LA School Report

By Alisha Kirby Recruitment efforts for special education positions – often the hardest jobs for schools to fill – have been forced to focus on out-of-state candidates as the shortage of teachers across California continues to loom. Vicki Barber, co-executive director of the California Statewide Taskforce on Special Education, said expanding the scope of the search...

Suspensions and expulsions decline as districts adopt alternatives, state says The number of students expelled and suspended from California schools continued to decline in 2014-15. EdSource, by Jane Meredith Adams How one student asked the state to tackle a looming education question The passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act, the replacement of the No...

Daniel Jocz, a social studies teacher at LA Unified’s Downtown Magnets High School, is among four finalists for the National Teacher of the Year award. Jocz was one of five winners of the California Teacher of the Year award in October and was nominated for the national competition by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), a...

The LA Unified school board yesterday became the first elected body to ask government officials to move one of the largest above-ground butane gas facilities in the country. Located in San Pedro, the highly-flammable gas is housed in two storage tanks not far from three LAUSD school sites. School board member Richard Vladovic, who represents...

The LA Unified school board spent more than an hour last night, debating dates for the next three academic calendar years. Ultimately, the members decided to keep the schedule similar to this year’s — starting in mid-August with three weeks of winter break — but only for one year. The plan passed on a 5-2...

By Steve Lopez No question about it. The selection of Michelle King as superintendent of Los Angeles Unified comes with what PR folks call a nice narrative. King, 54, attended district schools as a student, got her first job as an LAUSD student aide in 1978, became a teacher and a principal, and worked her way up to second-in-command...

L.A. school board finds unity in opposing charter plan The Los Angeles Board of Education found common ground by offering its first public opposition to a controversial $490-million charter schools proposal. Los Angeles Times, by Zahira Torres Backers amend Prop. 30 initiative to meet governor’s demand As amended, revenue from continuing Prop. 30 after 2018...

The LA Unified board today put itself on record as opposing a proposal that originated with the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation to expand the number of charter schools in the district in the years ahead. By a 7-0 vote, the board made it clear that it would do what it could to discourage the...

The LA Unified school board today unanimously approved a $350,000 annual contract for the district’s new superintendent Michelle King. The contract runs through June 30 of 2018, provides a district-owned car and driver for King and does not include a buyout clause. The deal is $50,000 more annually than her predecessor, Ramon Cortines, received, and...

Now that Michelle King has been hired as LA Unified’s new superintendent, it’s time to ask if the school board made the right decision. King, 54, who has worked for the district since 1984 and has been its No. 2 administrator since 2011, was chosen over several outside candidates, including San Francisco schools Supt. Richard Carranza...