Conspicuous by their absence from last week’s school board meeting were representatives from UTLA, the teachers union, discussing a new contract. While many of the labor partners who work with LA Unified have begin contract talks or submitted their opening proposals, UTLA has maintained radio silence. At least, that’s how it appears to the public....

They came. They ate. They talked. And they came up with a few ideas they say might work. Four people from Citizens of the World Charter School (CWC) and four of its neighbors shared a meal at the school last night and discussed the traffic and parking problems that have angered local residents, causing friction...

* UPDATED Citizens of the World Charter School (CWC), a K-2 LA Unified school of 160 students in Mar Vista, is inviting neighbors over for dinner tonight. It’s a gesture intended to show that CWC is a better neighbor than some in the area apparently think. The offer to break bread comes at an unpleasant...

The UTLA election winners are still waiting for the fat lady to sing. Since Alex Caputo-Pearl was declared the winner as president and two other races were clarified though the second round of voting last week, the union’s election committee is now in the midst of hearing 15 challenges from competition for 22 positions. Hearings...

After weeks of trying, a group of students from Fremont High School finally got a meeting yesterday in the office of LA Unified Board President Richard Vladovic to promote their Special Need Index for use in the board budget negotiations. Vladovic wasn’t there, they were told, but they presented a petition with 4,300 signatures to Chris Torres, his...

UPDATED* Alex Caputo-Pearl was declared the new UTLA president today as he overwhelmed incumbent Warren Fletcher in the second-round of voting, the LA teachers union announced today. After outpolling Fletcher 2-1 in the first round, Caputo-Pearl beat him by more than 4-to-1 in the runoff, with 5,801 votes (80.18 percent) to Fletcher’s 1,434 (19.82 percent)....

Whether LA Unified board member Tamar Galatzan runs for reelection or not, voters in her District 3 will have two other candidates to consider in the 2015 board election. Carl Petersen, Director of Logistics for a Glendale manufacturing company, and Elizabeth Badger, owner of an auto repair company in Canoga Park, have filed to run,...

The first round of the UTLA elections produced two stunning results. One: For the first time in recent memory, a political faction within the union — Union Power — has gained near total control of the union. In a field of 10 candidates for president, Alex Caputo-Pearl out-polled his nearest competitor, incumbent Warren Fletcher, by a 2-to-1 margin —...

An LA City Council commission charged with providing a blueprint for the future of the city released its second report today, this one offering recommendations to move Los Angeles toward fiscal solvency and greater job creation. The Los Angeles 2020 Commission’s report, “A Time for Action,” largely focuses on issues related to jobs, budgets and...

The budget proposal LA Unified Superintendent John Deasy will present to the school board tomorrow has won lukewarm responses from three of the district’s biggest labor partners — the teachers union (UTLA), the principals union (AALA) and the support workers union (SEIU Local 99). After reviewing documents the district released on Friday, each group expressed cautious...