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Charter Schools Association Pushing Election for LaMotte Seat
The California Charter Schools Association, or CCSA, has become the latest group pushing LA Unified leadership to hold an election to fill the seat left open by the sudden death of board member Marguerite LaMotte. As the school board continues to weigh the options of appointing a replacement or staging a special election — stakeholders around...
By Vanessa Romo | December 10, 2013
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Ridley-Thomas Drawing Support from UTLA, Reform Groups*
A 26-year old candidate with more experience in policy than politics is heading into tomorrow’s special election for a westside state Assembly seat with something few candidates can claim: support from both sides of the education reform debate. Sebastian Ridley-Thomas, son of County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, has proved to be both a prolific fundraiser and...
By Vanessa Romo | December 2, 2013
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Valley Charter Operators, Guilty of Fraud, Seeking New Trial
Eugene Selivanov and his wife, Tatyana Berkovich, will be back in an Los Angeles County Superior Court tomorrow, asking the judge to grant them a new trial in a case that the California Charter Schools Association says affects other charters within the LA Unified school district. The two were found guilty in April of misappropriating...
By LA School Report | October 3, 2013
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Zimmer Seeking State Help with Charter Co-location Rules
An emotionally-charged debate erupted at the last school board meeting over the co-location of a charter on the campus of an elementary school in Boyle Heights. Parents of public school students at Lorena Street Elementary School were furious that the school was forced to relinquish space to accommodate Extera 2, a charter school, because of Proposition...
By Vanessa Romo | September 9, 2013
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Service Workers Close to Winning Vote in Charter Process
A bill that would allow cafeteria workers, custodians and teacher aides to vote when a public school wants to become a charter is one vote (State Assembly) and one signature (Gov. Brown) away from becoming law. Both are expected, and it could happen within days. Currently, only teachers get to vote for conversion. But the change...
By Hillel Aron | August 28, 2013
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Update: Reform Coalition Faces Power Vacuum
Education reformers met Friday afternoon to discuss the disastrous results of the 2013 School Board elections and to consider what form the their efforts should take in the future. “It was a meeting to discuss what had happened in my election and what we should think about the future of LAUSD,” said Kate Anderson, who unsuccessfully...
By Hillel Aron | June 6, 2013
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Coalition Campaign was “Half-Hearted and Incompetent,” says Rival Consultant
Referencing the recent District 4 primary between Kate Anderson and Steve Zimmer, StudentsFirst head Michelle Rhee last week boasted that the Coalition for School Reform effort she helped fund “came within three percentage points of unseating an incumbent, union-backed Board member – something that would have been unthinkable just a couple of election cycles ago.” But...
By Alexander Russo | March 18, 2013
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Listen: Politics 101 For Teachers
Start your week off listening to this panel discussion about politics, policy, and advocacy from last week’s 20th Annual California Charter Schools Conference in San Diego. Featured panelists include Daniela Kim, a teacher with PUC Schools and a member of Teach Plus, Brian Johnson, former Assembly candidate and current VP of Leadership For Educational Equity, and Joshua...
By LA School Report | March 18, 2013
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Charter Leaders to Gather in San Diego
More than 3,000 charter school leaders from across California — including many from LA — will gather in San Diego on Tuesday, March 12 for a three-day conference hosted by the California Charter Schools Association (CSSA). Speakers at the conference include education advocate and StudentsFirst founder Michelle Rhee, CCSA President Jed Wallace, and Congressman George...
By Samantha Oltman | March 11, 2013
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Citizens Charter Looks East
Los Angeles-based CItizens of the World charter network has applied to open a school in fast-gentrifying Williamsburg (Brooklyn), and the local NPR affiliate reports that its possible arrival is creating both hope and concern. While socioeconomically diverse and progressive charter schools like Citizens are somewhat familiar in Los Angeles, they remain new and unfamiliar on...
By Alexander Russo | December 20, 2012