in teacher preparation programs in 2011-12 – a 24 percent reduction...
By LA School Report | September 24, 2013
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In DC, Deasy, Ratliff and Zimmer Talk Budget Cut Impact
LA Unified Superintendent John Deasy and two board members spent a few days in Washington, where they met with officials and lawmakers about the impact of federal budget cuts on the district. Deasy and members Monica Ratliff and Steve Zimmer met with Rep. George Miller, a Democrat from Concord, Assistant Education Secretary Deb Delisle and...
By LA School Report | September 23, 2013
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Ravitch and Rhee: Same Goals, But Very Different Approaches
You don’t find approaches more AM and FM to America’s public schools – their successes and failures – than in new books by two of the nation’s leading voices on the subject, “Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America’s Public Schools” by Diane Ravitch and “Radical: Fighting to Put...
By LA School Report | September 23, 2013
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Morning Read: Parents Find Common Core a Mystery
In Push For ‘Common’ Standards, Many Parents Left Uneducated Forty-five states have adopted the Common Core State Standards, the first-ever national academic standards for students. But opposition is growing, and some lawmakers are having second thoughts about their states’ support. Meanwhile, proponents of the standards are still struggling to explain the initiative to parents, many...
By LA School Report | September 23, 2013
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Garcetti Names His Board of Library Commissioners
More appointments from Mayor Eric Garcetti. Today he announced his choices for the Board of Public Library Commissioners. The five members serve five-year staggered terms and are confirmed by the City Council. Gregory Bettinelli — a venture partner for Upfront Ventures, an Affiliated Executive for Freeman Spogli & Co., Co-Founder of MucklerLab, and venture advisor for Mucker...
By LA School Report | September 20, 2013
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A Think Tank Plan to Boost Pay for LA Unified Teachers*
Teachers in Los Angeles Unified schools could make an additional 7.15 percent a year in salary, with 60 percent of them achieving greater retirement security, if the district applied a cost neutral shift in their compensation package, according to a new report from the Manhattan Institute. “Better Pay, Fairer Pensions: Reforming Teacher Compensation” examines the...
By LA School Report | September 20, 2013
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LA Unified Dropped as Defendant in Vergara Lawsuit
Via LA Daily News After a settlement agreement with the plaintiff, Los Angeles Unified was dropped as a defendant in a lawsuit that claims students’ rights to equal educational opportunities are being violated by state laws governing teacher tenure, job security and seniority. The dismissal came Wednesday in a suit filed 16 months ago by...
By LA School Report | September 20, 2013
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Morning Read: ‘Parent Trigger’ Law Needs Amending
Fix the ‘parent trigger’ Editorial: The Los Angeles Unified School District did the right thing by setting some new requirements for “parent trigger” petitions for school reform. But the small changes a local district can make don’t go nearly far enough to amend a sloppily written and poorly implemented state law. After years of ignoring...
By LA School Report | September 20, 2013
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LAUSD to Shift Money from Substitutes to Phys Ed Program*
Following a contentious discussion at the Sept. 10 board meeting, LA Unified announced today that it will fully fund the Physical Education Teacher Incentive Program by siphoning off $1.6 million from the budget that now pays for substitute teachers. The shift in money satisfies a resolution offered by Bennett Kayser and Steve Zimmer that passed...
By LA School Report | September 19, 2013