California parents looking for better public schools for their kids will get to elect a new state schools chief in November, and this week was their first chance to compare the three candidates side by side — something parents can’t yet do with schools. The three candidates for state superintendent of public instruction met for...

There’s been a lot of talk but little action from Los Angeles and California education officials when it comes to supporting the lowest-performing schools. Last week state board members again voted to put off revisions to California’s education plan, which are required in order for the plan to be approved by the federal Department of...

Adam Anderson, a third-way candidate for California’s state superintendent of instruction, has pulled out of the race. Anderson, 36, was educated in California public schools through college. He spent six years in Chicago and directed strategy and policy at Chicago Public Schools before returning to California in 2014 to lead strategy and operations at EducationSuperHighway,...

A memorial service for Shirley Ford will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 3, at 24th Street Elementary School. Please email shirleyfordmemorial@gmail.com to RSVP and to share thoughts, memories, pictures, and stories.  Shirley Ford, 69, a Los Angeles mother who helped pass California’s landmark “parent trigger” legislation and made an indelible mark in...

The new year started off with a bang for education watchers in Los Angeles: a new leader will be chosen this year for the nation’s second-largest school district. The first month of 2018 had plenty more news to keep up with, as the state thumbed its nose at new federal accountability rules, the governor sought...

Los Angeles’ Jim Blew has been nominated to become the U.S. Department of Education’s assistant secretary for planning, evaluation, and policy development, according to a White House press release issued Thursday. Education Week reported in June that Blew was the front-runner for the position. He still needs to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Blew...

*UPDATED June is graduation and budget season. If you were busy preparing for either of those, here’s a quick look at what happened this month, as reflected in some of our top stories. To make sure you get all the news, sign up for our newsletter at the bottom of our website. And don’t forget...

They both agree the other’s a good guy. What they don’t agree on is whether LA Unified is a success. On Monday night, LA Unified school board President Steve Zimmer faced Nick Melvoin in their last debate before the May 16 runoff. The audience of about 75 at Palisades Charter High School was the most...

*UPDATED Steve Zimmer and Nick Melvoin met Sunday evening in their first one-on-one debate, heading into the final three weeks before the May 16 runoff for the LA Unified District 4 school board seat. Moderator Dr. Fernando J. Guerra of Loyola Marymount University had to dig deep at times to find daylight between Zimmer, the...

The four contenders for the District 4 seat on LA Unified’s school board met on Thursday night for the second time, in a forum at Paul Revere Middle School in Brentwood. There were a few zingers, some rather polite versions of sharp elbows and hoots of support from the 150 or so in the audience...