LA School Report

Parents upset over cell tower possible being installed near WeHo school Parents said radiation from the cell tower will have harmful effects on their children. ABC7, by Mayde Gomez Judge rules district not liable in arrest of special ed student in drug sting In 2012, it was called Operation Glasshouse, an undercover drug investigation at...

Outgoing LA Unified Superintendent Ramon Cortines got a series of big surprises this afternoon with a long-planned tribute that included a group of students singing for him and old friends stopping by district headquarters to honor his legacy. The school board auditorium was packed for the event, which Cortines knew nothing about. The seven school...

* UPDATED As LA Unified studies several academic calendar options while also reaching out for public input, a group of parents has started an online petition, asking the district not to consider the “extreme” option of shortening summer break to five weeks while extending winter break to seven. An advisory panel is currently studying six...

A new report from the American Institutes of Research shows that young children have up to five months of learning advantage compared with children who don’t get an extra year of kindergarten. But the report — Impact of California’s Transitional Kindergarten Program, 2013-14 — also points out that there’s a long way to go in funding the pre-school program...

LA Unified teachers should have fewer problems getting their Fall term grades in and their report cards out before the winter break, thanks to a new computer help program launched yesterday. The new service request system has been years in the planning. Teachers and staff can get technical help with computers, applications, internet and other technology issues...

After a public session this morning in which most of the time (3 minutes) was consumed by the Pledge of Allegiance, the LA Unified school board disappeared into a closed meeting to discuss the next steps in the search for a new school superintendent, including who some of the candidates might be. Joining the members...

The LA Unified school board is holding a special meeting  at 9 a.m. today to fine-tune the one-page list of “Desired Characteristics” for the superintendent that they hope to hire by the end of the year. The open session will have representatives of the search firm Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates reviewing the Leadership Profile Report. Then, the...

By Emma Brown Federal lawmakers on Monday released the final text of a compromise bill to rewrite No Child Left Behind, including closely watched language outlining how the nation’s K-12 schools would be judged — and how struggling schools would be improved — if the legislation passes. The bill, dubbed the Every Student Succeeds Act, would largely shift authority from...

California leads drive to reverse focus on standardized tests California is on course to have a major impact on reshaping the national discourse – and practice – on this issue. EdSource, by Louis Freedberg Who’s afraid of Campbell Brown? Brown’s new endeavor is all about kickstarting her ambitious plans to reshape the education debate in...

LAUSD School Board President Steve Zimmer has sent out an email reminder that midnight tonight is the deadline for students to apply to the University of California and California State University systems. “Tonight’s deadline is one of the most important demarcation points in our struggle,” noted Zimmer, whose personal newsletter reaches parents, teachers, counselors and students....