LA School Report

Watch East Valley District 6 candidates Antonio Sanchez, Maria Cano, and Monica Ratliff at the United Way candidate forum on Thursday, where they shared their opinions on big election topics, including classroom resources, Superintendent John Deasy, teacher evaluations, and how to handle teachers accused of misconduct:  

According to new documents unearthed by LA School Report (but not otherwise available online), the political action arm of United Teachers Los Angeles, called UTLA-PACE, has amassed a war chest of $671,000 and begun spending funds on polling and consulting. However, UTLA-PACE has yet to deem any of its campaign spending as “independent expenditures,” which must be...

Before Monday’s debate, the topic of education had been largely AWOL from the Mayoral campaign.  This might have seemed odd, considering what a huge role education issues played in outgoing Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s eight years in office. However, the five leading candidates are now beginning to stake out positions on education in order to attract...

Meet the Candidates: LAUSD School Board District 6, East Valley The next person to represent District 6, which includes schools in areas such as San Fernando, Pacoima, Panorama City and Sun Valley, will hold the position during a critical period. I Am San Fernando Blog See also: LA School Report New System Allows More Students...

Thursday night’s School Board candidates forum offered three political newcomers a chance to introduce themselves to voters of the East Valley’s District 6. Monica Ratliff introduced herself to the assembled group of community members and reporters as a teacher of a high-performing public school (San Pedro Elementary) in one of the poorest areas in the...

Now whittled down to three candidates — Maria Cano, Antonio Sanchez, and Monica Ratliff  — the race for the East Valley’s District 6 features a cast of relative unknowns endorsed by the teachers union. However, one of them — newcomer Antonio Sanchez — is the front-runner by virtue of the additional endorsements and independent expenditure...

In its first meeting of the new term, UTLA’s governing body (called the House of Representatives) voted to endorse Eric Garcetti (pictured) for Mayor, by a 146 to 12 vote. “We look forward to working with Eric Garcetti as Mayor.  He listens to teachers,” said UTLA President Warren Fletcher in a statement (download it here). As...

Teachers Union Backs Eric Garcetti for Mayor The Los Angeles Teachers Union voted late Wednesday to endorse Eric Garcetti for mayor and Mike Feuer for city attorney in the March 5 primary election. LA Daily News See also: LA School Report GOP Legislators Propose California School Districts Arm Teachers Democratic legislators say bill that would...

Here’s a brief video from the UTLA-PACE website showing UTLA President Warren Fletcher decrying the “media witch hunt” against teachers accused of misconduct.

When it comes to running for School Board, it’s good to be a teacher. No less than five out of 11 candidates  — Annamarie Montanez, current Board Member Steve Zimmer, Isabel Vazquez, Abelardo Diaz, and Monica Ratliff — are listed on the ballot as “teacher” (whether they’re currently in the classroom or not). Two other candidates list their jobs...