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LAUSD school board candidates vote, then drum up support
As voters head to the polls today, candidates running for LA Unified District 1 board seat were making last-minute pushes to reach voters and promote their message. Seven candidates are competing for a seat that has been vacant since December, and only an outright winner, with more than 50 percent of the vote, can assume...
By LA School Report | June 3, 2014
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After all the noise, turnout for school board race is uncertain
After the sudden death of LA Unified school board member Marguerite LaMotte nearly six months ago, her District 1 constituents have rallied inside and outside district headquarters, demanding representation on the board. Some wanted an immediate appointment to fill her seat. Others called for a special election. The latter group won out and tomorrow, residents...
By Vanessa Romo | June 2, 2014
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To campaign or not? Tactics vary in LAUSD school board race
Not all of the seven candidates vying for the vacant seat on the Los Angeles Unified school board are turning up the heat as the special election on June 3 heads to the finish line. To reach voters in South LA’s District 1, which as been without a board member since Marguerite LaMotte died in December, four...
By LA School Report | May 19, 2014
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LAUSD candidates agree (!) on value of public charter schools
The latest forum for candidates running in a special election to fill the vacant seat in South LA’s District 1 produced unexpected agreement last night on some of the most volatile issues in public education. The four contenders who participated — Alex Johnson, Rachel Johnson, Genethia Hudley-Hayes and George McKenna — saw eye to eye on nearly every core issue...
By Jamie Alter Lynton | May 15, 2014
Investigation: Nearly 1,000 Native Children Died in Federal Boarding Schools
Podcast: What a Mentorship Mindset Can Do for Student Motivation
Black and Hispanic Voters Say Democrats Aren’t Focused Enough on K-12 Education
Teen Activist Rhea Maniar on the Power of Abortion to Turn Out Young Voters
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School board candidates could be skirting finance disclosure laws
*UPDATE At least two candidates running for the LA Unified school board may be skirting campaign finance laws by sending campaign literature to voters without proper disclosure. The candidates, George McKenna, a retired administrator, and Rachel Johnson, who serves on the city council of Gardena, are competing in a large field to fill the open...
By LA School Report | May 7, 2014
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Rachel Johnson using experience to boost District 1 chances
Beginning today, LA School Report is taking a longer look at each of the seven candidates running for LA Unified’s vacant South LA, District 1 board seat. The series starts today with Rachel Johnson and will continue over the weeks ahead. After three decades as a LAUSD elementary school teacher and nine years as a...
By Yana Gracile | April 22, 2014
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LA County Fed decides not to endorse in the school board race
Delegates of the LA County Federation of Labor AFL-CIO, which represents 600,000 workers in the Los Angeles area, decided last night not to endorse any of the seven candidates for LA Unified school board after a motion to endorse candidate Alex Johnson failed to carry a required two-thirds majority vote. The decision mirrors that of...
By LA School Report | April 22, 2014
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UTLA unsure of financial support for teachers in board race
Winning endorsement is one thing. Winning financial support is quite another. UTLA, the teachers union, has endorsed three candidates in the June 3 special election to fill LA Unified’s District 1 board seat, all three with ties to the union: Rachel Johnson and Sherlett Hendy-Newbill are teachers, and Hattie McFrazier is a former teacher. The...
By Vanessa Romo | April 14, 2014
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Rachel Johnson has experience, if not cash, for school board race
In keeping with the start of the baseball season this week, let’s use a baseball analogy: Rachel Johnson has a Hall of Fame batting average in running for office. Since 2001 when she was first elected as the City Clerk of Gardena, Johnson has run four successful campaigns for elected office — a second term for...
By Vanessa Romo | April 2, 2014
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3 teachers get UTLA endorsements despite low money support
By voting to endorse three candidates last night for the LA Unified’s District 1 board seat, the UTLA House of Representatives chose to back two teachers and a former teacher who have raised a combined $8,440 for their election efforts. While that honors Sherlett Hendy-Newbill, Rachel Johnson and the former instructor, Hattie McFrazier, their meager financial support...
By Vanessa Romo | March 27, 2014