LA School Report

While editorial boards at most of California’s major newspapers all reacted favorably to Judge Rolf Treu’s ruling in Vergara vs. California, and a USC poll showed that a strong majority of California voters oppose the state’s tenure and layoff policies for public school teachers that the court ruling struck down, Gov. Jerry Brown nonetheless appealed...

Via Gallup | by Rebecca Riffkin Gallup has asked U.S. adults about their satisfaction with education since 1999, including each August since 2001, as part of its annual Work and Education poll. The high of 53% satisfaction was reached in 2004, the only year more Americans were satisfied with education than dissatisfied. Americans were most...

Analysis finds California students attend school more than U.S. peers California students attend school more consistently than most of their U.S. peers, and such attendance directly relates to better performance on national math and reading tests, a new analysis has found. LA Times Programs target crucial summer before college Lilie Hau, 18, of San Francisco,...

When it comes to free school meals, it’s increasingly clear that students aren’t always what they eat. The federal free- and reduced-price meals program, launched decades ago by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to combat child hunger through schools, has become a ubiquitous proxy for poverty in federal and state education and health programs, and...

* UPDATED The lower court’s final ruling in the Vergara case has pushed it into the race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction as the latest proxy fight between supporters of reform and protectors of the status quo. Tom Torlakson, the incumbent, is urging the state to appeal. Marshall Tuck, the challenger, is urging the state not...

Gloria Romero, the former state senator who authored the California Parent Trigger law is asking LA Unified board president Richard Vladovic to schedule a public discussion on the district’s legal opinion that the law does not apply this year. District lawyers say the Federal waiver granted LA Unified and seven other California school districts, allowing...

Ex-LAUSD official denies steering contract to former employer The former Los Angeles schools official under scrutiny for his role in the district’s $1.3-billion iPad program defended himself Thursday, saying that he did not improperly steer the contract to a company that once employed him. LA Times LA schools iPads: Bid committee got free tablets, resort...

The judge in Vergara vs. California today released his final review of the case, affirming his preliminary decision in June, that five state statures governing teacher employment rules violate the California constitution by denying students access to a quality public education. In his final ruling, filed yesterday, Judge Rolf Treu, said, “plaintiffs have met their...

* UPDATED LA Unified is rebuilding early-childhood education programs that were nearly decimated throughout the bleak recession years, investing an additional $30 million through 2016-2017. In a 6-1 vote Tuesday, the school board agreed to create a pathway for returning funding for the district’s three to four-year-olds, to levels not seen since 2007. By 2012...