How long have they been at it now, four, five six months? Whatever it is, negotiators for LA Unified and the teachers union, UTLA, appear as close to agreement on a new labor contract as they were when bargaining began. Maybe they are inching forward on some issues. But the fact remains, teachers are still...

A $1.3 billion project fraught with controversy and a long list of disappointing results produced its first positive news in some time yesterday, as LA Unified reported a high level of success and satisfaction at a handful of schools where students were allowed to take home their district-issued iPads and other digital tablets. Members of...

More than 17,000 District 1 voters put George McKenna on the LA Unified school board last year. Now he needs each of them to send him $2.06. While candidates for this year’s school board elections are busy raising money, McKenna, is looking for help in paying off nearly $35,000 in campaign debts from last year. In...

The LA Unified teachers union, UTLA, dropped its salary demand yesterday to an 8.5 percent increase from a 9 percent, the union’s third consecutive lowering of what many teachers consider the most important issue in negotiations for a new contract. As part of the change, UTLA negotiators also asked the district for an annual $1,000...

How safe is your child’s sports field? KCET recently took an in-depth look at “crumb rubber” synthetic fields and the recent reports of possible health hazards related to them. The segment, which features interviews with parents, city officials, an LA Unified official and experts, focuses on parks in Los Angeles and at LA Unified that have crumb rubber...

Students from 18 LA Unified schools will be taking part in the third-annual Aspen Challenge on Saturday at the César E. Chávez Learning Academies in San Fernando. Launched by the Aspen Institute and the Bezos Family Foundation,the Aspen Challenge provides a forum for high school students and teachers to take on some of the world’s most pressing...

By EdVoice To ensure that every student in California has an effective and supportive teacher, schools and districts need to provide educators the help they need to thrive. And to target help and support to best meet the needs of teachers, schools need to conduct meaningful performance evaluations of instructional staff and leadership that include...

A measles outbreak that has been traced to starting at Disneyland last month has returned the issue of declining immunization rates to the headlines. So far, the outbreak has spread to 54 people across California, at least three other states and Mexico. Today, the Los Angels Times reported that the outbreak is the state’s worst...

As part of its contract negotiations, the teachers union, UTLA, is asking LA Unified for a new approach to school oversight, a demand that seeks to move decisions on school management and operations into the collective bargaining process. In effect, the proposal would insinuate UTLA into areas now the sole province of the board and...

* UPDATED   LA Unified is getting close to fixing its schools most in need of repair. Superintendent Ramon Cortines has developed a priority list for rehabilitating 11 campuses, once the Bond Oversight Committee, then the school board approve his plans. In a memo to school board members last week, Cortines said he would present...