Saturday, October 28, 2006

America's Next Top Model[ing] Behavior



4LAKids: Sunday, Oct 29, 2006 -
One Hour Backwards in Time
(did you set you clock back?)
In This Issue:
SCHOOL BOARD TARDINESS — The next time it starts on time might be the first.
VILLARAIGOSA, BREWER SAY THEY'RE IN SYNC ON LAUSD + FOR THE SAKE OF THE KIDS, THIS PAIR MUST STAY TOGETHER ...and other family business
NEXT LEADER OF L.A. SCHOOL DISTRICT VOWS TO REMOVE 'BAD TEACHERS': Brewer expects to be 'vilified' for doing so.
AB1381 - JUDGE TO CONSIDER LAUSD TAKEOVER + Unintended Consequences of AB1381: LAUSD RUSHING TO BEAT DEADLINE FOR GRANT FUNDS
The Election: PROPOSITION 87 GETS AN 'F' GRADE + NO ON PROPOSITION R + LAUSD AUDIT FOCUS OF STATE CONTROLLER CAMPAIGN
SCHOOLS VIOLATE TRANSLATION LAW: State audit reports lack of compliance on notices sent to pupils' parents
EVENTS: Coming up next week — ZOO MAGNET CAREER FAIRE ’06 + ONE NEW SCHOOL + Community Outreach Meetings
What can YOU do?


Featured Links:
READING TO KIDS: Read to some kids the second Saturday morning each month. Make a difference. Change some lives (including your own!).
The Blueprint for Effective School Reform: MAKING SCHOOLS WORK — Get the Book @ Amazon.com!
THE BEST RESOURCE ON CALIFORNIA SCHOOL FUNDING ON THE WEB: The Sacramento Bee's series
4LAKidsNews: a compendium of recent items of interest - news stories, scurrilous rumors, links, academic papers, rants and amusing anecdotes, etc.
SCHOOL BOARD TARDINESS — The next time it starts on time might be the first.
• LA Times Editorial: SADLY THIS IS ALL TOO COMMON IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT.

October 28, 2006 - Los Angeles schools, as parents and students can tell you, can be strict in handing out tardy slips for late students. It's time they issue a few to the school board too. As with students, the tardy count should go on the board's permanent record. Then maybe board members would finally realize what teachers and kids already know: A proper education means everybody showing up promptly to get through the work of the day in the time allotted.

Instead, this last week, the week before and other times previously, the board has started its meeting a full hour late, while the couple of dozen people who had business to discuss fidgeted, checked their watches and asked the shrugging guards where the members were and when they might appear.

One of those waiting was a young woman who is studying to be a teacher. Her assignment for the day was to see how the school board operated. She learned an unwelcome lesson or two about how people in power don't always show the expected courtesy toward the public they are supposed to serve.

At the other end of the boardroom, a group of eight people who had come to make a presentation stirred restively. "We wolfed down our lunch to rush over here on time," one complained to a companion.

It's bad enough that, once started, the board drags through its business. Members seem to view many agenda items not as issues to resolve but opportunities to speechify — one by one, each speech pretty much repeating the one before. "Time certains" — agenda items that are supposed to occur at a specific time —should be renamed "time — we'll sees." Sometimes they happen, sometimes they don't.

At a minimum, the start of the meeting should not be a "time — we'll see."

When the meetings finally got under way, at least these last two weeks, no one offered an explanation or even an apology for the long wait. Manners, manners.

Not that the school board is the only government group guilty of discourteously wasting the time, and therefore the money, of the public and the people who come before them. Members of the City Council and the county Board of Supervisors are notoriously late to their own meetings.

It is, to quote a phrase used on many a wayward kindergartner, not OK. But especially not for the people whose job includes setting an example to the 700,000-plus students in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Maybe now that the board has selected an ex-military man, David L. Brewer, to head the district, the members will hear a new wake-up call.
______

4LAKids' editorialist/editor, accused by the tardiest school board member of being in love with my own voice, (moi?) is loath to surrender the first words – but the Times got it absolutely right here so they get to go first! In the early discussion of superintendent candidacies I supported Jackie Goldberg in part because she is the master of starting and ending meetings on time. I sat with Jackie at one of the mayor's town halls – and she seethed when she discovered that starting late had actually been scheduled into the agenda!

In 'Brewer takes on Bad Teachers' (below) we read that UTLA President AJ Duffy says the admiral has a lot to learn and that the fault is not with the teachers but with the principals – this message was echoed at the UTLA/Mayor meeting the same day. Or perhaps fault lies in the bloated bureaucracy. (We are on the cusp of that grammatical moment forecast by Stunk & White as "bureaucrat bloat" becomes "bureaucrat-bloat" – "bureaucratbloat" is the final stage.)

The fault, Dear Reader, is not in our principals, but in our principles. We have become too fixated on what the Ed Code, the Union Contract, Board Policy, the pundits and the media say…and on the blizzard of pink memos from downtown. We are absorbed with Finding Fault (Teachers/ Principals/ Parents/ Students/ Tardy Board Members/ Bureaucrats/ NCLB/ Unions/ Mayors/ Testing, etc.) ...and on Quick Fixes (pick 'n choose 'n bash the usual suspects from the previous list) and not upon asking and answering the one big hard question: "What's best for Kids?"

Still ...it would be better if the meetings started on time! – smf


THE GREENING OF THE LAUSD from LA City Beat is too long to reprint here, but the news is too good to miss.



VILLARAIGOSA, BREWER SAY THEY'RE IN SYNC ON LAUSD + FOR THE SAKE OF THE KIDS, THIS PAIR MUST STAY TOGETHER ...and other family business

►VILLARAIGOSA, BREWER SAY THEY'RE IN SYNC ON LAUSD: L.A.'s mayor vows there will be no "schoolyard fight" with the school district's new superintendent.

by Dan Laidman, Copley News Service

Thursday, October 26, 2006 - After meeting Wednesday for the first time, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and incoming Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent David Brewer both said that they experienced a "mind meld."

If they did undergo the Vulcan psychic bonding first made famous on the television series "Star Trek," however, it seemed to create amnesia, too.

Little more than a week ago, Villaraigosa criticized the process that led to the school board's selection of Brewer in the latest salvo of a yearlong battle in which the mayor repeatedly tagged LAUSD as a "failing district." Along the way, board members charged that Villaraigosa's effort to gain some formal oversight over Los Angeles schools was an "experiment" with local children aimed at furthering his political career.

But standing together Wednesday in front of reporters after initially meeting in Villaraigosa's City Hall office, Brewer and the mayor proclaimed their affection for each other and vowed to work together closely. They made no mention of the pending lawsuit in which the district is trying to stop Villaraigosa's education plan from taking effect Jan. 1.

"I know you guys are all here because you like to see a schoolyard fight," Villaraigosa told the assembled news media. "But we're not going to see one here."

Brewer echoed the sentiment and denied that there is any lingering ill will.

"The mayor and I are joined at the hip," he said.

The school board selected Brewer, a retired Navy admiral with no background in education, to succeed retiring Superintendent Roy Romer. The panel announced its pick two weeks ago while Villaraigosa was out of the country on a trade mission to Asia. The mayor had publicly implored the school board to wait for his return and give him a formal say in the process.

The wrangling followed a year in which the mayor and the school district spent much of their time lobbying the public and the state Legislature over Villaraigosa's plan to take control of the schools. Ultimately, the Legislature and governor approved a partial takeover at the end of the summer, and now the district's court challenge is the last remaining hurdle.

The plan would shift much of the school board's authority to a newly powerful superintendent, whose hiring and contract renewal would be subject to the approval of a council of regional politicians.

The Los Angeles mayor would dominate the council through voting weighted by city population, and would also assume more direct control over a cluster of some of the district's lowest-performing schools.

The council of mayors does not have the power to fire a sitting superintendent, however, and so many saw the district's selection of Brewer before the legislation took effect as a move to one-up the mayor. Villaraigosa criticized the timing of the pick when it was made, but he made no such comments Wednesday.

"He's the right guy at the right time," Villaraigosa said of Brewer.

The legislation also gives the council of mayors some oversight over the district's multibillion-dollar budget, although the exact delineation of power is somewhat vague. Villaraigosa and Brewer did not delve into any of the specifics of the new management structure Wednesday but did say they plan to meet every week, the same schedule for the mayor's regular meetings with Police Chief William Bratton.

Since his appointment was announced, Brewer has been visiting various neighborhoods greeting officials and community members while continuing to negotiate his contract with the district in private.

The two parties are discussing a four-year contract, district sources said. Brewer is expected to sign a contract in the next few days and then formally take over for Romer in mid-November.

• Daily Breeze staff writer Paul Clinton contributed to this story.
________

►FOR THE SAKE OF THE KIDS, THIS PAIR MUST STAY TOGETHER
by Bob Sipchen | School Me Column | LA Times

October 23, 2006 - Last week, the school board forced Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa into a shotgun marriage with a former vice admiral. The question now is, who'll wear the pants?

The mayor was traipsing about Asia gathering foreign affairs bona fides for his 2012 presidential bid, when, in a splendid flanking maneuver, Navy lifer David Brewer slipped into town, got himself appointed schools boss, and launched a photo-op counterattack so dazzling it looked suspiciously like the prelude to a 2009 mayoral candidacy.

The mayor lashed out. "I am deeply disappointed that the school board would move ahead with selecting a superintendent without the participation of the council of mayors, parents and the Los Angeles community," he said from China. Then, apparently recognizing that — whoops! — his ill-timed junket had left him helpless, he added that he looked forward to meeting Brewer and "working with him, parents and teachers to improve our schools."

Brewer initially portrayed himself as humble and eager to "partner" with Villaraigosa. As his PR-athon wore on, however, there were subtle signs that either:

1) Board President Marlene Canter's gutsy defiance of the mayor's pending power grab was rubbing off, or

2) The sizable ego-vacuum created by the mayor's absence was so tempting he figured he'd step right in.

Either way, by the time Brewer appeared on outgoing Supt. Roy Romer's vanity cable TV show Tuesday night, he was answering questions about such matters as raising additional dough for poor schools by casually tossing off ways that the mayor could "step up and help" him — a nuance that will not be lost on anyone in City Hall.

Forgive the city folks if they're insecure. The district Brewer is poised to run had a $6.8-billion budget last year — a few billion bucks more than the mayor had to spend — and its $19.3-billion building plan makes the city's construction efforts look like so much pothole repair.

Another thing: On Tuesday, the board will probably be asked to ratify a four-year contract with the man it secretly selected, agreeing to pay him a salary just under an informally agreed upon ceiling of, from what I've heard, about $300,000 and perks.

The mayor makes a mere $193,908 a year.

Brewer has yet to grant me an audience. From what I've seen, though, he would appear to be a surprisingly strong choice for the often-weak board — a tough, inspirational, Colin Powell-like leader who belies the board's notion that aspirants to this job are of an exceedingly delicate breed and must be shielded from the pain of public scrutiny.

That's important. This is a bellicose district, and Brewer's war college days may prove to be the most important schooling he got. As he and the mayor grapple for dominance, some old-school players will try to paint the tensions in stark black and brown.

Identity politics has had a nasty grip on this city for too long, though, and any leader's ability to save the schools depends on rising above the sort of adolescent Latino vs. African American mayhem currently plaguing many campuses. Brewer's time in the military — one of the most ethnically diverse institutions we've got — will help on that front. Even if his pep talks inspire racial harmony, though, it won't be the end of his woes. The moment his pledge to focus on disadvantaged kids and dropouts brings together blacks and browns, some white or Asian mom (or engineer dad who happens to be black) will blindside him with a complaint about a high-achieving school's lack of a robotics team.

L.A. Unified, after all, is anything but unified. It has some of the nation's best schools and some of its worst. And the district's rainbow-colored middle class represents not just the other side of the so-called achievement gap, but (remember Valley secession?) a genuine insurgent threat.

Outside one of the admiral's meet-and-greets, Franny Parrish, president of a Valley-area Parent Teacher Student Assn., offered a take on "inequality" that puts the issue of educational haves and have-nots in a different light. After awarding Brewer high marks as a motivator, she gave the district a tongue-lashing for shoveling Title I money into schools in poor neighborhoods while telling the high-achieving schools she represents to, say, fix their broken Xerox machines by holding bake sales.

No matter how much someone cares about "the children," he's not going to sacrifice his own child to the cause, and the men who would reform the schools need strategies for addressing that messy fact.

The mayor and the admiral are scheduled to meet for the first time Wednesday. Brewer talks about the tumultuous months leading up to his arrival as PB — Pre-Brewer — and almost seems to imagine that the mayor will notice the new kid's resolve and trot back to City Hall, never to utter the word "education" again.

Not likely. The mayor cares too much, has too much at stake.

There is, however, hope that the city can avoid several years of pointless squabbling.

Some observers, including attorney and veteran school-watcher Connie Rice, say that Villaraigosa's pragmatic ability to work with big-ego Police Chief Bill Bratton portends that he and Brewer, too, will eventually find marital equilibrium based on mutual respect.

Let's hope so. Divorce isn't an option. And the kids have suffered enough.


FAMILY BUSINESS (or) now we know where some of the not enough No Child left Behind money goes: BUSH FAMILY PROFITS FROM 'NO CHILD' ACT (LA Times)



NEXT LEADER OF L.A. SCHOOL DISTRICT VOWS TO REMOVE 'BAD TEACHERS': Brewer expects to be 'vilified' for doing so.
• HE ALSO WANTS TO TRIM THE DISTRICT BUREAUCRACY AND REVAMP MIDDLE SCHOOLS.

By Joel Rubin and Howard Blume, Times Staff Writers

October 27, 2006 ― Los Angeles' incoming schools chief vowed Thursday to make removing "bad teachers" a major focus of his plan to improve schools — and made clear he was willing to sacrifice his early popularity over the issue.

"I'm going to be unpopular," said David L. Brewer, who is expected to take over as schools superintendent by the middle of next month.

"It's called the right teacher in the right classroom in the right school…. Some people do not belong in the classroom, OK? They don't belong there. We're gonna get them out. The question is how is the system going to react to the way we get them out."

Brewer, 60, made the comments as part of a wide-ranging discussion with Times reporters and editors about his early impressions of the Los Angeles Unified School District and his plans to reform the nation's second-largest school system.

During the hourlong conversation, Brewer repeated his belief that dropouts remain one of the district's greatest problems.

He reiterated his intent to forge ties with city agencies that serve poor, at-risk children and said he would focus on a quick, dramatic overhaul of the district's long-overlooked middle schools. Brewer also indicated that he plans to streamline the mammoth district by slashing the size of its bureaucracy.

But in promising to take on poorly performing teachers, the retired Navy admiral steered headlong into perhaps the most volatile waters he will navigate as superintendent.

School principals and other administrators often bemoan the time and effort it takes to remove ineffective teachers, citing the extensive job protection granted in the union contract and under state law as a key barrier to reforming a school.

It is a frequently made charge that angers union leaders, who say teachers deserve and need the protection to defend against incompetent or vindictive principals.

When read a transcript of Brewer's comments, A.J. Duffy, president of United Teachers Los Angeles, said the incoming superintendent has much to learn about the school district.

"He's also going to have to understand that a major cause of problems at schools are principals and assistant principals who are not team builders or team leaders," Duffy said.

"I hope he schools himself in the issue of administrators who are top-down, 'Do what I say' people rather than … team-building, collaborative people who regard and respect classroom teachers," Duffy said.

"We will continue to fight tooth and nail to protect our folks who are speaking out at school sites and representing teachers."

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa also focused Thursday on the role of teachers in the effort, but he emphasized reforming what he called an oversized bureaucracy that thwarts the best efforts of a mostly superlative teaching corps.

"The key to reform has to be a partnership with teachers," the mayor told a gathering of about 60 school union representatives and others in a Presbyterian church in the Wilshire district.

Under state law, school districts can dismiss teachers during their first two years on the job without providing a reason. After two years, administrators must meticulously document poor performance over time, formally declare the intention to dismiss the teacher and then give the instructor time to improve. It is an often-futile process, district officials say, that can take years to complete.

As of last year, Los Angeles Unified administrators had attempted to dismiss 112 permanent teachers — a small fraction of the district's roughly 37,000 instructors — over the last decade. Some were fired; most resigned or retired.

Brewer acknowledged the dangers and difficulties of trying to push burnt-out or ineffective teachers from the classroom.

"That's the third rail. That's Social Security, and I know it. And I'm just going to have to put my hand on it. And I know it's going to be tough. I'm going to be vilified. I'm going to get called all kinds of names."

He offered no details on how he would follow through, but indicated that after being given a chance to improve, some teachers would be transferred to nonclassroom assignments while others would be encouraged to retire.

"I'm not saying you need to be unfair. You need to go in there and coach and work and train and do all the professional development you can," he said. "But there's an old saying: There are two kinds of birds: chickens and eagles. If you throw an eagle up, eventually it's going to fly. If you throw a chicken up in the air, all it's going to do is poop on you. Eventually, you got to understand it's a chicken and leave 'em in the yard."

Brewer and Duffy are scheduled to meet for the first time next week over dinner. When they do, Duffy probably will have other concerns to raise.

On Thursday, Brewer praised the district's implementation of Open Court, a reading program that provides teachers with scripted lesson plans and is required in nearly all elementary schools. Union officials strongly oppose what they characterize as overreliance on centralized programs, saying they can stifle teachers and overemphasize standardized testing.

Villaraigosa indicated that he too has concerns about mandated teaching plans.

"The art of teaching is every bit as important as the science of teaching," Villaraigosa said.

Brewer, the mayor and Duffy seem to share a common view, however, on the school system's bureaucracy. Duffy and Villaraigosa have called for the district to make cuts to what they say are its bloated ranks.

"There are too many administrators in the district … and they know I intend to do something about that," the mayor said.

Brewer sounded a similar note Thursday, saying he had made it clear during his job interviews with the Board of Education that he intended to slim down the district's roster of roughly 36,000 administrators and support staff.

"I said: 'I hate bureaucracy. So I'm going to go after this piece, OK? I'm going to transform this organization. You want me? That's what you're going to get,' " Brewer recounted.

And after outgoing Supt. Roy Romer's focus on reforms in elementary and high schools, Brewer pledged to turn his attention to improving instruction in the middle schools.

With many students promoted each year to high school unprepared for the increased rigor and many middle- and upper-class parents opting to remove their children from the district after elementary school, Brewer said he expects "to go after the middle schools with reckless abandon."

"If the community works with me and gets me the support I need," he said, "I will fix the middle-school problem in the next two or three years — no problem."


AB1381 - JUDGE TO CONSIDER LAUSD TAKEOVER + Unintended Consequences of AB1381: LAUSD RUSHING TO BEAT DEADLINE FOR GRANT FUNDS
►JUDGE TO CONSIDER LAUSD TAKEOVER
by Bill Hetherman | City News Service

Tuesday, October 24, 2006 - LOS ANGELES - A judge said Monday she will decide on a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of legislation giving L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa partial control of the Los Angeles Unified School District before considering whether the state's Voting Rights Act was violated.

The lawsuit - filed Oct. 10 in Los Angeles Superior Court by a coalition of the LAUSD, parents, students, administrators and the League of Women Voters - maintains the legislation is unconstitutional and infringes on the rights of voters.

The plaintiffs want a judge to overturn Assembly Bill 1381, which was signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarz- enegger last month and gave the mayor the authority he wanted over the district.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dzintra Janavs said that after a Dec. 15 non-jury trial on all other issues in the case, she will consider the plaintiffs' allegation that the legislation violates the Voting Rights Act.

Assistant Los Angeles City Attorney Valerie L. Flores said such a violation can only be determined based on actual election results. She also said the legislators were aware of the state's Voting Rights Act when they passed AB 1381.

California Deputy Attorney General Susan K. Leach, representing Gov. Arnold Schwarz- enegger, concurred. She said an election has to occur before allegations of Voting Rights Act violations can be proven, and that doesn't apply in this case. Leach described the district's argument as a contention that one state statute was in violation of another state law.

However, Frederic D. Woocher, an attorney for the LAUSD and most of the other plaintiffs, said the violations can be proven by examining voter patterns.

Meanwhile, Janavs set a Nov. 7 hearing on whether a group of parents of LAUSD students in support of AB 1381 can intervene as defendants in the lawsuit to try and help persuade the judge the law should go into effect as scheduled Jan. 1.

Paul J. Wotford, an attorney who represents the proposed intervenors, said he does not yet know how many parents are involved.

Woocher said he opposes the proposed intervention, and Janavs said she will have to be convinced it is warranted.

Janavs has set a timetable for the lawyers to submit briefs and a proposed statement of decision. She also put limits on the number of document pages because of the time she will need to review them.

Villaraigosa, the state, Schwarzenegger, state Controller Steve Westly and Los Angeles County schools Superintendent Darline Robles are all defendants in the case, which mayoral aide Matt Szabo has called a "frivolous lawsuit and a desperate attempt to preserve the failed status quo."

AB 1381 shifts most of the decision-making authority from the seven-member LAUSD board to the superintendent; creates a council of mayors, giving a significant role to Los Angeles' mayor in managing the nation's second-largest school district; and gives individual schools greater control over their budgets and curriculum during a six-year trial period.

The mayor also gets direct control over the district's three lowest-performing high schools and their feeder campuses.

Before the bill was signed, the school board voted 6-1 to challenge AB 1381's legality.


Unintended Consequences of AB1381: LAUSD RUSHING TO BEAT DEADLINE FOR GRANT FUNDS (Daily News)



The Election: PROPOSITION 87 GETS AN 'F' GRADE + NO ON PROPOSITION R + LAUSD AUDIT FOCUS OF STATE CONTROLLER CAMPAIGN
►PROPOSITION 87 GETS AN 'F' GRADE

Opinion by Marian Bergeson | The Argus/Inside Bay Area

10/26/2006 - For many parents, the last few weeks have meant the beginning of a new school year — taking kids to the bus stop, packing lunches and buying school supplies. For educators it has meant getting back to the classroom to set them up, plan lessons and meet a new group of students.

Those of us worried about the future of our schools should be concerned about one particular ballot question — Proposition 87 — which not only will impose an oil tax, but would hurt education too. According to California's independent Legislative Analyst, Proposition 87 would decrease state and local tax revenues available for schools and other vital services. In addition, the initiative skirts preexisting education funding requirements contained in the state Constitution, passed nearly two decades ago through Proposition 98.

The principal author of Proposition 98, who also served as California's secretary of education, estimates that the oil tax initiative could deny K-12 education up to $1.9 billion over the next 10 years. The lost revenue has caught the attention of Larry Reider, superintendent of education for Kern County, who is one of many education leaders to oppose Proposition 87.

"We are concerned about the cycle of statewide ballot initiatives which constitutionally lock away funding in protected accounts, keeping education's fair share out of reach."

Just as troubling is the impact on local revenues. A report by the Legislative Analyst Office also found that it would reduce local property tax revenues. The California State Association of Counties and organizations representing firefighters and police officers have come out against this measure because of the reductions in state and local revenue. Those revenue losses will be especially devastating for our schools.

On top of the revenue impact of this initiative, the higher fuel prices that come as a result of taxing California-produced oil will place an additional strain on school district transportation budgets.

While California's educators certainly do not deny the need for alternative energy research, we believe that Proposition 87 is simply the wrong means of doing so. Despite ads trying to convince us that we have an opportunity to stick it to the oil companies, we'll be sticking it to our kids. Ultimately this initiative will hurt California businesses, hurt our local governments, and our schools.

As we look around our classrooms and think about what we need to give our students the education they deserve, we need to give Proposition 87 a serious look. When the facts are in and we see the effects on our schools, teachers and parents will see that it is an ill-conceived measure on all fronts, with particularly grim consequences for California's pupils.

Proposition 87 gets a well-deserved F.

• Marian Bergeson is the past president of the California School Boards Association.
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► NO ON PROPOSITION R: Extending City Council Term Limits is Fine, Circumventing the Ethics Commission is Not.

LA Times Endorsement

October 24, 2006 - Los Angeles' Proposition R would relax term limits for City Council members from two terms to three, allowing officeholders to serve a maximum of 12 years. Looked at in a vacuum, it would be a positive step — allowing members to focus more on the long-term good of the city, less on plotting the next stops of their political careers. Unfortunately, it comes with too big a price tag.

The problems start with the fact that Proposition R blends term limits with a mixed bag of changes to city ethics laws. Bundling the two might yet be declared illegal; if the measure passes, there will be a hearing Nov. 28.

The ethics provisions would tighten some rules for lobbyists and impose a host of other provisions. None of them are inherently bad, and some might even be good. The problem is that the reforms circumvent and in some cases contradict the city's Ethics Commission, which voters set up in 1990 to examine the minutiae of political fundraising, lobbying, contracting and so on. The commission has given the City Council dozens of recommendations, and members have passed some but notoriously sat on many others, especially those having to do with campaign finance.

Some of the provisions in Proposition R are directly contrary to the Ethics Commission's recommendations. Others are good steps that City Council members could (and should) take care of anytime by passing an ordinance, not by prettifying a ballot measure that protects their own jobs.

And make no mistake — that's exactly what's going on here. Campaign mailers are billing this as a housecleaning measure to reform corrupt city practices; term limits are only mentioned by way of implying, falsely, that no such limits currently exist.

Voters deserve a chance to extend elected officials' terms fairly. That's why we urge a "no" vote on Proposition R.

▲smf adds: There is additional history complicating this unfortunate amendment to the Los Angeles City Charter.
• Besides (and probably worse) than the end around of the Ethics Commission, charter amendments are supposed to be vetted through the Neighborhood Councils. That never happened with R.
• Complicating the ethics question, the Yes on R campaign has sent out mailers implying endorsement from officials who actually oppose the measure.
• A court has already opined that this proposition violates the amendment procedures for the city charter – with the City Attorney concurring – and ordered the proposition removed from the ballot. It is only on the ballot pending appeal – and is likely a waste of ballot paper, ink, the taxpayer's money and the voters' time.
• This wouldn't be an issue for 4LAKids – an admittedly single issue screed – except for this: There was an obvious quid-pro-quo between the city council and the mayor — with the mayor supporting Prop R in exchange for the council's support of AB 1381 – the mayor's similarly city-charter-and-state-constitutionally-challenged schools takeover.
____________

►LAUSD AUDIT FOCUS OF STATE CONTROLLER CAMPAIGN: Both Want To Examine District

by Harrison Sheppard, Sacramento Bureau, LA Daily News

10/24/2006 - SACRAMENTO - As they struggle to grab the public's attention in a crowded election season, the candidates for state controller have sparred over each other's experience and who can competently oversee the state's finances.

But one thing both candidates - former Assemblyman Tony Strickland and Board of Equalization Chairman John Chiang - agree on is the need for the controller to audit the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Strickland said he wants to do it because spending on education is the state's biggest expense, and LAUSD is the state's biggest district.

"Obviously the money's not getting in the classroom," he said. "This will send a loud message to all school districts that someone's overseeing the checkbook of the state of California and we need to be more efficient when we spend our tax dollars."

Other state agencies have already performed audits of the district. The Bureau of the State Auditor released a report last month that found several problems, including administrator salaries that were higher than in comparable districts, reorganizations that failed to reduce personnel and ineffective parent councils.

Chiang agrees on the need for an audit but would stick to more financial and spending issues rather than educational performance - a report that is beyond the controller's legal jurisdiction.

"I think frankly it would be disingenuous to taxpayers," he said. "It's a bad idea to put state employees in a position to do something that legally they can't do."

LAUSD board member David Tokofsky attributed the push for an audit to campaign politics, noting the district has been the subject of many audits over the years.

"Usually these kinds of campaign excesses are about the last days of a close race," Tokofsky said. "L.A. Unified and public schools too often in this country have become the punching bag of politicians. And that's unfortunate, because when we punch at our public schools, we're punching at our very nature of society."

Besides the LAUSD audit, Strickland said he would like to see the controller be more aggressive in collecting unpaid taxes and finding the rightful owners of unclaimed property. He would also examine state health-care expenses and fraud in the Medi-Cal program.

Chiang said he wants the controller to have more investigative and auditing personnel to help collect unpaid taxes. He would also like to go after abusive tax shelters.

Strickland is a former assemblyman from Ventura County who now heads a private conservative group that advocates for low taxes in California. Chiang is chairman of the state Board of Equalization. Both candidates have roots in and around the San Fernando Valley.

Strickland, 36, lives in Moorpark with his wife, Audra, who now holds his former Assembly seat, and their 1-year-old daughter.

Chiang, 44, lived in Northridge and Chatsworth for 18 years until moving earlier this year to Torrance so his wife could be closer to her job in El Segundo in the Wells Fargo marketing department.

Though the two candidates criticize each other's policies, the tone of the campaign has mostly remained positive, albeit low-profile because it is a down-ticket race.

Chiang has a slight edge in fundraising, $1.9 million to $1.3 million.

A Field Poll in August found most voters didn't know either candidate. More than 80 percent had no impression of either man.


SCHOOLS VIOLATE TRANSLATION LAW: State audit reports lack of compliance on notices sent to pupils' parents

By Michelle Maitre and Linh Tat, STAFF WRITERS, Inside Bay Area

10/28/2006 - A state audit released this week shows that California public schools are not always complying with a law requiring them to provide translated notices for parents whose primary language is not English.

In addition, some schools told auditors they did not think demand was high for translated materials. Local school districts also identified the lack of qualified translators as a challenge.

Last year, the Newark school district was unable to find a qualified Cantonese translator, and this year it is looking for Portuguese and Japanese translators, district employee Joan Carter said.

Although there are community members willing to serve as translators, Carter said they do not meet all the criteria set forth under federal guidelines for the district to hire them.

Additionally, some people only feel comfortable giving written translations, while others choose to provide only spoken translations, said Kathy Moniz, executive director of student services for the New Haven district, which has had problems finding Korean and Japanese translators.

"The difficulty that we have is that some of the languages have hundreds of dialects, so it's difficult sometimes to honor the specific dialect requested," she said.

While schools try to find interpreters for different languages, in the Tri-City area, Spanish is the only language other than English in which all three districts are required to send written materials home.

The New Haven district is starting to send materials home in Tagalog this year, after meeting the 15 percent threshold at Alvarado Elementary School, and the district plans to offer more translation services as part of its strategic plan, spokesman Rick La Plante said.

In the Fremont school district, many employees speak a variety of languages, including Farsi, Urdu and Mandarin, and can serve as interpreters, district spokesman Gary Leatherman said.

For schools not complying with the law, the state audit provided a number of recommendations, including a revised home language survey asking parents to indicate the language in which they would like to receive documents.

A new law that goes into effect Jan. 1 requires the state Department of Education to play a larger role in informing districts of the translation law.

Education Department spokeswoman Hilary McLean said the state already provides an online clearinghouse of documents that have been translated into dozens of languages that schools can use to meet the needs of their student body.


Schools often struggle to meet the needs of students and the "hundreds of languages that are spoken" throughout the state.

"There are students from all over the world that come to school in California," McLean said.

►CDE Clearinghouse for Multilingual Documents: http://inet2.cde.ca.gov/cmd/search.aspx


►AUDIT SUMMARY AND A LINK TO THE ENTIRE AUDIT



EVENTS: Coming up next week — ZOO MAGNET CAREER FAIRE ’06 + ONE NEW SCHOOL + Community Outreach Meetings
ZOO MAGNET CAREER FAIRE ’06: Become a Coroner or play one on T.V.? —students to explore career possibilities . . .

Friday, November 3, 2006
8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m
ZOO MAGNET CAMPUS in Griffith Park.
(North End of Zoo Parking Lot)

Students at North Hollywood High School’s Zoo Magnet will not have to wait until after college to begin learning what the job market has to offer. They will soon explore a broad spectrum of job options at the Zoo Magnet Career Faire ’06.

Prominent speakers from around the greater Los Angeles area will be making presentations, topics include:

JPL/NASA
Leonard Reder - Principal R&D Software Engineer and Jo Eliza Pitesky – Planet Hunter/Astrophysicist, will present an overview of JPL and discuss their involvement in a number of projects including a Rover analysis, and an Astronomical Interferometer that links two telescopes located on the summit of Mona Kea,
Hawaii.

LA ZOO & BOTANICAL GARDENS
Zoo Education Curator, Michelle Mills, will discuss what exactly it takes to run a zoo and how one goes about training for a life in an animal-related field.

LA COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF CORONERS
Deputy Medical Examiner, Dr. Pedro M. Ortiz-Colom, will talk about the advantages of a pathological career including a virtual tour of the Coroner’s office and a graphic presentation on case management; not for the faint of heart.

LA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS
Who plants the trees, builds bridges, and maintains public works? Senior Civil Engineering Assistant, Alvin Cruz, and Senior Secretary IV, Tranette Sanders, will discuss exciting professions not often thought of, in the Department of Public Works.

HOW TO GET AND KEEP A JOB
Career Advisor and work experience teacher, Joe Lane, will discuss techniques for securing and holding onto a job, and laws that govern the workplace.

THE BUSINESS OF ACTING
Talent agent Jamie Ferrar/Jamie Ferrar Agency and Talent Manager Olivia Allen/Little Red Door Management will lecture on the necessary tools needed for a career in acting - - everything from headshots to joining the unions.

VETERINARY MEDICINE
Small animal veterinarian at McClave Veterinary Hospital, Dr. Nada Khalaf, will focus on the diverse career opportunities within veterinary medicine, including employment at the pre-veterinary level as a technician or an assistant.

RESEARCH SCIENTIST NEURAL STEM CELL PROGRAM
Principal investigator of the Neural Stem Cell Program at the Neurosurgical Institute, Dr. Dwain Morris-Irvin, will talk about the potential use of stem cells, and novel therapeutic approaches to treating brain diseases and brain disorders.

A SIGNATURE AFFAIR: A Personal Chart for Career Success
Beverly Murray, Senior Employee Relations Consultant at Cedar Sinai Hospital will show students how to chart a career that will be unique to their own desires, goals, and skills.

• A unique learning environment established in 1981, THE ZOO MAGNET CENTER has been a model small learning community and a proud member of the North Hollywood High School family.

For further information about Career Faire ‘06 or the Zoo Magnet Center please contact Lee McManus at (323) 660-0165. You can find out more about Zoo Magnet at their web site: www.zoomagnet.net

Monday Oct 30, 2006
SOUTH REGION ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS #12 & #13
Presentation of Recommended Project Definitions
6:00 p.m.
Graham Elementary School
8407 S. Fir Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90001

Monday Oct 30, 2006
SOUTH REGION SPAN K-8 #1: CEQA Scoping Meeting
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Broad Avenue Elementary School Auditorium
24815 Broad Ave.
Wilmington, CA 90744

Wednesday Nov 01, 2006
BELMONT NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #6: RIBBON-CUTTING CEREMONY
Please join us to celebrate the ribbon-cutting of your new community school!
Ceremony will begin at 10 a.m.
Belmont New Elementary School #6
100 N. New Hampshire Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90004

Wednesday Nov 01, 2006
SOUTH REGION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #6: Pre-Design Meeting-Meet the Architect
6:00 p.m.
61st Street Elementary School
6020 S. Figueroa St.
Los Angeles, CA 90003

Wednesday Nov 01, 2006
HELEN BERNSTEIN HIGH SCHOOL (Central LA Area New HS #1/Metromedia)
Construction Update Meeting
6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Le Conte Middle School - Auditorium
1316 N. Bronson Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90028

Wednesday Nov 01, 2006
VALLEY REGION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #6: Pre-Demolition Meeting
6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Noble New Elementary School
8600 Kester Ave.
Panorama City, CA 91402

Thursday Nov 02, 2006
SOUTH LOS ANGELES HIGH SCHOOL #3: Recommended Preferred Site Meeting
6:00 p.m.
Budlong Elementary School
5940 S. Budlong Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90044

*Dates and times subject to change. ________________________________________
• SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE:
http://www.laschools.org/bond/
Phone: 213.633.7493
____________________________________________________
• LAUSD FACILITIES COMMUNITY OUTREACH CALENDAR:
http://www.laschools.org/happenings/
Phone: 213.633.7616


• LAUSD BOARD OF EDUCATION & COMMITTEES MEETING CALENDAR



What can YOU do?

• E-mail, call or write your school board member:
Marlene.Canter@lausd.net • 213-241-6387
Monica.Garcia@lausd.net • 213-241-6180
Julie.Korenstein@lausd.net • 213-241-6388
Marguerite.LaMotte@lausd.net • 213-241-6382
Mike.Lansing@lausd.net • 213-241-6385
Jon.Lauritzen@lausd.net • 213-241-6386
David.Tokofsky@lausd.net • 213-241-6383

...or your city councilperson, mayor, the governor, member of congress, senator - or the president. Tell them what you really think!
Call or e-mail Governor Schwarzenegger: 213-897-0322 e-mail: http://www.govmail.ca.gov/
• Open the dialogue. Write a letter to the editor. Circulate these thoughts. Talk to the principal and teachers at your local school.
• Speak with your friends, neighbors and coworkers. Stay on top of education issues. Don't take my word for it!
• Get involved at your neighborhood school. Join your PTA. Serve on a School Site Council. Be there for a child.
• Vote.


Who are your elected federal & state representatives? How do you contact them?




Scott Folsom is a parent and parent leader in LAUSD. He is President of Los Angeles 10th District PTSA and represents PTA as Vice-chair the LAUSD Construction Bond Citizen's Oversight Committee. He serves on various school district advisory and policy committees and is a PTA officer and/or governance council member at three LAUSD schools. He is also the elected Youth & Education boardmember on the Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council.
• In this forum his opinions are his own and your opinions and feedback are invited. Quoted and/or cited content copyright © the original author and/or publisher. All other material copyright © 4LAKids.
• FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 4LAKids makes such material available in an effort to advance understanding of education issues vital to parents, teachers, students and community members in a democracy. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
• To SUBSCRIBE e-mail: 4LAKids-subscribe@topica.email-publisher.com - or -TO ADD YOUR OR ANOTHER'S NAME TO THE 4LAKids SUBCRIPTION LIST E-MAIL smfolsom@aol.com with "SUBSCRIBE" AS THE SUBJECT. Thank you.

Sunday, October 22, 2006

Dating, but no date.



4LAKids: Sunday, October 22, 2006
In This Issue:
THE GRAND TOUR/"MEET THE SUPE": STORIES, COMMENT AND VOICES FROM THE LATINO, BLACK AND VALLEY COMMUNITIES
LAUSD BUILDING CASH MAY FALL SHORT: Additional bond might be needed
TEACHER TO RETURN TO SCHOOL AFTER PARENTS' PROTEST
TRIAL DATE SET FOR LAWSUIT CHALLENGING MAYORAL SCHOOL PLAN
A Question For Educators: WHERE DID ALL THE KIDS GO? + The News That Didn't Fit: BUSH TOUTS EDUCATION PROGRAM + BIG BUSINESS GOING TO BAT FOR NCLB
Events coming up next week: CELEBRATING THREE NEW SCHOOLS plus...
What can YOU do?


Featured Links:
READING TO KIDS: Read to some kids the second Saturday morning each month. Make a difference. Change some lives (including your own!).
The Blueprint for Effective School Reform: MAKING SCHOOLS WORK — Get the Book @ Amazon.com!
THE BEST RESOURCE ON CALIFORNIA SCHOOL FUNDING ON THE WEB: The Sacramento Bee's series
4LAKidsNews: a compendium of recent items of interest - news stories, scurrilous rumors, links, academic papers, rants and amusing anecdotes, etc.
IT'S TOO EARLY to talk about the honeymoon with Superintendent Brewer; the engagement's been announced... but they haven't hammered out the pre-nup or even set a date yet. Nonetheless following his press conference a week ago Friday the Admiral was taken on a grand tour and introduced to the in-laws.

MONDAY:
• Breakfast with the Hispanic community at Olvera Street,
• Lunch in the Southeast cities,
• Afternoon snack with the African American community.
TUESDAY:
• Breakfast in the Valley.

The notices are in: The press says the locals are impressed. (see "Grand Tour") So far, so good!

WEDNESDAY outgoing Superintendent Romer spoke to Bond Oversight Committee –and described financial challenges faced by the building program caused by unprecedented construction cost escalations. ("LAUSD Building Cash May Fall Short") The easy answer is for the voters of California to approve Bond Measure 1-D in November – and for the legislature to acknowledge that LA is still overcrowded even though we have [temporarily] declining enrollment (see A Question for Educators). This might not be that easy for them to see …especially as the mayor and others have been up in Sacramento for the past year painting LAUSD as a failure. So – vote YES early and often on 1-D …and consider voting NO on legislators and candidates who agree that LAUSD is a failure. And then pray for enlightenment in Sacramento.

THE DISTRICT resolved its "Who's the boss?" (The Supe? The Board? UTLA? The Principal? The Chapter Chair?) dispute over Alex Caputo-Pearl at Crenshaw HS without answering the question …or having to ask the Next Supe, the Mayor or the council thereof what they think.

ELSEWHERE the Prez says "Stay the Course" and/or "Mission Accomplished" on No Child Left Behind …even though inspectors find no evidence of instruments of math instruction! And the leaders of two business groups (170 and 165 members respectively) and the US Chamber of Commerce (3000 members) agree. That makes 3335 of the 300 million of us! —smf


E X T R A: TILT AT A WINDMILL OF REACTIONARY ED THINK/STRIKE A BLOW FOR FREEDOM – sort of! Read Orson Scott Card's essays on the futility of Homework.



THE GRAND TOUR/"MEET THE SUPE": STORIES, COMMENT AND VOICES FROM THE LATINO, BLACK AND VALLEY COMMUNITIES
►The Grand Tour Sets Sail: INTO THE BREACH
Editorial – Los Angeles City Beat

October 19, 2006 — A moment of calm and anticipation has come to the Los Angeles Unified School District, and just in time. There’s a new superintendent in town, as Roy Romer prepares to step out of the district’s war zone of politics and conflict. Romer’s job has proven to be more difficult than any one person could conquer, even a former governor of Colorado, and one who oversaw the biggest school-building program in L.A. history. Now it will be up to David Brewer, a retired Navy admiral, to take command. Battle stations!

This moment of calm is welcome but a bit surprising. The school board hired Brewer this week, while Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was overseas on a trip to Asia, barely two months before he takes a more direct official role in the hiring process, as spelled out in legislation passed last month. Those powers will go into effect on January 1, but, in a final act of defiance against the mayor, the board ignored his requests to await his return and hired Brewer without him.

Villaraigosa’s initial reaction to the news was not good, expressing “disappointment” in the action, which essentially put Brewer in the middle of an ongoing war in the LAUSD that might have doomed any hope of him succeeding. But the mayor has sounded much more conciliatory in the days since, suggesting that the arrival of Admiral Brewer could finally lead to a period of cooperation and hope for our troubled, complex school district.

Brewer has little personal experience in education, aside from having a wife and mother who worked as teachers, but his first task as superintendent will have less to do with lesson plans and everything to do with getting an unwieldy organization under control. As a longtime veteran of the American military, he at least has some hands-on experience in an entrenched, bloodless bureaucracy.

Even with the best possible cooperation from the various scuffling factions of teachers, administrators, unions, legislators, and others, Brewer will have a tough job. The problem isn’t just differing philosophies but limited resources, a situation in which monetary contributions to classrooms from parents and charities are not a luxury but absolutely necessary. Schools in poorer neighborhoods are even worse off.

During a tour this week of various communities in the district, the admiral seemed open, gracious, and ready to talk. He’ll need to listen, and he’ll need time to make the district work. He is in charge of about 700,000 students now, and their future depends on it.

• smf notes: Counting early ed, adult and continuing education students there are over one million LAUSD students – but who's counting?
_____________

►The Grand Tour 1 - The Latino Community: NEW LEADER OF LAUSD PROMISES TO BE A SUPERINTENDENT FOR ALL

by Andrea Alegría | HOYInternet.com [translation]

17 of October, 2006 – Los Angeles – Admiral David Brewer, the new leader of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), affirmed yesterday that he will be a "superintendent for all" and that he will fight with special dedication the academic inequality that exists between Latino and African-American students.

"Like in a war", Brewer said when coming out of a restaurant in Huntington Park, "you must win against a enemy house by house. We are going to go house by house".

In addition Brewer spoke of his intention to approach the challenges that face students who live with poverty in their homes and in difficult situations and social atmospheres. He made this statement after meeting with community leaders of the Southeast Cities Education Coalition — including elected officials of the cities of Bell, Cudahy, Huntington Park, Maywood, South Gate and Vernon.

"I believe that he was very positive, it was very promsing to see that he already is delivering on the promise to come and to meet with us", said Juan Noguez, Mayor of Huntington Park, after the meeting. "He spoke of his intention to work with us and I hope that this dialogue continues".

Noguez and other representatives of the cities of the Southeast look for a greater representation within the District, these areas have the greatest need as far as improvements in educational services. According to Gregory Cole, Councilman of the City of Bell, this area has one of the highest levels of student overcrowding in the schools.

"We want our voice to be listened to; we want to build an association", said Cole.

Brewer, 60 years old, a member of the the United States Navy for more than three decades, was chosen unanimously in the Board of Education the last week and will replace to the present superintendent Roy Romer in November. Romer plans to retire after 6 years in the position.

The appointment of Brewer took place in the middle of a controversy over the control of the schools with (Los Angeles) Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The mayor, who is in a trip by Asia to promote commercial ties, had requested to participate directly in the selection of the new superintendent but his request was denied. The new law, AB 1381, would give Villaraigosa greater control him of the schools, goes into effect the first of January of 2007, but the school board has brought a suit challenging the constitutionality of this law.

Brewer was not worried yesterday about these lawsuits. Accompanied by Marlene Canter, president of the School Board, and Senator Martha Escutia, who participated in the selection of the superintendent along with other leaders, said he was ready for the challenges.

He has received the vote of confidence of many.

"I believe that he is going to be a very successful leader, a great leader", said Romer. "One sees that he is a good human being …and that he is not no fool!", Romer added.

Before attending the meeting in Huntington Park, Brewer met in a restaurant on Olvera Street with community and political leaders, including several Los Angeles councilmembers, state senator Gil Cedillo, parents, family and members of educational organizations.

▲ Translated from the Spanish (with apologies) by 4LAKids and Google translation. Link to original Spanish below
________

►The Grand Tour 2 The Black Community: A MEASURED SALUTE TO THE NEW SUPERINTENDENT - Brewer's selection as L.A. schools chief is a symbolic victory for a black community that doesn't get much good news.

by Erin Aubry Kaplan | LA Times Columnist

October 18, 2006 – When I learned that the Los Angeles school board had hired retired Navy Vice Adm. David L. Brewer III as superintendent, I confess that my initial reaction was nakedly political. Well, I thought, score one for us.

I'm not proud of myself. Yet this is what the battle for control of L.A. schools has come to. After last week's news, it feels almost appropriate for skeptics of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's school reform plan to do a little touchdown dance in the end zone. Especially ebullient were black skeptics, who couldn't resist airing their satisfaction — and surprise — that the board went against political and demographic trends to hire an African American to oversee the nation's second-largest school district.

I count myself among the skeptics most days, but I do not see Brewer's appointment as an automatic windfall for black folk. History argues against it, and besides, he hasn't done anything yet. All the same, almost despite myself — and my initial reaction — I don't fault their optimism.

Struggling in recent years with declining numbers and influence, blacks haven't had any genuinely good political news for a long time. So it was almost inevitable that the arrival of a black superintendent would be seen as a symbolic victory of the highest order, much like the election of former Mayor Tom Bradley in 1973. At last week's news conference, the normally starchy Marguerite Poindexter LaMotte was downright giddy. "Is this a party or what?" the school board's lone black member was overheard saying.

The question is whether it is more than just a symbolic victory. Of course it is a political triumph; LaMotte opposed Villaraigosa's power redistribution plan from the beginning and has joined her fellow board members in a lawsuit they hope will render the whole thing null and void. In the meantime, she can cheer herself up with the knowledge that the board was able to install its own choice in the superintendent's office while the mayor was half a world away — and that it voted to put a black man in charge of a district that is overwhelmingly Latino and decreasingly black.

Brewer arrives at a time when it's become almost impossible to muster the political will to address the crises of black students who consistently do poorly in terms of dropout rates, test scores and other measures. One of many things on Brewer's resume is that he started a scholarship foundation for African American students; that's not a qualification for anything, but it might indicate what his priorities are in the daunting task of fixing public education. It's a start.

But it's not nearly enough, as Brewer surely knows. He'll be caught in so many headlights — those of the district, the state, the city, the mayor's office, the teachers union, education reformers at the grass roots and in high places — that he may go blind, at least for a while. Ethnic interests and anxieties will shape every agenda, some of which will be perfectly justifiable (bolstering the poor performance of black and Latino students) and some of which will not (scrapping desegregation and other color-conscious programs as needless in the age of multiculturalism).

Everybody's touting Brewer's no-nonsense military background, but public education is a different kind of war — less confrontational, more rhetorical. In a milieu that requires nuance, finesse and a strong vision, Brewer comes off as somewhat lacking in all three.

At this very early stage, he seems personable, inclusive, charismatic in a motivational-speaker kind of way. His claim that he's not a "reformer" but a "transformer" has a whiff of the religious about it that sets well with a black constituency — and with the district's truest believers. But the comments also feel a little over the top, a little indecorous. The school district needs a morale boost, yes, but it needs a lot more than that — as do its 700,000 students.

All that said, I also have to say that Brewer looks like he could be a good fit for this town. He exudes presence and has a feel for his audience that was bred in the military but is worthy of Hollywood. It doesn't hurt that he's a sharp dresser who can go toe-to-manicured-toe with our image-conscious mayor. Brewer may also benefit from his passing resemblance to Charles Dutton, the actor and director whose affability masks a grit and determination that powered him to considerable success in the most uncertain of professions.

If L.A. could get all this and real educational leadership too, Brewer could finally make winners of us all.
_________



►The Grand Tour 3A/The Valley: LAUSD'S BREWER ENLISTS COMMUNITY HELP IN VALLEY VISIT

by Naush Boghossian, Staff Writer | LA Daily News

10/17/2006 - NORTH HOLLYWOOD - Bringing his victory tour to the San Fernando Valley, newly appointed LAUSD Superintendent David Brewer III said Tuesday that he plans to turn to business and community groups to help fund education programs not covered by taxpayer dollars.

The Beverly Garland Holiday Inn was Brewer's final stop in his whirlwind two-day tour, where he introduced himself to civic and educational leaders citywide.

He now returns to his home in Washington, D.C., where he'll finalize plans for a move to the West Coast. Once he begins his job in earnest - probably by mid-November - Brewer said, he looks forward to visiting classrooms.

"I need to get down to the business of educating children," said Brewer, 60, a former Navy admiral who retired earlier this year after a 36-year military career.

"I want to look at instruction and curriculum and factors outside of the classroom ... like ignorance, poverty and crime. We have dropouts and 65,000 foster-care kids - we need to go after these issues."

Brewer was named late Thursday to succeed Superintendent Roy Romer, who plans to retire this fall from the 727,000-student district. Terms of Brewer's contract have not yet been finalized, although school board members have said they expect it to be a multiyear agreement.

LIFE EXPERIENCES

As he introduced himself to local business and community leaders, Brewer also related experiences from his own life in explaining how he plans to approach his new job as head of Los Angeles Unified.

Brewer said his wife, a teacher in Virginia, turned to her school's PTA foundation when she needed money to bind books written by her seventh- and eighth-graders.

"We're going to find ways for you to give money," Brewer said. "The choices are simple - we can educate or we can incarcerate.

"Help us, help LAUSD create a world-class education system so our children can indeed be the best in the world. We need resources to fund programs. I say, think big, start small, scale fast."

He also talked about the importance of involving parents in their children's education, and suggested enlisting mentors to help parents - particularly immigrants - navigate the intricacies of the nation's second-largest school district.

Brewer's answers, delivered with authority and wit, seemed to charm the small audience, which sent the retired admiral off with a standing ovation.

Brendan Huffman, president of the Valley Industry and Commerce Association, said Brewer exuded confidence, strong management skills and a desire to be inclusive.

"I was particularly impressed with his desire to enlist parents to be involved with their children's schools and enlisting the private sector to give schools an assist," said Huffman, whose group advocates dismantling the district.

"VICA still thinks smaller school districts are better, but that could take a few years.

"In the meantime, we're committed to working with the new superintendent and the mayor to improve schools in the Valley."

Brewer said he was looking forward to moving away from the cameras and attention to visiting classrooms when he returns to Los Angeles.

"I need to get down to the business of educating children," he said.

"I want to look at instruction and curriculum and factors outside of the classroom ... like ignorance, poverty and crime. We have dropouts and 65,000 foster-care kids - we need to go after these issues."

ANTONIO MEETING

But Brewer's first order of business will be an Oct. 25 meeting with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

While he refused to comment on the new law that gives Villaraigosa significant power over the school district beginning Jan. 1, Brewer repeated earlier comments that he intends to work collaboratively with the mayors of Los Angeles and all the cities served by Los Angeles Unified.

"We're going to make this work," Brewer said. "We're not looking for a fight with the mayor. This is a daunting challenge. He's going to find out I'm going to be his partner and his friend. We're going to get it done."

GREUEL IMPRESSED

City Councilwoman Wendy Greuel - a Villaraigosa ally who has criticized the school board for filing a legal challenge to the law and for selecting a superintendent without the mayor's input - spent a second day with Brewer and came away with a good feeling about his experience and knowledge.

"I am very impressed with his commitment and passion about education, his willingness to learn about things he doesn't know and he comes with a breadth of experience and knowledge and he's willing to work with the mayor," Greuel said. "He's representing the kids and that's something the school board and mayor will support."

Brewer spent Monday meeting with leaders in South and East Los Angeles. The second African-American to head Los Angeles Unified, Brewer has no prior experience in K-12 education, but has experience managing some 8,000 employees and comes from a family of educators.

__________

►The Grand Tour 4/The Business Community: NEW LAUSD CHIEF WANTS BUSINESSES TO HELP

By Chris Coates - San Fernando Valley Business Journal Staff Writer

10/17/2006 — The new superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District said he plans to involve Valley business owners in reforming the city’s troubled school system.

David L. Brewer III, who was unanimously nominated by the school district board Thursday, said he wants local businesses to help pay for a wide range of educational programs he plans to develop to turn the district into “a world-class school system so our children can be the best.”

“One of the things I’m going to need is money. And it’s not going to come from the state or the city,” he said. Later, he added: “We’re going to come to the business community and say we need funds to pay for these programs.”

The comments from Brewer came as he opened the “Reaching For the Stars,” a regional job fair organized by the Economic Alliance of the San Fernando Valley at the Beverly Garland Inn in North Hollywood.

The speech and brief Q-and-A session was Brewer’s first appearance in the Valley since the surprise nomination, which initially drew criticism from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who was in the middle of a broad trade mission of Asia.

Brewer, who lives in Virginia, has no experience in education but has had an management extensive background in the U.S. Navy, where he retired this year as vice admiral.

On Tuesday, Brewer talked at length but offered few specifics about how he plans to reform the district, which includes more than 700,000 students in Los Angeles and several adjoining cities.

He said the keys would be helping parents navigate the school system, providing mentors and preparing students to compete for jobs internationally.

“You have to compete at the global level,” he said. “In the 21st Century, you can’t do the same things and expect the same results,” he added later.

The Tuesday speech followed a round-the-clock series of community meetings with school leaders, community members and media outlets across the city Monday.

Brewer on Tuesday denied that the saturation is because Villaraigosa is traveling overseas.

The mayor’s office has indicated that Villaraigosa plans to meet with Brewer “as soon as he returns from his trade mission in Asia.”

The morning speech also included an appearance by outgoing Superintendent Roy Romer, who will likely step down next month.


NUEVO LÍDER DEL LAUSD PROMETE SER UN SUPERINTENDENTE PARA TODOS



LAUSD BUILDING CASH MAY FALL SHORT: Additional bond might be needed
by Naush Boghossian, Staff Writer, LA Daily News

October 18 — Los Angeles Unified's massive school-construction project faces an estimated $2 billion shortfall fueled by soaring building costs, Superintendent Roy Romer warned Wednesday.

_______

Despite four bond measures and state support totaling nearly $19.2 billion over the past decade, Romer told the bond oversight committee that more steps need to be taken to shore up the program and fill the looming gap.

While Romer said he didn't believe another bond would be needed, committee chairwoman Connie Rice said that if costs continue to escalate at this pace all options will be on the table - including a possible fifth bond measure.

Romer, who has made the project a linchpin of his tenure, said the district was hit with a "tsunami" of increased costs - dramatic increases in land values and the price of construction material. Still, the district should continue its aggressive construction pace because costs are expected to continue to increase in coming years.

"We in the next 60 days have to go out to the community with phase four. How do we complete the program of building schools? I've told my staff, `You don't blink, you don't hesitate one step,"' Romer said.

"Other people in the country have cut the program back. We've chosen not to do that. ... This is still a bargain. ... You gotta have guts to stick with this program and we have it."

The news of the shortfall comes as a new superintendent, retired Navy admiral David Brewer III, is set to take office and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa gears up to take more control of the district under recently signed legislation.

The Mayor's Office said Wednesday it wants to see more details about the shortfall and the proposals to address it.

"What we heard today is a potential for a significant shortfall and that's something we'll stay on top of and monitor," said spokesman Joe Ramallo.

The district has already built 65 schools but has about 100 left to go in a construction program that began six years ago to address a shortage of 160,000 seats.

About $13 billion of the $19.2 billion program has been earmarked for building new schools, with the rest for modernization and renovations.

Of the construction program's $19.2 billion, $12.5 billion comes from local taxpayer dollars through the four bonds, and the rest from state matching funds.

Strapped for cash

School officials said the projected shortfall would trim to $1.3 billion if voters approve Proposition 1D on the state ballot in November. The measure would give LAUSD about $475 million for new school construction and about $500 million for renovation and modernization.

If it doesn't pass, however, officials will be forced to weigh other options to meet its construction goals.

"The public should understand that we're trying to plan for some contingencies we didn't have in our original estimate. ... It could mean we'd have to, with the mayor, go after another bond. That could also be put on the table," Rice said.

The biggest strain on the program, the largest public works program in the country, has been a 167 percent increase in construction costs in the past four years.

The state's matching-fund program also has dropped from 42 cents on the dollar to 30 cents.

Meanwhile, the district also will fail to qualify for some construction funding because of its declining enrollment.

Official enrollment figures released Wednesday showed the district at 708,461 students this school year - 4,000 fewer than projected and about 19,000 fewer than last year.

A couple options

Romer said the district has taken steps to cut costs - including only building schools when needed. It also has paid down $500 million in debt, allowing it the option of re-borrowing that money in the event Proposition 1D does not pass.

Romer proposed using $1.3 billion from the bond voters approved last November to create a reserve fund to cover rising construction costs. Those bond funds have not yet been allocated and will not be needed for some time.

"Because of some uncertainty of the remedies of 1D and of improving the match, I'm recommending to the board we create a reserve of roughly $1.3 billion so that money is there in a reserve in case we don't get a legislative relief totally or we don't get all that we need out of 1D," Romer said.

The bond oversight committee took no action Wednesday but is scheduled to discuss the proposals in detail in future meetings.

The committee took the opportunity of Romer's last appearance at the meeting to laud his accomplishments on the construction project.

Rice called Romer the district's "praetorian guard" for allowing the program to move forward efficiently and professionally.

Rice also underscored the urgency of building new schools, noting that in 2015 the district will still have 70 middle schools with over 1,500 students and 13 high schools with more than 3,000 students.

Barely keeping up

Also, thousands of students will still be in portable classrooms. The state average is about 900 students for each, said Jim Cowell director of construction.

"Even when we're successful in building all of these phases on our drawing boards, there will be thousands of Los Angeles schoolchildren in portables, and our committee does not accept that as acceptable housing," Rice said.

"We are not overbuilding. We're barely building enough to say to Los Angeles' children, `You don't have to wake up at 5 a.m. to get on a diesel bus and go to a school in the Valley because there's no school in your neighborhood."'

Fellow committee member Scott Folsom echoed Rice's sentiment that the district will carry out the program.

"This is not necessarily good news, but the good news is we're going ahead," Folsom said. "The first and most important promise we made to voters is we'll continue to a traditional two-semester calendar ... and that is the mission and that's what we're going to do. We're going to do a little zigzagging, but that's where we're going."

________


School Board President Marlene Canter's open letter on the new superintendent



TEACHER TO RETURN TO SCHOOL AFTER PARENTS' PROTEST

from cbs2.com

Oct 21 — (CBS/AP) LOS ANGELES — A teacher and union activist whose transfer out of Crenshaw High School sparked a series of protests by parents and fellow educators will return to the school by early next year, district and union officials announced Friday.

Alex Caputo-Pearl was transferred to Emerson Middle School in August. Union officials claimed the transfer of Caputo-Pearl, a United Teachers Los Angeles chapter chair, appeared to be revenge because district leaders blamed him for the early retirement of Principal Charles Didinger.

Last year, Didinger helped Crenshaw regain its good standing with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, which had suspended its accreditation.

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Roy Romer denied the transfer was a retaliatory move.

LAUSD attorney Kevin Reed said today the district and United Teachers Los Angeles "amicably resolved the issue."

"All parties have reaffirmed the need for the chapter chair and administration to work collaboratively for the good of Crenshaw High School," Reed said.

According to the district, Caputo-Pearl will return to Crenshaw no later than next semester.

UTLA officials said that means Caputo-Pearl will be back no later than Feb. 5, and possibly as early as next month.

"We are pleased that this issue has been resolved quickly and that a veteran teacher and UTLA chapter chair will return to help his school," A.J. Duffy, president of UTLA said. "Students at all schools deserve continuity in instructors and we have been able to maintain this for Crenshaw."

The union will hold a rally in support of Caputo-Pearl on Monday afternoon at Crenshaw High School.


UTLA Press Release on reinstatement of Caputo-Pearl



TRIAL DATE SET FOR LAWSUIT CHALLENGING MAYORAL SCHOOL PLAN
October 18, 2006 — LOS ANGELES — A judge set a Dec. 15 date for the non-jury trial of a lawsuit challenging legislation giving Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa partial control of the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The lawsuit -- filed Oct. 10 in Los Angeles Superior Court by a coalition of LAUSD parents, students, administrators, the League of Women Voters and the Board of Education -- maintains the legislation is unconstitutional and infringes on the rights of voters.

They want a judge to overturn Assembly Bill 1381, which was signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last month and gave the mayor the authority he wanted over the district.

Tuesday, lawyers in the case made their first appearances before Judge Dzintra Janavs. In addition to the Dec. 15 trial date, Janavs also scheduled a pretrial hearing for Monday and gave the attorneys deadlines for filing briefs.

Named as defendants are Villaraigosa, the state, Schwarzenegger, State Controller Steve Westly and Los Angeles County School Superintendent Darline Robles.

Mayoral aide Matt Szabo has called the lawsuit a "frivolous lawsuit and a desperate attempt to preserve the failed status quo."

AB 1381 shifts most of the decision-making authority from the seven- member LAUSD board to the superintendent; creates a council of mayors, giving a significant role to Los Angeles' mayor in managing the nation's second-largest school district; and gives individual schools greater control over their budgets and curriculum during a six-year trial period.

The mayor also gets direct control over the district's three lowest-performing high schools and their feeder campuses.

Before the bill was signed, the school board voted 6-1 to challenge AB 1381's legality.

• Judge Janavs – a Superior Court Judge for twenty years - obtained notoriety recently for being defeated for reelection by Lynn Olson, an opponent distinguished for being a bagel shop owner. Janavs was reappointed to the bench immediately after the election by Governor Schwarzenegger.

•• Under AB 1381 the mayor does not get "control over the district's three lowest-performing high schools and their feeder campuses", he gets control of three OF THE lowest performing schools, etc.


Background on Judge Janavs and related news stories



A Question For Educators: WHERE DID ALL THE KIDS GO? + The News That Didn't Fit: BUSH TOUTS EDUCATION PROGRAM + BIG BUSINESS GOING TO BAT FOR NCLB
from the Civic Strategies E-Letter | www.civic-strategies.com/latest_news.htm

Public school enrollments are plummeting in cities along the West Coast, and the decline has school officials wondering why. Is it because of high housing costs, a declining birth rate, large-scale demographic shifts, racial or ethnic prejudice, the failures of the schools — or all the above?

Whatever the reasons, the decline is real. Statewide, California schools lost 10,000 students this year, the first such decline in a quarter-century, the Los Angeles Times reported recently. Farther north, in Seattle, city schools lost another 400 students. The school system is closing seven schools next year and may close three more, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported.

Why the rapid decline? "We just don't have as many kids in the city as we used to," one Seattle school official told the Post-Intelligencer. One reason: The cost of housing is running off families with children.

But that's not the only reason public school attendance is slipping. Seattle has one of the highest rates of private-school attendance in the country, about one in four school-age children. So it isn't just a declining market that's shrinking the public schools, it's a loss of market share.

You can see similar dynamics at work in affluent Santa Barbara, Calif., up the coast from Los Angeles. Over the last seven years, 400 students have left the public schools there. Declining population? No, Santa Barbara's population is actually up from 2000. But something has changed over the years: Housing prices have skyrocketed. The median home price is now approaching an incredible $1 million, and that's changing the demographics of the county. As one observer told the L.A. Times, "You have rich people who don't have kids and poor people living two or three families in a house."

And, inevitably, the poor are minorities, in this case Latinos, and as their children enter the public schools it is touching off white flight, the newspaper said. In the elementary schools, for instance, 70 percent of students today are Latino and only 25 percent are white non-Hispanics. (Countywide, 37 percent of residents are Latino.)

Public schools, then, are subject to two forces pushing down their numbers: major demographic shifts accompanied by fear and prejudice. By themselves, school systems can do little about either. But they shouldn't be bystanders to their own decline. What school systems can command is the quality of the education they provide and the choices they offer parents and students. And here's a lesson from the world of business: There are companies in flat or even declining industries (dial-up Internet connections, steel manufacturing, etc.) that grow by increasing their market share.

Perhaps that, then, should be the measure of schools in places like Seattle, San Francisco and L.A.: Not whether enrollments are growing, but the share of school-age children who attend the public schools. If the market share is increasing, we can be reasonably sure that the schools are doing something right. And if the demographics shift and kids return to these cities, public schools will grow once more.

Footnote: But what about prejudice? Schools can't overcome that, can they? In many cases, they can. The hopeful thing about prejudice is that, with some exceptions, it's not absolute. That is, if offered enough benefits, most people can put aside their qualms and work with other groups. Public schools already offer cost as a benefit, of course, but there are others they could offer: choice, excellent programs, a secure and welcoming environment, etc. If made skillfully, such enticements are enough to win over most parents who are fearful or even mildly prejudiced.


The news that didn't fit: BUSH TOUTS EDUCATION PROGRAM + BIG BUSINESS GOING TO BAT FOR NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND



Events coming up next week: CELEBRATING THREE NEW SCHOOLS plus...
• Monday Oct 23, 2006
HUNTINGTON PARK NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #7: RIBBON-CUTTING CEREMONY
Please join us to celebrate the ribbon-cutting of your new community school!
Ceremony will begin at 2 p.m.
Huntington Park New Elementary School #7
6055 Corona Ave.
Huntington Park, CA 90255

• Monday Oct 23, 2006
SOUTH REGION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #11: Presentation of Recommended Project Definition - At this meeting we will discuss the SCHOOL PROJECT DEFINITION that staff will recommend to the LAUSD Board of Education for review and approval.
6:00 p.m.
68th Street School – Auditorium
612 W. 68th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90044

• Monday Oct 23, 2006
VALLEY REGION ARMINTA ES ADDITION: Presentation of Recommended Project Definition
At this meeting we will discuss the SCHOOL PROJECT DEFINITION that staff will recommend to the LAUSD Board of Education for review and approval.
6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Arminta Elementary School
11530 Strathern St.
North Hollywood, CA 91605

• Tuesday Oct 24, 2006
SOUTH REGION HIGH SCHOOL #6: Schematic Design/Design Development Meeting
The purpose of this meeting is to:
* Present schematic and design development drawings to show the general layout, form and overall appearance of the school and the site
* Receive community input on the design of the project
* Discuss the next steps in the school construction process
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Washington Preparatory High School Auditorium
10860 S. Denker Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90047

• Tuesday Oct 24, 2006
VALLEY REGION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #15: Presentation of Recommended Project Definition - At this meeting we will discuss the SCHOOL PROJECT DEFINITION that staff will recommend to the LAUSD Board of Education for review and approval.
6:30 p.m.
Broadous Elementary School Auditorium
12561 Filmore St.
Pacoima, CA 91331

• Wednesday Oct 25, 2006
CENTRAL LOS ANGELES AREA NEW MIDDLE SCHOOL #4: RIBBON-CUTTING CEREMONY
Please join us to celebrate the ribbon-cutting of your new community school!
Ceremony will begin at 10:00 a.m.
Central Los Angeles Area New MS #4
3500 S. Hill St.
Los Angeles, CA 90007

• Wednesday Oct 25, 2006
SOUTH REGION SPAN K-8 #4: Presentation of Recommended Project Definition
At this meeting we will discuss the SCHOOL PROJECT DEFINITION that staff will recommend to the LAUSD Board of Education for review and approval.
6:30 p.m.
Ellen Ochoa Learning Center
5027 Live Oak
Bell, CA 90201

• Thursday Oct 26, 2006
LEXINGTON AVENUE PRIMARY CENTER: RIBBON-CUTTING CEREMONY
Please join us to celebrate the ribbon-cutting of your new community school!
Ceremony will begin at 1:30 p.m.
Lexington Avenue Primary Center
4564 W. Lexington Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90027

*Dates and times subject to change. ________________________________________
• SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE:
http://www.laschools.org/bond/
Phone: 213.633.7493
____________________________________________________
• LAUSD FACILITIES COMMUNITY OUTREACH CALENDAR:
http://www.laschools.org/happenings/
Phone: 213.633.7616


• LAUSD BOARD OF EDUCATION & COMMITTEES MEETING CALENDAR



What can YOU do?

• E-mail, call or write your school board member:
Marlene.Canter@lausd.net • 213-241-6387
Monica.Garcia@lausd.net • 213-241-6180
Julie.Korenstein@lausd.net • 213-241-6388
Marguerite.LaMotte@lausd.net • 213-241-6382
Mike.Lansing@lausd.net • 213-241-6385
Jon.Lauritzen@lausd.net • 213-241-6386
David.Tokofsky@lausd.net • 213-241-6383

...or your city councilperson, mayor, the governor, member of congress, senator - or the president. Tell them what you really think!
Call or e-mail Governor Schwarzenegger: 213-897-0322 e-mail: http://www.govmail.ca.gov/
• Open the dialogue. Write a letter to the editor. Circulate these thoughts. Talk to the principal and teachers at your local school.
• Speak with your friends, neighbors and coworkers. Stay on top of education issues. Don't take my word for it!
• Get involved at your neighborhood school. Join your PTA. Serve on a School Site Council. Be there for a child.
• Register.
• Vote.


Who are your elected federal & state representatives? How do you contact them?




Scott Folsom is a parent and parent leader in LAUSD. He is President of Los Angeles 10th District PTSA and represents PTA as Vice-chair the LAUSD Construction Bond Citizen's Oversight Committee. He serves on various school district advisory and policy committees and is a PTA officer and/or governance council member at three LAUSD schools. He is also the elected Youth & Education boardmember on the Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council.
• In this forum his opinions are his own and your opinions and feedback are invited. Quoted and/or cited content copyright © the original author and/or publisher. All other material copyright © 4LAKids.
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