LA School Report

By Ramon Altamirano I was already a freshman at Cal State Northridge before I realized that my schools had failed me. It was apparent, very quickly, that the prior 12 years of my education had not been on par with that of my classmates. Other students had come to their higher learning with the academic...

*UPDATED The teachers union in Los Angeles — one of the largest local teachers unions in the nation — suffered a huge loss in last week’s school board election, but observers say it will only cause union leadership to fight harder. Ultimately, that could mean United Teachers Los Angeles will bolster efforts to unionize charter...

Monday was supposed to be an easy day. State tests were over, the school year was winding down, and Taper Avenue Elementary School was heading for a long weekend. But as Principal Steven Skrumbis and his instructional director, Gina Ellis, finished their rounds touring the school just after lunch and headed back to the office, they...

The Trump administration’s full 2018 budget proposal lays out more details on huge new school choice programs, including a $250 million voucher program, even as the administration justifies $9 billion in cuts to the department overall. The budget makes a “historic investment in America’s students,” Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said in a statement. “By refocusing...

By Nadia Diaz Funn The Alliance for a Better Community (ABC), an advocacy organization committed to the advancement of the Los Angeles Latino community, congratulates Kelly Gonez and Nick Melvoin on their election to the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education. With a long, exhausting, and divisive campaign season now behind us, this...

With a new majority coming to the LA Unified school board, one of the first tasks will be to select the next board president, and all signs point to relative newcomer Ref Rodriguez taking over the top spot. The position is largely ceremonial, but it puts a face on the second-largest school district in the...

(Note: This article first appeared on La Comadre and Education Post) By Chris Bertelli When the ballots were finally tallied in the early morning hours on Wednesday, those of us who work for educational equity in California’s public schools had reason to celebrate. After an expensive, hard-fought campaign, two political newcomers – Nick Melvoin and Kelly Gonez – were...

Steve Zimmer’s vote in April to direct LA Unified to support a state bill dubbed a “charter killer” factored into the board president’s defeat at the polls this week, his board colleagues say. The contentious 4-3 vote supported State Bill 808 authored by Sen. Tony Mendoza, which allowed school districts to reject public independent charter schools if they...

Tuesday’s election of two pro-reform school board members could mean a whole new set of challenges for LA Unified Superintendent Michelle King. The board will shift in July from a pro-union majority to one backed by charter school supporters, and some observers think that could present difficulties for King, as the superintendent is hired and fired...

Even before any results were announced from ballots cast Tuesday at the polls, Steve Zimmer stood outside a deli in Mar Vista and conceded defeat before heading inside to hug his friends and supporters. At that point, only absentee ballots had been counted, but more than 60 percent were against him, and he didn’t see...