LA School Report

Los Angeles’ schools are alive with the sound of music, or at least, they will be come fall when LA Unified’s new-and-improved arts budget is put into practice. Last week, the school board approved the district’s 2015-2016 spending plan, which allocates $26.5 million to arts education, said Rory Pullens, executive director of arts education for the...

By The Los Angeles Times Editorial Board Despite broad bipartisan support, legislation to repeal an onerous cap on school district reserve funds didn’t have much of a chance in the Democrat-controlled California Legislature. The bill by Assemblywoman Catharine Baker (R-San Ramon) died in the Assembly Education Committee faster than you can say “opposed by the...

SoCal schools may see more interns, substitutes in classrooms  School is out for the summer, but for some in education, the work is just beginning on a problem that is growing more acute: the teacher shortage. KPCC Best school districts for your buck in Southern California To find the best schools in Southern California, we...

OK, so let’s play this out. One of the Mónicas — Ratliff or García, or maybe both — offers a resolution next week waiving the rule that sets term limits at two, enabling Richard Vladovic to serve a third one-year term as the LA Unified board president. The effort needs four votes to pass. How do...

The investigation by LA Unified officials into acclaimed elementary school teacher Rafe Esquith includes allegations that he sexually abused a child 40 years ago. Esquith, a best selling author who has also received national awards and media attention for his work at Hobart Avenue Elementary School, was removed from the classroom in April in response...

By Jane Meredith Adams In the pockets of California where hundreds and even thousands of kindergartners are not fully vaccinated, school districts are starting to think seriously about how a proposed law requiring vaccinations – which the Legislature approved Thursday –  could affect their enrollment and in turn, their funding. The proposed law, Senate Bill 277,...

Panel recommends continuing districts’ waiver from NCLB A committee is recommending that a waiver from the No Child Left Behind law be extended to six California school districts, collectively known as CORE. Ed Source California bill requires hearings for school military gear The legislation was introduced before President Obama announced that his administration would stop...

If Ref Rodriguez and Scott Schemerelson had any hope of a slow and easy introduction to LA Unified board politics, they’re in for a jolt. Shortly after they’re sworn in as the board’s newest members next week, they might be asked to cast votes on a rule that determines who can or can’t be board...

Earl R. Perkins, LA Unified’s assistant superintendent for school operations, was recently honored by the  Los Angeles chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Perkins was one of eight given the Youth Council Men of Valor Award at a ceremony at the Double Tree Hilton in Torrance on Saturday. According to...

By Paul L. Morgan and George Farkas More than six million children in the United States receive special-education services for their disabilities. Of those age 6 and older, nearly 20 percent are black. Critics claim that this high number — blacks are 1.4 times more likely to be placed in special education than other races...