In This Issue:  | | • | DAY 1 FOR THE NEW LOCKE: Charter operator Green Dot takes on its biggest challenge to date with its 1,600-pupil high school in Watts | | | • | PROSECUTORS WILL BE SAFETY SPECIALISTS AT 10 L.A. MIDDLE SCHOOLS + ANTI-CRIME PROGRAM COMING TO 9 LAUSD MIDDLE SCHOOLS + City Attorney Press Release | | | • | AREA HIGH SCHOOLS HIT STATE TEST SCORE TARGETS | | | • | California Budget 101: A GUIDE TO WHAT'S GONE WRONG IN SACRAMENTO - YOUR QUICK GUIDE TO THE CONTINUING CAPITOL MESS | | | • | HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest of the Stories from Other Sources | | | • | EVENTS: Coming up next week... | | | • | What can YOU do? | |
Featured Links: | | | | I was at an event celebrating LAUSD Career and Technical Education on Friday — the appropriately named Breakfast of Champions. CTE is sometimes called "Adult Ed" …but is heavily populated by youngsters. And sometimes by their parents.
The event celebrated students for their extraordinary accomplishments: an Iraq War vet trained as a telephone lineman, an adult woman's mid-carrier move to nursing as a profession, a young man graduating from high school with his electricians license and a IBEW union card; students trained as CAD designers and photovoltaic installers — nor wood shop or metal shop but students equipped for good jobs with a future. Students well prepared for a better life.
Also honored were adults: Building Trades' Richard Slawson and Board President Monica Garcia for their commitment to CTE. It was good to see the successful students honored alongside successful adults; true success is a shared experience - and the role modeling inspires both ways.
The keynote speaker was State Senator Gloria Romero, on R& R from the Budget Wars in Sacramento. Her colleague and co-contender for the job of Superintendent of Public Instruction, Senator Torlackson was heard on the radio last week calling for a resolution of the budget impasse and a Constitution Convention to completely redraw our system of government and public finance. Prompted, Romero wouldn't go that far, though she said she'd enthusiastically support an end to the two-thirds requirement — and stood firm for Sacramento to come up with a budget soon: "But not just any budget …a good budget!"
Hear hear! …or maybe as the Republicans are wont: "Roger that!"
Student success was also heralded this week in the more contemporary/fashionable way: rising test scores. While it is true that LAUSD has not overtaken the State of California in STAR and CAHSEE results and API+AYP, we are making improved progress and closing the gap. And the goal, gentle reader, is-not-and-cannot-be 800 or 900 or a perfect score. The goal is-and-must-be successful individuals, not subgroups – not college ready and career prepared – but possessed of the life skills necessary to take the next steps …and the steps after that.
¡Onward/Hasta adelante! – smf
PS: We don't need no stinkin' budget …we need a good budget!
DAY 1 FOR THE NEW LOCKE: Charter operator Green Dot takes on its biggest challenge to date with its 1,600-pupil high school in Watts
DAY 1 FOR THE NEW LOCKE: Charter operator Green Dot takes on its biggest challenge to date with its 1,600-pupil high school in Watts.
LA Times Editorial
September 8, 2008 -- Green Dot Public Schools, the charter operator that has gained a big reputation for small high schools, a college-prep curriculum and fast growth, opens its latest newsmaking venture today: a reinvented Locke High School. The teachers have been hired and trained. The students are preregistered, their textbooks in hand. The center quad has been replanted. Everything is ready.
Or is it? This isn't just an era of reform for Locke High, with its own reputation for student fisticuffs and an appallingly high dropout rate. It also represents a risky new ambition for Green Dot, which pressed the Los Angeles Unified School District into allowing the takeover after collecting signatures from many of Locke's teachers.
At other Green Dot schools, students enrolled by choice; parents enthusiastically signed up to win seats for their children in the new, 500-student schools, which promised safer campuses and more rigorous classwork than they found in their local public schools. But in Locke's Watts neighborhood, families weren't offered Green Dot as an option; Green Dot became the local public school. Unless parents were willing to send their children to more-distant campuses, Green Dot was what they had. And although the charter operator has done what it can to reorganize the school into smaller, more intimate "academies," Locke opens with 1,600 students.
Wide range of opinion
Two weeks ago, teenagers gathered outside the front gate for preregistration. After the back-to-school ritual of hugging and squealing with delight at seeing each other again, they and their parents settled into alphabetical lines -- and voiced a wide range of opinions about whether the change at Locke was for the better.
Even among supporters, there were complaints. Why did they have to stand in the hot sun for registration, when they used to get their class schedules in the mail? (The school wanted to make sure students had everything from textbooks to transportation in advance so that on the first day, they'd be ready for learning.) What were these crazy schedules with different classes on different days? (Green Dot is introducing block schedules for some days, in which students take fewer classes for longer periods.)
The pro-charter faction foresaw the kind of school that middle-class students get. One senior who already had taken Advanced Placement classes was looking forward to a college-focused atmosphere. His only concern was that there might not be room at the school for his little brother, who's entering his freshman year. Unlike public schools, Green Dot can close enrollment when it's full.
A mother of two Locke students was thrilled; she might have been quoting from a Green Dot manual as she recited the benefits. The campus would be a haven from the turmoil of the streets. With parents required to volunteer, the students would get the message that education is important. The uniforms -- polo shirts, khaki pants -- would get kids away from gang attire and maybe away from gang behavior. Her children would graduate "college-ready."
Those are the kinds of families Green Dot is accustomed to drawing. But it has a lot of convincing to do at Locke. Many students entering their first classes today opposed the takeover. There was nothing wrong with the school the way it was, they said -- a sad reflection of their low expectations, considering the arson fires, the frequent fights and a 2008 graduating class of slightly more than 300, compared with the 1,500 who had started four years before.
These students didn't want the school split into smaller academies, fearing that Green Dot was trying to break up their friendships and destroy whatever unity the campus enjoyed. Many had no interest in taking the courses required for attending a four-year college. "I'm a senior this year," one said. "They can't make me."
And hardly anyone liked the uniforms. Even parents complained. "You can dress them up in black and khaki all you want," one mother said, "and they'll still be gangbangers."
Why were they here, then? Most of the teenagers said some of their friends would still be at Locke, so they had signed up as well. Or that Locke was conveniently located in their neighborhood. Or that they were juniors or seniors and the prospect of starting at an unfamiliar school was too daunting or depressing.
A possible blueprint
There's a lot of talk among educators about charter schools being laboratories of innovation. That's true enough, but it's one thing to make progress with students who voluntarily sign up for a rigorous academic environment and whose parents actively support the endeavor. Green Dot's experience with Locke's many doubt-filled teens will provide a more realistic measure of what charter schools can do for poor and minority students who typically have lower test scores and higher dropout rates. And if it succeeds, Green Dot will have created a blueprint for public schools.
If it fails, it won't be for lack of trying. Principal Ronnie Coleman has painstakingly hired each teacher. The staff has attended retreats together and been trained in how to instill discipline. (All staff monitor the hallways during class changes to make sure students aren't cutting classes or getting into trouble; it's better to walk around the classroom than to sit at a desk.) Green Dot CEO Steve Barr didn't fill the quad with the oak trees he'd envisioned, but on registration day, workers were busy planting 16 century-old olive trees that, just as he'd hoped, made the grassy area a shaded, inviting place for students to gather.
Perhaps most promising, the biggest Green Dot fans among those registering were generally the ones who had enrolled in summer school and were impressed by what had been wrought in a short time: Students were neatly dressed and better behaved. Graffiti, a perpetual plague last year despite conscientious repainting, had virtually disappeared. As a security guard described the summer, "The kids walked around with smiles on their faces." The new Locke High School now must find a way to spread that sense of optimism among all of its students.
_ _ _
FOR THE RECORD FROM THE LA TIMES: September 12, 2008
LOCKE ENROLLMENT: An editorial Monday ("Day 1 for the new Locke" - above) about Locke High School stated its enrollment at 1,600. That is the number for the campus itself, but the school also has about 1,000 ninth-graders on satellite campuses, for a total of about 2,600 students.
_ _ _
●●smf 2¢: The challenges faced by the Locke community are great and I am no fan of Steve Barr - but let me say this on Day 1: The 'green' in Green Dot is already showing! '
'Green' is not just photovoltaic panels and quiet energy efficient HVAC - it was trees before it was any of those things! That Barr can and has transplanted mature olive trees (Oaks do no transplant well) to the Locke Quad is a real beginning. I have long complained that LAUSD's architects' designs for our new schools show established trees in their designs ...and small immature trees are always what are planted. There is very little natural shade on any of our new campuses.
Hopefully Barr and Green Dot and nurture what they've planted, actually and metaphorically.
PROSECUTORS WILL BE SAFETY SPECIALISTS AT 10 L.A. MIDDLE SCHOOLS + ANTI-CRIME PROGRAM COMING TO 9 LAUSD MIDDLE SCHOOLS + City Attorney Press Release
PROSECUTORS WILL BE SAFETY SPECIALISTS AT 10 L.A. MIDDLE SCHOOLS: City. Atty. Rocky Delgadillo will assign the prosecutors to low-performing campuses in crime-prone areas.
by Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
September 12, 2008 - City prosecutors will become campus-safety specialists in at least nine low-performing middle schools in crime-prone areas, according to an announcement Thursday by L.A. City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo.
The program, which Delgadillo announced at school district headquarters, is an outgrowth of a well-regarded two-year effort at Markham Middle School in Watts.
This year, Markham has registered gains on the state's Academic Performance Index that were higher than the state and school district average. Delgadillo attributed the change to an improved school climate: "Crime is down and test scores are up."
At Markham, prosecutor Michelle McGinnis combined crime-reduction strategies with improvements in the school environment. Among other things, she arranged for the delivery of a washer and dryer to clean school uniforms and distributed free sneakers. After-school programs were also expanded.
Delgadillo later ended the Markham program when the school became part of the mayor's unrelated school initiative. Middle school campuses now taking part in the program include Maclay in Pacoima, Audubon in Leimert Park, Mann in Hyde Park, Wilmington in Wilmington, Cochran in Mid-City, Twain in Mar Vista, Bethune in South Los Angeles, Nightingale in Cypress Park and Burbank in Highland Park.
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ANTI-CRIME PROGRAM COMING TO 9 LAUSD MIDDLE SCHOOLS
KNBC.com | UPDATED: 5:37 pm PDT September 11, 2008
WATTS, Calif. -- Nine middle schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District will be assigned city prosecutors as part of an initiative to reduce crime and improve academic achievement, the City Attorney's Office announced Thursday.
The School Safety Initiative is similar to one implemented at Markham Middle School, where private donations were used to purchase school uniforms, host after-school programs and maintain the campus.
Markham, in Watts, is bordered by three housing projects and surrounded by seven gangs. As one of LA's lowest performing schools, it's been plagued by gang violence and other crimes for years.
"We abandoned our kids, especially the poor ones, in the projects," said LAUSD Deputy Superintendent Ramon Cortines.
Although Markham's attendance, graduation rates and test scores have been low for decades, last year, Academic Performance Index (API) scores rose 23 points and crime dropped by half. The difference, many say, was the school safety initiative, run by the City Attorney's Office.
"Today we celebrate the fact that the Markham campus is safer now than at any time in recent memory," said City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, who spoke to the LAUSD Safety Committee. "We believe that if we can succeed in creating a safer school environment and boasting test scores at Markham, we can do the same thing for students in every community of Los Angeles."
Delgadillo said that, "The No. 1 thing kids asked for was stricter teachers. They wanted order."
The expanded program will cost more than $1 million and will be paid for by the City Attorney's Office. Delgadillo said he sees it as an investment and was been able to get local businesses involved. One business paid for school uniforms, another donated a washer and dryer to the campus so the kids would have clean uniforms, KNBC's Kim Baldonado reported.
The nine participating schools are:
* Maclay Middle School in Pacoima
* Audubon Middle School in Leimert Park
* Mann Middle School in Hyde Park
* Wilmington Middle School in Wilmington
* Cochran Middle School in the Mid-City area
* Mark Twain Middle School in Mar Vista
* Bethune Middle School in South Los Angeles
* Nightingale Middle School in Cypress Park
* Burbank Middle School in Highland Park
____________________________
NEWS From the Office of the City Attorney
ROCKARD J. DELGADILLO
Suite 800, City Hall East
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: 213-978-8340 Fax: 213-978-2093
http://www.cityofla.org/atty/
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Nick Velasquez
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2008 (213) 978-8340
CITY ATTORNEY ANNOUNCES MAJOR EXPANSION OF SUCCESSFUL SAFE SCHOOLS INITIATIVE, CREATION OF NEW SAFE SCHOOLS DIVISION
LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo , the City’s chief prosecutor, today appeared before the Los Angeles Unified School District’s (LAUSD) Safety Committee to unveil a new strategic partnership between the City Attorney’s Office and LAUSD to expand the successful Markham Middle School Safety Initiative to nine additional middle schools across the City of Los Angeles.
City Attorney Delgadillo also took the opportunity to announce his creation of a new, first-of-its-kind Safe Schools Division within the City Attorney’s Office. All of the City Attorney’s school safety initiatives and programs will be housed in this new unit.
“Today we celebrate the fact that the Markham campus is safer now than at any time in recent memory,” said City Attorney Delgadillo, who last year launched the Markham Middle School Safety Initiative, a collaborative effort to use comprehensive programs and coordinated safety solutions to reverse the conditions that had produced and perpetuated an unsafe environment on and around the school campus for many years.
“We believe that if we can succeed in creating a safer school environment and boosting test scores at Markham, we can do the same thing for students in every community of Los Angeles,” he added.
In addition to managing the City Attorney’s multiple, existing school safety programs, the new Safe Schools Division will provide a group of select prosecutors from Delgadillo’s office who will fan out across Los Angeles to work at nine priority middle schools identified in consultation with LAUSD. The first group of priority middle schools includes: Maclay Middle School in Pacoima, Audubon Middle School in Leimert Park, Mann Middle School in Hyde Park, Wilmington Middle School in Wilmington, Cochran Middle School in the Mid-City area, Mark Twain Middle School in Mar Vista, Bethune Middle School in South Los Angeles, Nightingale Middle School in Cypress Park, and Burbank Middle School in Highland Park.
Prosecutors from the new Safe Schools Division will use the Markham model and the City Attorney’s Blueprint for Improving School Safety, in conjunction with traditional prosecutorial responses and proactive prevention and intervention strategies, to achieve success similar to that which was seen at Markham. “As reflected in this year’s significant increase in API scores, our safety success at Markham allowed the students to focus on learning and achieve academic success,” City Attorney Delgadillo said.
The 2008 Growth Academic Performance Index (API) Report released last week showed that this past school year, Markham’s students scored 542 - a 23 point increase from last year’s score of 519. Markham’s increase outpaced LAUSD’s average (21 point average increase) as well as the state average (14 point average increase).
“Crime is down and test scores are up,” Delgadillo added. “We proved that if we work together, we can create a foundation from which to propel our children to greatness. There is no reason why we cannot recreate this success for students throughout the District.”
Over the past seven years, the City Attorney’s Office, in partnership with the Los Angeles Unified School District, law enforcement and local residents, has worked on multiple fronts to make schools safer for the students of Los Angeles, including establishing School Safety Zones, issuing School Campus Stay-Away Orders, and developing an effective anti-truancy program.
AREA HIGH SCHOOLS HIT STATE TEST SCORE TARGETS
From Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Staff and Wire Reports
11.SEP.08 - LOS ANGELES — The Academic Performance Index score for schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District rose by 21 points in 2007-08, but remained below the statewide average.
The district’s score, which summarizes students’ performance on a series of tests, went from 662 last year to 683. That was a higher jump than the statewide score, which increased 14 points from 728 last year to 742, according to figures released last week by the state Department of Education.
“I cannot tell you how proud I am,” Superintendent David L. Brewer III said. “What our students, teachers, school administrators and support staff have achieved is a testament to what’s possible when we all work together and provide students with rigorous instruction and curriculum in the classroom.”
The scores range from 200 to 1,000, with a performance target of 800.
In 2008, 36 percent of California schools met the 800-point bar or exceeded it, compared to 31 percent in 2007.
High schools on the Eastside that met their schoolwide growth targets included Lincoln, Eagle Rock, Bravo Medical Magnet and Garfield. Franklin, Roosevelt and Wilson failed to meet their targets.
API reflects growth in student achievement from one year to the next. It is determined by results on the California Standards Tests, the California Achievement Tests, 6th Edition tests and California High School Exit Exam.
“I’m particularly pleased that this year’s API results show some narrowing of the achievement gap between students who are white or Asian and their peers who are African-American, Hispanic or learning the English language,” said state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell. “As a result, the API indicates more clearly where the gaps are narrowing. The API gives schools credit for moving all students up to the next level of achievement, and it encourages educators to focus on improving the achievement of students who struggle the most.”
The state reported that 55 percent of LAUSD schools met their API growth targets — similar to the statewide level of 53 percent.
Fifty-two percent of schools statewide also met their federal Adequate Yearly Progress benchmarks — down from 67 percent last year.
Under the No Child Left Behind federal law, schools must meet annual Adequate Yearly Progress targets, which increase over time, so that in 2013-14, 100 percent of students are expected to score at the proficient level or above.
State officials attributed the drop in percentage of schools meeting AYP benchmarks to the annual increase in AYP target scores.
The Adequate Yearly Progress measures whether a school and all its significant student subgroups met a single benchmark of achievement in a single year.
A school not meeting Adequate Yearly Progress may fall short in every category, or miss the mark narrowly by failing one of many criteria measured.
API growth is one of the elements to determine whether a school makes it over the Adequate Yearly Progress bar.
Los Angeles Unified failed to meet all the Adequate Yearly Progress criteria, meeting 38 of 46 benchmarks, according to preliminary data issued by the state Department of Education.
California Budget 101: A GUIDE TO WHAT'S GONE WRONG IN SACRAMENTO - YOUR QUICK GUIDE TO THE CONTINUING CAPITOL MESS
by Mike Zapler | San Jose Mercury News Sacramento Bureau
September 14, 2008 — SACRAMENTO — You know something's awry in Sacramento. Something that involves ungodly sums of money and bickering politicians. But you're not really sure how the never-ending battle over the state budget affects you, let alone why we even need a budget.
Well, consider this a quick guide to what's gone wrong at the Capitol and why no one's been able to fix it — State Budget 101, if you will. We answer 13 burning questions about the showdown that's lasted 76 days and counting, helping you understand why the lawmakers you elect can't seem to get the job done.
Q WHY DOES CALIFORNIA EVEN NEED A BUDGET?
AWithout one, there would be no plan for spending all that tax money we send to Sacramento. Besides, without a budget the state can't legally make billions in payments to nursing homes, foster care homes, community colleges and construction contractors, to name just a few.
Q EVERY OTHER STATE SEEMS TO BE ABLE TO PASS A BUDGET. WHY CAN'T CALIFORNIA?
A There are a lot of reasons, but the big kahuna is a rule that budgets in California have to pass each house of the Legislature by a two-thirds vote. We're one of only three states with that type of hurdle. While Democrats control the Legislature, they don't have enough votes to clear that threshold. Hence the gridlock.
Q ARE THINGS AS MESSED UP IN THE OTHER STATES THAT REQUIRE "SUPERMAJORITIES'' TO APPROVE THEIR BUDGETS?
A Nope. Democrats hold huge majorities in Arkansas and Rhode Island, so clearing the budget bar isn't nearly as much of a problem. Also, while Arkansas has a three-fourths vote requirement for making appropriations, it carves out some major exceptions. Votes on education and highways, for example, take only a majority vote.
Q WHERE DID THAT TWO-THIRDS RULE COME FROM ANYWAY?
A Ironically, the idea came from Democrats in the 1930s, according to Joe Mathews, a senior fellow at the New America Foundation. After a long period in the minority, Democrats came into power and wanted some protections in case they didn't remain there. Voters passed a constitutional amendment with a number of budget reforms, including the two-thirds rule for any budget that grew by 5 percent or more. Three decades later, California voters approved a follow-up measure saying that all budgets need to be passed by two-thirds of legislators before heading to the governor's desk.
Q DO LAWMAKERS GET PAID FOR THE EXTRA TIME THEY SPEND BICKERING OVER THE BUDGET?
A During the impasse they don't get paid at all. But once it's over, they'll get back pay, plus $170 per diem for the days they're in Sacramento working on the budget. With 120 legislators, that works out to more than $100,000 a week in taxpayer money, assuming both houses are in session each weekday.
Q WHEN DOES THE BUDGET MORASS REALLY START TO AFFECT MY EVERYDAY LIFE, LIKE MY KID'S EDUCATION OR NEW ROADS TO EASE TRAFFIC CONGESTION?
A This is tough to gauge because the effects vary. But they are real and will become more and more severe the longer the impasse lasts. If a budget isn't in place by later this week, for instance, more than $3 billion pegged for schools and community colleges will stay in Sacramento for the time being. Transportation advocates say ongoing road construction projects could shut down midstream, as billions of dollars in payments to contractors are halted.
Q THIS SEEMS NUTS. HOW LONG COULD THIS LAST?
A That's the $64,000 question. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says he's willing to wait it out through the fall and into next year if that's what it takes to get the budget he wants. But the pressure to act could become overwhelming before then. Legislators did seem to make some progress toward a deal last week, but it was unclear where that will end up.
Q AREN'T LEGISLATORS WORRIED VOTERS WILL BOOT THEM FROM OFFICE IN THE NEXT ELECTION?
A Not really. Because district lines have been drawn to favor incumbents, they rarely face a serious challenge. That's one big reason the governor is pushing for reforming the ways legislative districts are drawn.
Q DIDN'T SCHWARZENEGGER PROMISE TO FIX THIS BUDGET STUFF DURING THE RECALL FIVE YEARS AGO? WHAT'S THE DEAL?
A Taming the budget has proved harder than anyone, especially the governor, imagined. He's taken his case to voters, cajoled legislators, hoped a thriving economy would take care of it, all to no avail. What's more, Schwarzenegger rescinded the unpopular car tax in his first act as governor. That blew a $6 billion hole in the budget that the state is grappling with to this day.
Q WHY DO WE SEEM TO GO THROUGH THE SAME DRAMA EVERY FIVE OR SIX YEARS? CAN'T THEY JUST FIGURE THIS OUT ONCE AND FOR ALL?
A Again, not so easy. The state's tax system is extremely volatile. About half of the general fund comes from personal income taxes, and the more money you make the higher percentage you pay in taxes. That means when the wealthy are doing well (in, say, the stock market), the state is flush. But a downturn like the one we're now experiencing sends state finances into the tank. Politicians have talked for years about changing the tax structure to rely on more stable sources of revenue, but that's a tricky thing to pull off, especially because low property taxes are sacrosanct in California.
Q IS IT REALLY THAT HARD TO BALANCE THE BUDGET WITH CUTS?
A Depends on whom you ask. But no one claims it's easy. Even the Republicans rely on billions of dollars in borrowing and accounting maneuvers to balance their budget. When Schwarzenegger proposed 10 percent across-the-board cuts to most programs, legislators and interest groups of all stripes were up in arms.
Q SO I GUESS IT'S INEVITABLE THAT WE'LL END UP WITH HIGHER TAXES. AREN'T TAXES HIGH ENOUGH ALREADY?
A Schwarzenegger is proposing a one-cent sales tax increase (although after three years it would go away and be cut an extra quarter-cent). Democrats pitched about $10 billion in taxes, mostly on the wealthy. But so far Republicans aren't budging. There are lots of ways to measure California's tax burden, but the independent Legislative Analyst's Office said last year that it was about average compared with other states.
Q ISN'T THERE SOME WAY TO MAKE THE LEGISLATURE DO ITS JOB?
A Good luck. So far, lawmakers have calculated that the benefits of holding out for what they want outweigh the costs of not cutting a deal. And no one really knows when the scales will tip.
HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest of the Stories from Other Sources
►Excerpt from THE ALL-ABOUT-ME MAYOR: Antonio Villaraigosa's Frenetic Self-Promotion
Hours of travel, fund-raising and PR leave little time for his job
By Patrick Range Mcdonald | From The LA Weekly | Published on September 11, 2008
"Throughout May and June, Villaraigosa was said to be gearing up for the July 1 takeover of 10 low-performing schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District through his Partnership for L.A. Schools program. But in fact the record shows the mayor was busy visiting New York City and Israel between June 9 and June 17, and he was holding 16 fund-raisers that month.
►LEADERSHIP GAP SEEN IN POST NCLB-CHANGES IN U.S.: Teachers, not Administrators or District Leaders are driving change, a new study says.
Education Week | By Stephen Sawchuk | EdWeek |Published in Print: September 10, 2008
Some analysts say the findings suggest that the efforts of many district and school leaders to align educator professional development with content standards have not consistently translated into the kind of instructional changes that standards-based reforms are intended to inspire.
►WHAT HAPPENS TO KIDS AFTER THEY DROP OUT?
by Dan Walters to the Sac Bee Capitol Alert Blog
September 11, 2008 -- There's still a bit of controversy over how many California's public school students drop out without graduating from high school. The latest state estimate is 24 percent, but some critics say the number understates the problem for a variety of reasons, including not counting those who never get to the ninth grade.
While the dropout numbers game continues, the California Dropout Rersearch Project, based at the University of California, Santa Barbara, has developed another view of the dropout problem -- what happens to those who leave high school without diplomas?
►4 in 5 Years: SCHWARZENEGGER EDUCATION SECRETARY RESIGNS
By Shane Goldmacher - Sacramento Bee
Sept 11, 2008 - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's fourth education secretary in five years resigned on Wednesday, saying he was ready to start "a different chapter of my life."
David Long, the former superintendent of schools in Riverside County whom Schwarzenegger touted as having "the most unbelievable experience" last March, lasted 18 months on the job.
►SCHOOL EXIT EXAM RESULTS SHOW UPTICK
By Nguyen Huy Vu and Melissa Pamer, Staff Writers | Daily Breeze
• Nearly all Los Angeles Unified campuses - as well as the district itself - saw a jump in the exit exam pass rates
• Los Angeles Unified had gains in sophomore English language-learners passing the exit exam , an increase of 5 and 4 percentage points respectively from a year ago.
• Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy in Wilmington continued to perform well, with 97 percent passing math and English.
• San Pedro High School saw a 10-point jump in its pass rate for math, along with an English rate that exceeded the state average.
►Playing Cowboys & Indians with the Taxpayer's Money: AUTRY SEEKS TO SHIFT COSTS OF SW MUSEUM TO YOU
Who should pay to fully rehabilitate the Southwest Museum building? According to Jackie Autry and her Board of Directors: YOU.
The Friends of the Southwest Museum Coalition has uncovered an outrageous scheme to shift the duty of raising funds for rehabilitation of the Southwest Museum campus from Autry to the taxpayers of the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD). That means Autry now wants YOU to pony up the money that Autry said in 2003 it had in hand or could raise to rehabilitate the Southwest Museum campus.
►Letters to The Times: A LITTLE PUBLICITY FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL + STUDENTS DESERVE BETTER
● The McCain campaign's claim that the picture of Walter Reed Middle School was used as a "way of illustrating the candidate's call for public education reforms" was a shallow attempt at damage control after some inept researcher mistook the school for Walter Reed Army Medical Center. At least that's the story going around.
Nobody on the Republican convention team caught the error -- not even McCain, who should have some idea what the building looks like. They all deserve a large, bold "F" on their collective homework papers.
● The fundamental flaw in No Child Left Behind is that it uses a target model to measure growth. By 2014, almost every school in the nation will "fail." Targets that call for a 100% high school graduation rate will only be met in rare instances. Targets that call for 100% proficiency in subject matter will fare likewise. According to the various standards set by the act, there are some 25 ways that a school can "fail." It makes the whole system something of a joke.
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▼AND NOW: FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY INDIFFERENT: THE BUDGET IMPASSE
►74 DAYS W/O A BUDGET/THE VIEW FROM ELSEWHERE: CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS SQUEEZED IN FISCAL VISE - FALLBACK PLANS READIED AMID BUDGET STALEMATE
By Linda Jacobson - Education Week
California Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata reacts Sept. 8 during debate over a Republican plan for the state’s budget, now more than two months late. Senate Democrats later defeated the GOP proposal. —Photograph by Rich Pedroncelli/AP
Published Online: September 12, 2008 --The failure of California lawmakers to enact a budget more than two months after it was due has schools operating in what one official called a “very bizarre, unknown place” and contemplating drastic steps to cope with the fiscal crisis.
Without a state budget, districts will have to do without more than $3 billion for programs such as special education, remedial and gifted instructional programs, professional development, and school transportation.
In anticipation of a funding cutoff, some districts already are canceling bus routes, increasing class sizes, raising school lunch fees, and dipping into reserve accounts to operate schools.
►74 DAYS W/O A BUDGET: EDUCATION LEADERS: "GIVE US A BUDGET (ONE WE LIKE)"
SacBee Capitol Alert - Posted by Shane Goldmacher
September 12, 2008 --Education leaders held a news conference yesterday to lament California's missing budget, saying the uncertainty of funding and the lack of certain checks being cut is hurting the state's students.
"Education is suffering," said Jack O'Connell, the state's superintendent of public instruction. "Our students are suffering."
The state budget is a record 73 days late. As a result, many bills are going unpaid, most notably for schools' categorical programs.
►A STATE W/O A BUDGET: DAY 73 (CONT.)
Sac Bee Capitol Alert | Sept 11, 2008
Neither the Assembly or Senate has session scheduled for today, after Democratic lawmakers in both houses voted down GOP budget proposals earlier this week.
So how far are Democrats from wooing enough GOP votes for their own tax-raising plans?
Well, pretty far, especially if the offensive conservatives have mounted against the California Taxpayers' Association is any indication. The 82-year old group endorsed Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's compromise proposal, which is built around a three-year 1-cent sales tax hike, followed by a permanent 1.25-cent cut.
Thirty-one of the 32 Assembly Republicans co-signed a letter blasting the taxpayers' group for "a cynical political calculation" in backing the plan.
The only GOP non-signer? Assemblyman Greg Aghazarian of Stockton, who just so happens to be running for state Senate in a Democratic-leaning district.
There may be no budget yet, but the state's bureaucracy continues to lumber along.
►73 DAYS W/O A BUDGET: THREE PLANS, NO AGREEMENT
By Dan Smith - smith@sacbee.com
September 11, 2008 - Lawmakers are debating three main plans to resolve the state's overdue budget - one proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in August, one advanced by Democrats from two-house conference committee deliberations, and one from legislative Republicans. So far, none of them has received enough support to reach the needed two-thirds vote for passage. Here's a look at how they differ in key areas.
►72 DAYS W/O A BUDGET: HELLO, MY NAME IS _______________ -OR- ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER FAILED BUDGET VOTE
Sac Bee Capitol Alert | September 10th
Assembly Democrats said no to the GOP budget proposal along party lines. Meanwhile, the state's revenues dipped below expectations in August.
After the vote, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger met separately with members of both the Assembly Democratic caucus and the Assembly Republican caucus.
Last week, Assembly GOP leader Mike Villines said, "Some of my guys want to meet him for the first time,"
71 days w/o a budget: SENATE DEMOCRATS REJECT GOP PROPOSAL FOR ENDING CALIFORNIA BUDGET IMPASSE - Republican plan would have avoided a sales tax increase through $3.4 billion worth of spending cuts.
By Jordan Rau, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
September 9, 2008 -- SACRAMENTO -- Senate Democrats rejected the Republicans' proposal for ending California's budget deadlock Monday, saying the state would not tolerate $3.4-billion worth of spending cuts they proposed.
The GOP plan failed along party lines, 13 to 21, nine days after the GOP had blocked a Democratic alternative because it increased sales taxes to close a $15.2-billion budget gap.
►71 DAYS W/O A BUDGET: THE MADNESS CONTINUES
Sac Bee Capitol Alert - Sept 9
"This madness has gone on far too long," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said in his Saturday radio address of the budget impasse.
But the spending plan-free fiscal year will continue today.
►71 DAYS W/O A BUDGET: A Message From Senator Tom Torlakson (D-7) Antioch/Concord
►70 DAYS W/O A BUDGET: ALLOW A MAJORITY BUDGET VOTE - THE DELAY IN PASSING A STATE FISCAL PLAN IS NOT THE FAULT OF REPUBLICANS OR DEMOCRATS BUT OF THE STATE'S SUPERMAJORITY RULE.
George Skelton, LA Tines Columnist | Capitol Journal
At the very least, California should return to a pre-1962 law that allowed budgets to be passed on a majority vote if spending didn't increase above 5%.
EVENTS: Coming up next week...
• Monday Sep 15, 2008
CENTRAL REGION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #22
CEQA Draft EIR (Environmental Impact Report) and Schematic Design Meeting
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location:
LA Public Library - Playa Vista Branch
6400 Playa Vista Drive
Playa Vista, CA 90094
• Tuesday Sep 16, 2008
VALLEY REGION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL #13: CEQA Draft EIR (Environmental Impact Report) Meeting
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Location:
Cal Burke High School
Multipurpose Room
14630 Lanark St
Panorama City, CA 91402
• Wednesday Sep 17, 2008
SOUTH REGION HIGH SCHOOL #7: Recirculated CEQA Draft EIR (Environmental Impact Report) Meeting
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location:
Gage Middle School - Multipurpose Room
2880 E. Gage Ave.
Huntington Park, CA 90255
• Thursday Sep 18, 2008
DORSEY HIGH SCHOOL CULINARY ARTS BUILDING: Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony
Ceremony will begin at 11:30 a.m.
Dorsey High School
3537 Farmdale Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90016
• Thursday Sep 18, 2008
ROYBAL LEARNING CENTER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CENTER
CEQA Supplemental Environmental Impact Report Meeting
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location:
Edward R. Roybal Learning Center
1200 W. Colton St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
• Thursday Sep 18, 2008
SOUTH REGION MIDDLE SCHOOL #4 and SOUTH REGION HIGH SCHOOL #9
DTSC Remedial Action Plan Public Meeting
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location:
Bryson Elementary School - Auditorium
4470 Missouri Ave.
South Gate, CA 90280
*Dates and times subject to change. ________________________________________
• SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE: MEETS WED SEPT 17 @ 10 AM
LAUSD HQ - 333 Beaudry - in the Boardroom
Last chance for official on-the-record public input into the new School Bond - Measure Q.
http://www.laschools.org/bond/
Phone: 213-241-5183
____________________________________________________
• LAUSD FACILITIES COMMUNITY OUTREACH CALENDAR:
http://www.laschools.org/happenings/
Phone: 213-893-6800
What can YOU do?
• E-mail, call or write your school board member:
Yolie.Flores.Aguilar@lausd.net • 213-241-6383
Marlene.Canter@lausd.net • 213-241-6387
Tamar.Galatzan@lausd.net • 213-241-6386
Monica.Garcia@lausd.net • 213-241-6180
Julie.Korenstein@lausd.net • 213-241-6388
Marguerite.LaMotte@lausd.net • 213-241-6382
Richard.Vladovic@lausd.net • 213-241-6385
...or your city councilperson, mayor, the governor, member of congress, senator - or the president. Tell them what you really think! • There are 26 mayors and five county supervisors representing jurisdictions within LAUSD, the mayor of LA can be reached at mayor@lacity.org • 213.978.0600
• 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.
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