-
Why is LAUSD spending more money this year even though revenues are down?
Even as LA Unified’s enrollment is projected to continue its downward slide next year, which means less money for the district, spending will increase compared to the previous year. The new budget for 2017-18, approved unenthusiastically last Tuesday by the LA Unified school board, includes a 6.7 percent increase in spending from the last school...
By Sarah Favot | June 27, 2017
-
A model for change in South Los Angeles: UCLA steps in to rescue a struggling middle school
An imposing South Los Angeles middle school in a dense neighborhood not far from where the LA Riots erupted 25 years ago once bustled with 2,000 students. Today only 350 students roam its hallways. Families have fled Horace Mann Middle School and its low student achievement, but LA’s largest public university thinks it can turn...
By Sarah Favot | June 26, 2017
-
LAUSD is about halfway through fixing what an independent panel said could lead to bankruptcy
LA Unified has implemented about half of the strategies stemming from an independent panel’s report on the district’s finances, Superintendent Michelle King said at Tuesday’s presentation of the budget. The Independent Financial Review Panel of nine experts commissioned by former Superintendent Ramon Cortines stated that if significant actions weren’t taken, the district was headed toward...
By Sarah Favot | June 21, 2017
-
LAUSD approves $7.5 billion budget under cloud of declining enrollment and future cuts
The LA Unified school board on Tuesday approved a $7.5 billion budget for the 2017-18 school year even as some board members expressed frustrations about declining enrollment and future cuts that might come as the board faces budget deficits. Spending has increased from the 2016-17 school year by 6.7 percent, while revenues have declined by...
By Sarah Favot | June 20, 2017
-
Where students say school bullying is a problem in LA — elementary schools top the list
*UPDATED While middle school is largely believed to be where bullying occurs most often, the LA Unified schools where the highest majority of students reported that bullying was a problem were elementary schools, according to surveys about safety in schools. Of the 24 schools where the largest percentage of students reported that bullying was a...
By Sarah Favot | June 20, 2017
-
What are the chances of getting into an LAUSD magnet?
As the number of independent charter schools in Los Angeles has grown and students have left the district, one of LA Unified’s key strategies in fighting the enrollment slide has been to promote and build its magnet programs. Declining enrollment is what’s behind the district’s new unified enrollment system, and the demand for magnets was...
By Sarah Favot | June 19, 2017
-
What would it cost LAUSD to fire Michelle King?
The LA Unified school board in one of its last actions before the new board is installed next month voted to extend Superintendent Michelle King’s contract until 2020. The contract was not up for renewal until 2018. But what would it cost? Here’s a look at provisions in King’s contract that explain why she could...
By Sarah Favot | June 15, 2017
-
California’s black and Latino boys aren’t getting the support they need to get to college, new report finds
With only 76 percent of California’s Latino boys and 67 percent of black boys graduating from high school, a new report calls for systemic changes to help this population get to and succeed in college. Key changes should be setting high expectations for young men of color and making college preparation classes the default for...
By Sarah Favot | June 14, 2017
-
LAUSD Superintendent Michelle King will unveil $7.5B budget for 2017-18
June means it’s budget time for the Los Angeles Unified School District. The district published Superintendent Michelle King’s final $7.5 billion budget proposal for the 2017-18 school year on its website late last week, making it publicly available for the first time. It’s a breezy 262 pages. The school board will hold a public hearing...
By Sarah Favot | June 12, 2017
-
Here’s how to use the interactive map on school climate in LA schools
We just published an interactive map that shows the results of school climate surveys taken by teachers and students at LA schools. The map makes it easy for parents for the first time to compare the climate in their child’s school to other schools in the same neighborhood and across LA. There’s data on 786...
By Sarah Favot | June 8, 2017