Overcoming lingering technical and logistical problems, eight remaining LAUSD schools will begin providing free breakfast in the classroom within the first two weeks of the coming school year, district officials said. That will complete the largest school breakfast program in the nation after more than three years of planning, said Laura Benavidez, project manager for the...

By Sarah Tully Parents won’t be able to transfer their children out of California’s lowest-ranked schools under a little-known law because the state’s scoring index – the basis for the rankings – has been suspended. The California Department of Education this year will not identify 1,000 low-ranking schools, where parents can request to transfer their...

In response to the “teacher jailing” of a beloved LA Unified teacher, Rafe Esquith, acclaimed actors Ian McKellen and Hal Holbrook joined past and present students in a You Tube video to offer their support for Esquith and to show how money spent from his after-school program, Hobart Shakespeareans, benefitted his students. “It is our response to their request for 15...

Among the biggest challenges facing California school districts in the coming years is a growing teacher shortage. Enrollment in teacher preparation programs has plummeted since 2008, and more than 100,000 teachers are expected to retire in the next decade. Despite the gathering storm, the state lacks any cohesive strategy to solving the problem, according to a...

The LA Unified board takes its first step in choosing a new superintendent, with a largely closed door meeting scheduled for tomorrow night. It’s a baby step, with the seven-member board most likely deciding on the parameters and requirements for a head-hunting firm that will bring them the top names for the position. While it’s a lofty...

By Claudio Sanchez Many high schoolers hoping to attend George Washington University in Washington, D.C., one of the top private universities in the country, breathed a sigh of relief this week. GWU announced it will no longer require applicants to take the SAT or ACT. The move comes after the school formed a task force...

The Rookies of the Year have been chosen among the LAUSD new teachers, and 23 of them will be going to the Dodgers play the Angels Sunday at Dodger Stadium. The winners were selected from among 920 first-year teachers last year, 87 of whom were nominated by school administrators and new teacher support staff. The winners were...

Principals at K-12, option and early education schools at LA Unified will start the 2015-16 school year next month working under a new evaluation system that was developed over the course of a two-year, no-stakes pilot program. The new system was announced in the recent newsletter of the Associated Administrators of Los Angeles (AALA), the...

By Paul E. Peterson and Martin R. West | Education Next Testing and accountability have become a focal point of the congressional debate over the new federal education bill designed to replace No Child Left Behind (NCLB), originally scheduled to expire in 2007. The Senate and the House have each passed a bill revising the...