LA School Report

The LA Unified teachers staged one of its biggest “escalations” yet in support of their demands in a new contract from the district, staging demonstrations at schools across the district. The teachers union, UTLA, said “virtually every school was participating” in protests that lasted 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the school. “These people have...

Ed Source | By Susan Frey Whether solving math puzzles to help a penguin waddle across a computer screen or sounding out words in Mr. Sounders’ virtual classroom, K-2 students are increasingly embracing technology in California schools. Mixing academic software programs with traditional classroom instruction – often referred to as blended learning – is moving...

LAUSD school board candidates weigh in on arts education The nonprofit advocacy group Arts for LA has published survey responses from Los Angeles Unified school board candidates. KPCC Jefferson High academic fixes taking hold after court intervention Four months and more than $1 million later, many of Jefferson’s scheduling problems have been addressed. KPCC California...

The battle of the political action committees is heating up. A new mailer sent to voters in LA Unified District 5 accuses one of Bennett Kayser’s opponents in the March 3 board election, Ref Rodriguez, of failing to disclose personal financial information as required by law. The mailer, paid for by the PAC for the...

There are now more non-union teachers in America than there are teachers who belong to a union, according to data analyzed by the blog Education Intelligence Agency. The data confirms information that first came to light last year, which examined data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and unionstats.com. BLS has been tracking teacher union...

A  new report analyzed graduation rates for black males nationwide and found that LA Unified ranks well below the national average. The district graduation rate for black males was 41 percent in the 2011-12 school year, compared with 59 percent nationwide, according to the Schott Foundation. The report, BLACK LIVES MATTER: The Schott 50 State...

The teachers union super PAC is starting to spend on behalf of school board District 5 incumbent Bennett Kayser, unleashing a flurry of campaign pieces to defend his seat in what is shaping up to be the most hotly contested race in this election. To date, the Super PAC, an independent expenditure committee, run by...

LA Unified lawyers will start taking on student deportation cases on a pro-bono and volunteer basis, making it the first school district in the country to represent immigrant children. Under the new legal program called AYUDA — that’s Spanish for “help” — district lawyers will provide legal aid to a small number of unaccompanied minors...

Old, broken LAUSD musical instruments holding back some students The number of broken instruments at LAUSD’s music repair shop is up 24 percent, according to district numbers. KPCC Canoga Park High School takes another step toward becoming a charter The school took another step toward ending its 100-year-old relationship with Los Angeles Unified on Tuesday. Los...

The LA Unified school board is scheduled to meet today at 1 p.m. Items of interest on the agenda include consideration of the AYUDA program, which involves district lawyers potentially doing pro-bono work on student deportation cases, and a review of Gerawan Farming and its potential food contracts with the district. Click here to get the...