LA School Report

LADN: Galatzan, Rodriguez, Vladovic for L.A. school board LAUSD’s leadership is having a rough decade. So it’s no surprise that all of the school board’s veteran members up for re-election on March 3 face multiple challengers. Los Angeles Daily News Compton principal on leave; students allege ‘uncomfortable’ searches A Compton principal has been placed on...

The teachers union today made it official, flatly rejecting LA Unified’s most recent contract offer, which included a five percent salary rise, a nine percent increase in minimum salary for first-year teachers and additional money to lower class size. With the union sticking by its demand of an 8.5 percent salary increase, the sides remain...

Incumbent Bennett Kayser appeared spoiling for a fight last night, sharing the stage with his two challengers for the LA Unified District 5 board seat at a candidate forum in El Sereno. Right out of the gate, he goaded PUC charter school founder Ref Rodriguez and education researcher Andrew Thomas to state their positions on Prop 39, a...

As Los Angeles voters consider how to vote on two city charter amendments that would change the dates of city and LA Unified school board elections, one person they shouldn’t look to for guidance is Mayor Eric Garcetti. The measures would move the city and school board elections to November so that they would align...

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...