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JUST IN: Caputo-Pearl wins decisively for UTLA president
UPDATED* Alex Caputo-Pearl was declared the new UTLA president today as he overwhelmed incumbent Warren Fletcher in the second-round of voting, the LA teachers union announced today. After outpolling Fletcher 2-1 in the first round, Caputo-Pearl beat him by more than 4-to-1 in the runoff, with 5,801 votes (80.18 percent) to Fletcher’s 1,434 (19.82 percent)....
By Michael Janofsky | April 29, 2014
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Commentary: Another test, but what is it, exactly?
In a recent opinion piece in The New York Times, “When the Circus Descends,” David Brooks derided opponents of Common Core Standards, implying that they were ideologues on the far left and far right making “hysterical claims and fevered accusations.” But as I visit classrooms across the city talking to teachers about the Common Core,...
By Ellie Herman | April 29, 2014
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LA Times endorses McKenna for District 1 board seat
Via Los Angeles Times | By the editorial board The seven candidates for the District 1 seat on the Los Angeles Unified School Board include several teachers, a reality-show contestant and a former member of the board. The one who stands out, though, is former principal and district administrator George McKenna. In 1985, years before...
By LA School Report | April 29, 2014
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LA Schools’ maintenance budget trails other large districts
Via KPCC | By Annie Gilbertson The Los Angeles Unified spends the least on maintenance and operations of California’s largest school district, according to new analysis by a district committee. The committee, which oversees bond money used for major repairs, argues the district should increase maintenance spending to avoid more costly work from deterioration created...
By LA School Report | April 29, 2014
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LA Unified graduation rates up for third straight year
* UPDATED For the third straight year in LA Unified, the high school graduation rate increased and the dropout rate decreased, according to new state data released today. Last June, the graduation rate climbed to 67.9 percent, or 1.3 percentage points higher than the previous year. And more students stayed in school: The dropout rate...
By Vanessa Romo | April 28, 2014
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Students to school board: Neediest schools deserve more
A new movement is brewing at Fremont High School, a school with a troubled past that has been at the epicenter of community and educational change many times over the years in south LA. For the past week, students there have been using an old-fashioned organizing tool — a petition drive — to bring a message...
By Aaron Stella | April 28, 2014
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SEIU 99 president ‘still thinking’ about LAUSD board seat
Barbara Torres, president of SEIU Local 99, is “still thinking about running” for a seat on the LA Unified School Board against incumbent Bennett Kayser despite concerns raised by the union’s executive director, says her campaign manager Lewis Myers. “She has not made her decision yet,” Lewis told LA School Report. “There is a lot of...
By Vanessa Romo | April 28, 2014
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Hendy-Newbill bringing a coach’s perspective to board race
Second in a series of profiles of candidates for the LA Unified’s open District 1 board seat. As a teacher, basketball coach and wife of a former NBA player, Sherlett Hendy-Newbill knows the value of teamwork, discipline and dedication. It’s those attributes she is promising to bring to the LA Unified school board if she...
By Yana Gracile | April 28, 2014
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City, LA Unified join forces for one-stop family needs centers*
Once upon a time people turned to local parishes in times of need, whether they needed help for aid for family counseling, putting food on the table or finding safe shelter. Now, labor and city leaders in Los Angeles want that hub of help to be your local school. SEIU Local 99, the school workers...
By Vanessa Romo | April 25, 2014
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Hudley-Hayes still has big-name support in LAUSD board race
Despite her inability to substantiate a number of academic credentials and other claims on her resume, Genethia Hudley-Hayes still has the backing of her major supporters in the race for the LA Unified District 1 board seat. “Outsiders don’t get it,” said one longtime south Los Angeles activist who spoke to LA School Report on the condition...
By Jamie Alter Lynton | April 25, 2014