In the wake of the mass shooting yesterday in San Bernardino, both LAUSD school superintendent Ramon Cortines and school board president Steve Zimmer today reaffirmed the district’s commitment to safety at local schools. In a statement, Cortines emphasized, “Every building and school within this District has a safety plan in place.” Zimmer pointed out that extra support...

In a recorded robo-call sent out to teachers last night, seven UTLA leaders encouraged them to attend the LA Unified board meeting next week and relate positive things that are going on in their schools. The union leaders, led by president Alex Caputo-Pearl, took turns encouraging teachers to remind the board that great things are...

The LA Unified school board said today it will begin the first round of interviews of candidates for superintendent at 8:30 Sunday morning. It’s the start of the endgame for the seven board members, who are seeking to find a successor to Ramon Cortines before he steps down at the end of the year. In...

Parents, teachers and school administrators from Larchmont Charter School in West Hollywood are protesting a cell phone tower proposed for a church bell tower next to the campus, with a large turnout expected at a public hearing at 6 p.m. tomorrow at the West Hollywood Library. The independent charter school is overseen by LAUSD but...

Outgoing LA Unified Superintendent Ramon Cortines got a series of big surprises this afternoon with a long-planned tribute that included a group of students singing for him and old friends stopping by district headquarters to honor his legacy. The school board auditorium was packed for the event, which Cortines knew nothing about. The seven school...

A new report from the American Institutes of Research shows that young children have up to five months of learning advantage compared with children who don’t get an extra year of kindergarten. But the report — Impact of California’s Transitional Kindergarten Program, 2013-14 — also points out that there’s a long way to go in funding the pre-school program...

LA Unified teachers should have fewer problems getting their Fall term grades in and their report cards out before the winter break, thanks to a new computer help program launched yesterday. The new service request system has been years in the planning. Teachers and staff can get technical help with computers, applications, internet and other technology issues...

After a public session this morning in which most of the time (3 minutes) was consumed by the Pledge of Allegiance, the LA Unified school board disappeared into a closed meeting to discuss the next steps in the search for a new school superintendent, including who some of the candidates might be. Joining the members...

LAUSD School Board President Steve Zimmer has sent out an email reminder that midnight tonight is the deadline for students to apply to the University of California and California State University systems. “Tonight’s deadline is one of the most important demarcation points in our struggle,” noted Zimmer, whose personal newsletter reaches parents, teachers, counselors and students....

The LA Unified school board is holding a special meeting tomorrow to fine-tune the one-page list of “Desired Characteristics” for the superintendent that they hope to hire by the end of the year. The open session section is planned for 9 a.m. and will have representatives of the search firm Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates reviewing...