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Ortíz will not request a recount in LAUSD’s school board race, leaving Repenning and Goldberg to face off in May

There will be no recount in the L.A. Unified school board race. Huntington Park Councilwoman Graciela Ortíz, who narrowly missed a spot in the May runoff election by 31 votes, decided Wednesday not to challenge the March 5 primary results that the county certified last Friday. Her decision came hours before the deadline to request a...
By Taylor Swaak | March 27, 2019
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Runoff Q&A: Jackie Goldberg outlines her first-day priorities and her strategies as she prepares to face Heather Repenning in May’s LAUSD school board election

*Updated March 27 As the race for the school board seat in L.A. Unified’s Board District 5 officially heads to a runoff, Jackie Goldberg has yet to break a sweat. With ardent backing from the teachers union, the 74-year-old former school board member nabbed 15,935 votes — 48.18 percent of the 33,074 total primary ballots...
By Taylor Swaak | March 25, 2019
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Heather Repenning enters the school board runoff vowing to address the need ‘to write a new chapter of change at LAUSD’

*Updated March 27 After what she called a challenging campaign, Heather Repenning — an L.A. Unified parent and former mayoral aide — is “optimistic” she will defeat frontrunner Jackie Goldberg in the May runoff for the District 5 school board seat. “I want to be a fighter, especially for the kids that are the underdog...
By Esmeralda Fabián Romero | March 25, 2019
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It’s official: Jackie Goldberg and Heather Repenning are headed to a runoff in LAUSD school board race

*Updated March 25 Former L.A. city official Heather Repenning and teachers union-pick Jackie Goldberg are officially headed to a May runoff for L.A. Unified’s Board District 5 school board seat, as the county registrar certified the March 5 primary results on Friday. Goldberg had been leagues ahead of the race’s nine other candidates since election...
By Taylor Swaak | March 22, 2019
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‘Very much’ the same thing: LAUSD continues to struggle to stay afloat as it waits for new revenue, latest financial report shows

School board members have approved L.A. Unified’s latest budget, even though the district is still far from being financially sustainable. The revised fiscal stabilization plan lays out the district’s response to county concerns about deficit spending, inadequate reserve levels and reliance on non-guaranteed funds to keep itself afloat in coming years. But instead of providing...
By Taylor Swaak | March 20, 2019
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If you had the money, would you pay off a college admissions officer? 1 in 4 parents say they would, a new poll finds

If you had the money, would you bribe a college official to get your child admitted? Fifteen percent of all American adults would answer yes, according to a new poll. And that number rises to 25 percent for adults who actually have children ages 18 and under. It’s a hypothetical question, but certainly a revealing...
By Kate Stringer | March 20, 2019
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Heather Repenning declares she’s made the runoff against Jackie Goldberg in race for LAUSD school board seat

*UPDATE: The county announced Thursday, March 21, that six more ballots have been counted in the race this week, and all went to Jackie Goldberg. There is still a 31-vote difference between Heather Repenning, who is in second place and thus eligible for the runoff election, and the closest competitor, Graciela Ortíz. The county will...
By Taylor Swaak | March 15, 2019
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How 8 large California districts are using data to decode social-emotional learning — and predict students’ academic success

When some teachers in the Long Beach Unified School District hear students say they’re bad at math, they rephrase. You’re not bad, you’re just not understanding it yet. It’s not too difficult, it’s just challenging right now. These educators are helping students develop a growth mindset, a belief that they can improve their skills through...
By Kate Stringer | March 13, 2019
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School districts serving mostly nonwhite students get $23 billion less each year than those serving predominantly white populations — California is among most inequitable

It was nearly three decades ago when the New Jersey Supreme Court found the state’s school funding formula shortchanged its poorest students, and lawmakers directed more money to districts serving large shares of low-income children. Now, a new report suggests the state didn’t go far enough. Despite the landmark decision, the state has one of the nation’s largest...
By Mark Keierleber | March 11, 2019
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LAUSD’s BD5 race will go to a runoff — Repenning holds 35-vote lead over Ortíz for second place

*Updated March 15 The top three finishers in L.A. Unified’s Board District 5 election retained their positions after Tuesday’s vote count, though the race for second place narrowed to only 35 votes. A runoff election on May 14 is now certain, as Jackie Goldberg is 596 votes shy of a majority and there are fewer than...
By Taylor Swaak | March 8, 2019