*Updated Aug. 15 LA Unified kicked off the school year this week by more than doubling the number of new magnet schools and programs. But the mostly high-achieving school choice options have a new opponent: the teachers union. LA Unified is locked in a contract dispute with United Teachers Los Angeles, which is calling for...

LA Unified kicks off a new school year Tuesday, with a new superintendent looking to lead in a new way. Here are some reasons why Superintendent Austin Beutner says change is needed in the district: Of every 100 students who enter LA Unified high schools, 12 will drop out. Of every 100 students, 77 will...

There’s been heightened awareness and activism in recent years surrounding the discipline gap, or the occurrence that minorities — black males in particular — are disproportionately suspended or expelled relative to other racial and gender subgroups. But what’s received less attention are some of the other surprising trends embedded deep in data out of California....

Most parents think their kids are ready for the next grade. In fact, 90 percent believe their child is academically on par with or above their peers in their grade. However, only 39 percent of teachers believe their students are at grade level when they start the new school year. The reality is that only...

*Updated Aug. 8 Between 2011 and 2017, out-of-school suspensions in California fell 46 percent, and the rate of suspensions dropped by more than a third. That students are suspended less frequently is welcome news for civil rights advocates who’ve long been concerned about the fact that certain groups — black students, foster youth, and students...

Nearly 100,000 Los Angeles students are heading back to school without an elected representative because of the empty LA Unified school board seat in District 5. The District 5 seat — one of seven in the district, each with its own elected board member — was held by Ref Rodríguez, who pleaded guilty to money-laundering...

This interview was first published by Speak UP.  On the brink of what could potentially be the first LAUSD teachers strike since 1989, Speak UP sat down with LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner to discuss labor talks, parent power and how to solve the district’s financial crisis while putting the needs of kids first. The following...

Native American students’ unique needs for too long have been poorly served, but culturally relevant charter schools could help change that. And the federal government is poised to fund their expansion. A new handbook on how to open and sustain charter schools for these students shows how charters can work with Native communities to make...

*Updated July 27 Fewer than half of California’s high school graduates last year met the minimum requirements for the state’s public universities, according to data released Thursday by the state Department of Education. That’s despite what the department calls a “significant upward trend” in graduation rates this decade. But that upward trend ended with Thursday’s...