Two members of the LA Unified school board, losers in last month’s elections, joined their colleagues for the final time today, as Bennett Kayser got a 90-minute heartfelt and emotional sendoff and Tamar Galatzan walked away without so much as a goodbye or thank you from any of the remaining five members, including the out-going president,...

If opponents of LA Unified’s controversial disciplinary process known as “teacher jail” were looking for an ideal case to fight it, both in a court of law and in the court of public opinion, they may get it. High-profile attorney Mark Geragos, representing one of the most famous active teachers in the country, Rafe Esquith,...

A small coalition of community organizations rallied at LA Unified headquarters today, urging district leaders to invest in more restorative justice programs and alternative schools. The Dignity in Schools Campaign joined with leaders of the parent group, CADRE, Public Counsel and the teachers union, UTLA, to celebrate, what they called “a minor victory.” Beginning next...

* UPDATED In a move that the California Center for Parent Empowerment (CCPE) is calling a first, a majority of teachers and staff at an LA Unified elementary school are publicly supporting a group of parents in a “parent trigger” campaign against the school’s principal. Over 30 teachers and staff at Fishburn Avenue Elementary School signed a...

By Motoko Rich The new academic standards known as the Common Core emphasize critical thinking, complex problem-solving and writing skills, and put less stock in rote learning and memorization. So the standardized tests given in most states this year required fewer multiple choice questions and far more writing on topics like this one posed to...

Despite assertions by Superintendent Ramon Cortines that the 2015-16 balanced budget — up for approval tomorrow by the LA Unified school board — included more than 600 job cuts, it appears that district officials are rescinding some of those layoffs. In March, the board passed a fiscal stabilization plan that triggered 609 Reduction in Force notices to...

By Araceli Morfín and Raúl Ruíz Tomorrow, the LAUSD school board will ratify the 2015-16 budget, along with the district’s Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), increasing an investment in restorative justice to $7.2 million from $4.2 million. This increase is timely, as the work of restorative justice has been immensely impactful in our LAUSD schools at...

The LA Unified School Board will approve a final budget for 2015-16 and an accompanying Local Control Accountability Plan that is supposed to outline the district’s goals in spending of nearly $7.1 billion during tomorrow’s last meeting of the school year. It is also the last time with this configuration of the board. Tamar Galatzan...

By Rachel M. Cohen The April sun had not yet risen in Los Angeles when teachers from the city’s largest charter network—the Alliance College-Ready Public Schools—gathered outside for a press conference to discuss their new union drive. Joined by local labor leaders, politicians, student alumni, and parents, the importance of the educators’ effort was not...

Responding to a wave of media attention this week surrounding the suspension of Hobart Boulevard Elementary teacher Rafe Esquith, LA Unified Superintendent Ramon Cortines said today “serious issues” have been raised in the briefings he has seen and that he supported the district’s continued investigation of the case. Esquith, who has received national recognition and is...