LA School Report

By Tom Chorneau State officials won high marks for efforts to make sure all low-income children are covered by health insurance but challenges still stand when it comes to ensuring access to care and to specialized services, according to a new survey. The 2016 report card on California from Children Now estimated that during the two years...

Court of appeal finally to hear case charging underfunding of schools A state court of appeal will hear arguments in two long-delayed lawsuits charging that the state violated children’s constitutional rights by underfunding education. EdSource, by John Fensterwald Some districts exempt students in special ed from vaccination law California has not yet issued guidance on...

Months of preparation in anticipation of the El Niño storms have kept service calls to LA Unified’s facilities office to a “moderate” level, according to the school district’s director of Maintenance and Operations Roger Finstad. Yesterday, he said, his department received 423 rain-related service calls from 211 schools, and by mid-afternoon today, he received 235 calls from...

* UPDATED She gave $1 million to Palisades Charter High School for classroom renovations and building a community pool. She was LAUSD’s oldest full-time teacher when she retired at 94 and one of the oldest ever in the nation. She taught the children of Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin and Robert Mitchum. And, her students...

The Ethicist, By Kwame Anthony Appiah A reader’s question: My wife and I are an interracial couple living in Oakland, Calif. We are both first-generation college graduates for whom solid public-school educations made all the difference. We are struggling with choosing a public school for our son, who will enter kindergarten this year. State test...

Late teacher Jaime Escalante among those honored with 2016 stamps High school math teacher Escalante, a Bolivian immigrant, taught at high-poverty Garfield High School in Los Angeles, building a first-class math program. Sacramento Bee, by Bill Lindelof L.A. Unified school board still struggling to name leader “This is very, very hard work, as it should...

After meeting five hours today to discuss candidates for the next LAUSD superintendent, the school board adjourned until next Monday with no decision made. The school board members began a closed session at 9 a.m. and returned at 2:15 p.m. to say they will resume the search discussions on Monday, Jan. 11 at 4 p.m., with...

The school board vote was simple, but the matter is far more complex, drawing a focus to an issue many within LA Unified find uncomfortable to talk about: classism. The issues involved in the Playa Vista Elementary School dispute are a microcosm of complexities within the second largest school district in the country. They involve...

The finish line is in view. In all likelihood, by this time next week, LA Unified will have its next superintendent. Just who that will be remains uncertain to the world beyond the seven board members and a few district officials. The process has been moving along at a relatively brisk pace, considering the enormity...

By Howard Blume San Francisco schools Supt. Richard Carranza, a leading candidate to head the Los Angeles Unified School District, has pulled out of consideration, according to a spokeswoman for the Bay Area district. Carranza said he wanted to focus on unfinished efforts in San Francisco, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, which was the first to...