In This Issue:  | | • | LAUSD BEGINS TO SLASH LIBRARY FUNDING | | | • | SCHOOL LIBRARIES WORK! + THE PRINCIPAL AND THE SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST | | | • | A LETTER TO 4LAKids + A LETTER TO THE BOARD OF ED FROM A NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFIED TEACHER-LIBRARIAN ABOUT SCHOOL LIBRARIES IN LAUSD | | | • | SAVE SCHOOL LIBRARIES: A poem addressed to the honorable Board of Education of the City of Los Angeles | | | • | 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: | | | | “School library media centers can contribute to improved student achievement by providing instructional materials aligned to the curriculum; by collaborating with teachers, administrators, and parents; and by extending their hours of operation beyond the school day.” —”Close Up: NCLB—Improving Literacy through School Libraries,” NCLB The Achiever, (US Dept of Ed) September 15, 2004, Vol. 3, No 13.
Current thinking – or lack thereof – on the twenty-fourth floor of Beaudry by the Board of Ed, the superintendent's office and beancounter/budgeteers in in the CFO's office is to eliminate guaranteed funding for school libraries/librarians/library aides in middle and elementary schools. To leave the decision on whether to fund libraries and library aide positions to shared decision-makers at the school sites: principals and school site councils. Is the message that students don't need libraries until they reach high school – when they won't know how to use libraries ...or how to think or read independently?
4LAKids is all for local decision making – just as long as it's not this sort of cynical “HERE, here's not-enough-money – you decide whether to spend it on school nurses, counselors, psychologists or librarians!”
Students need nurses, they need counselors and the services of psychologists. They need arts and music education. There is no more important classroom in the school than the library – it is here where young people learn to think independently.
Public School Choice has progressed from from Hobson's (you get to choose your neighborhood school no matter how good, bad or indifferent) to Hobson's 2 (Someone else gets to choose someone else to run your neighborhood school.) to Sophie's (Do we fire the Nurse or the Counselor or the Librarian?)
The important word here is 'need'. The time has come when we need to be thinking about the option of bankruptcy and receivership as preferable to perpetration of the current catastrophe. Yes, a receiver would temporarily remove the Board of Ed and the superintendent and the union contracts from their pedestals of power. That power, I propose, ain't working.
Much of what's written below about the value of school libraries is in the context of NCLB and the false values of testing, testing and more testing for data's sake. Those values are bankrupt in themselves, adhering to them has bankrupted public education as surely as the economy, revenue shortfalls and the lack of political will and/or a two-thirds majority in Sacramento.
But if we think of NCLB as a lens rather than an outcome – or even as a poor shortcut on the long path to education reform – and if we value independent thinking and hard work – we can see the way forward.
Cue the music | http://bit.ly/cbXURr :
Daddy, what'd'ja leave behind for me?!?
All in all it was all just bricks in the wall.
All in all, all the testing and data and the of accountability and choice and all the rest of the dud quick-fix magic bullets and buzzwords of ed reform are bricks in the wall.
The boys choir sings | http://bit.ly/dDwrtX :
We don't need no education
We don't need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave them kids alone .
All in all, it's just another brick in the wall.
All in all it's only rock 'n roll – but the seeds of truth are there.
Happy Mothers' Day/Feliz Día de las Madres
!Onward/Alelante! -smf
• OFF THE LIBRARY TOPIC: A NY Times article this week [http://nyti.ms/cgQcWp] has Arne Duncan – riding in his black Suburban through the streets of D.C. “with the sirens wailing” saying he has encountered no public opposition to his flavor of education reform. “Zero,” he said. “There’s just an outpouring of support for the common-sense changes and the unprecedented investments we’re making.”
That's pretty arrogant claptrap ..and I'm being kind.
I suggest Mr. Duncan stop drinking his own Kool-Aid, turn off the siren and step out of the vehicle.
LAUSD BEGINS TO SLASH LIBRARY FUNDING
By Connie Llanos, Staff Writer | LA Daily News
5 May 2010 --WEST HILLS — During recess Wednesday at Pomelo Drive Elementary as one student searched the online catalogue of the school's library, for books about pizza, another paced the fiction aisles digging for a "Star Wars" selection.
Two second-graders curled up on one of the room's big red couches while another group of students enjoyed the sunny day to read under some trees right outside the library.
"At recess and lunch this place can get crowded" said Fran Johnson, the library aide at Pomelo Drive.
When urged to explain her library obsession fourth-grader Reika Rashidi's answered promptly "I love my library...it's a quiet place to think."
Next year though Reika might have to find a different place to gather her thoughts since steep budget cuts at Los Angeles Unified are expected to reduce funding for the district's libraries.
LAUSD's proposed budget for 2010-11 only guarantees high schools a full-time librarian while dozens of middle and elementary schools could be forced to scale back services.
Cutting access to books at a district that already suffers from dismal student achievement and even lower adult literacy rates – as city and county offices are also reducing services – is a big concern for educators.
"Better libraries are related to better reading achievement. This has been confirmed at the state level, national level and international level, and holds even when researchers control for the effects of poverty," said Stephen Krashen, a professor emeritus of education and linguistics at the University of Southern California.
"The reason for this is obvious: Children become better readers by reading more and the library is a major source of books for children."
District officials though said there are few options left.
Facing a $640 million deficit for the 2010-11 school year LAUSD officials have proposed drastic cuts including shortening the school year and eliminating summer school.
While a deal reached with the teacher's unions allowed district officials to guarantee one librarian for every high school, elementary and middle schools will have to choose between spending their campus budgets on library staff or other campus needs – like nurses, custodians or administrators.
During tough financial times though many schools barely have money for copier ink and faced with a choice some will have to cut library staff or even shutter their libraries.
The situation is painful, said Nancy Reich, an LAUSD library specialist.
"When you talk about closing a library it causes heart stoppage but this is the dilemma we are facing," Reich said.
Funding for libraries has always been scarce for LAUSD largely because California has not prioritized its libraries said Barbara Jeffus, a library services consultant for the California Department of Education.
This has lead the state to lag the nation in the quality of its school libraries.
In California there are 18 library books per student, well below the national average of 26.
Also the state's ratio of librarians to students is 5,124:1 while the national average is 916:1.
And while California's education require all schools to have a working library they don't mandate how they have to be operated.
"In California we just don't have a strong history of good school libraries," Jeffus said.
Lawmakers tried to change that in 1998 by creating the California Public School Library Act.
In its first year the act provided $158 million for school libraries. That money helped transform libraries from storage rooms and empty classrooms to colorful spaces designed to promote and encourage reading.
While the money was for materials – not staff – the increase in resources led many school districts, like LAUSD, to better staff their libraries.
By 2003 though funding for libraries was cut by 92 percent. Then by 2006 restrictions on the funding were removed so that cash-strapped districts could use it to cover other costs.
"I am hearing districts talk about closing their libraries ... or laying off all their staff," Jeffus said.
At Pomelo, Gardner said the library is considered a precious resource.
Parents and teachers, aided by the help of grants and non-profits, completely renovated the school's library in 2000 with some $150,000.
They now maintain it with dozens of volunteer hours and several fundraisers.
Upset by the looming cuts parents and students have launched a petition against reducing school library services.
At Pomelo the school library is expected to cut its operating hours in half next year to three hours. Principal Masha Gardner said even a funding a part-time library is a sacrifice at her school.
" But how can I tell children that literacy is important and then close down their library" Gardner said.
"The business of a school is literacy and literacy is bread inside school libraries," said Melinda Buterbaugh, a librarian at Vista Middle School in Panorama City.
Buterbaugh received a lay-off notice in March and even though she has been guaranteed a job as a teacher at her school, she said she feels "demoralized" to have to abandon her library post.
"I am flabbergasted that anyone could say `close the libraries"' Buterbaugh said.
"I don't think people thought this issue through."
SCHOOL LIBRARIES WORK! + THE PRINCIPAL AND THE SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST
► SCHOOL LIBRARIES WORK! SCHOOL LIBRARIES PROVIDE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR LEARNING AND ACHIEVEMENT TO ALL STUDENTS. - from School Libraries Work, a research foundation paper from Scholastic Corporation (3rd Edition rev. 2008 http://bit.ly/bVHeQI )
We live in the Information Age, and because we do, information literacy has become universal currency—the single common denominator required for success at any stage of life. This is especially true for our children who, now more than ever, must be equipped to access, use, and evaluate information competently in both print and electronic formats.
Resource-rich school libraries and credentialed school librarians play key roles in promoting both information literacy and reading for information and inspiration. When staffed by qualified professionals trained to collaborate with teachers and engage students meaningfully with information that matters in the real world, school libraries become sophisticated 21st-century learning environments that offer equal opportunities for achievement to all students, regardless of the socio-economic or education levels of the community.
This research foundation paper, updated from the 2006 edition of School Libraries Work!, brings together position statements from a variety of organizations and findings from nearly two decades of empirical studies that cite the measurable impact school libraries and library media specialists have on student achievement. It includes excerpts from a Congressional presentation made by the National Committee on Libraries and Information Science in June 2007; the results of new studies from Delaware, Indiana, Wisconsin, and the Canadian province of Ontario; as well as new data, statistics, resources, and strategies to help principals, school board members, teachers, and library media specialists support and improve their library media centers.
Since School Libraries Work! Was first released in 2004, more than 200,000 copies have been distributed in print to school administrators across the country. As you will see, mounting evidence affirms that school libraries staffed by certified library media specialists do make a measurable difference on school achievement.
Whether that achievement is measured by standardized reading achievement scores or by global assessments of learning, school libraries and library media specialists are a powerful force in the lives of America’s children.
►THE PRINCIPAL AND THE SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALIST: Meeting the Challenges of NCLB as a Team - by Doug Johnson, bibliography developed by Mary D. Lankford for the American Association of School Librarians
As building leader, meeting the demanding requirements of No Child Left Behind falls most heavily on you, the principal. Are you aware that you have a powerful ally in your school library media specialist?
A variety of credible studies prove that schools with good library programs have students who do better academically as measured by standardized test scores. 1 So does common sense. As administrators, you should not be asking yourselves if you should be devoting resources to improving test scores or to improving library programs. Improved library programs do equal improved test scores—and more.
You may never meet the ambitious NCLB literacy goal of 100% by 2013, but effective library programs will get you closer to that goal. The school library program is your effective partner in helping create those changes. Read on to discover how well supported library programs can specifically and effectively advance your building’s NCLB goals.
Helping ensure all students are literate by 2013.
Short-term fixes like adopting a new basal reading series, teaching students test taking skills, giving practice tests, and making sure everyone is well-fed and rested on test day are popular. But smart schools are discovering that simply increasing standard reading instruction and “test prep” do not work with many children nor do they have a long-term impact, and they are looking for other strategies. Your school library media program can be a critical partner in implementing strategies that not only improve test scores, but actually increase the reading abilities of all students.
It’s unarguable that children who like to read, who read willing and joyfully also tend to read better. 2 Good library programs bolster the efforts of the classroom teacher and reading teacher whose responsibility it is to teach students how to read by helping students want to read.
Classroom reading instruction often requires students to read fiction and narrative non-fiction. But many tests ask students to interpret factual exposition. Your school library media center has a wealth of good materials that have interesting expository writing: newspapers, magazines, and interesting non-fiction books. Your school library media specialist, as an expert in children’s and young adult materials, knows the resources that are of high interest to reluctant readers and how to get those materials into the hands of students through book talks, reading promotions, and collaborative projects with classroom teachers. The school library media specialist can design motivational reading programs and provide materials especially for the subgroups that may be causing a school to be identified as not making AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress).
Work with your school library media specialist to make sure your school library program:
■ Provides accessible reading materials for a wide range of interests on a wide range of topics.
■ Promotes reading across the curriculum by providing teachers with bibliographies and classroom collections aimed at specific content and exciting to read.
■ Promotes reading through specially designed activities and programs.
■Helping ensure all students pass state tests.
■All students, especially those living in poverty, need assignments that are relevant, applicable to everyday life, and personal.
■A school library media program’s well-designed research and information literacy projects meet the needs of those students.
■Many educators have long observed that actually applying skills leads to deep understandings that result in well-remembered learning.
■Many state tests ask students to apply skills as well as recall facts. School library media specialists, by designing teaching information literacy units tied to the classroom curriculum, help all students learn to not only memorize information, but also to use it in meaningful and memorable ways. Which, of course, leads to higher test scores. We want to produce critical readers, real-world math users, and passionate, effective writers.
■Project-based learning that is planned, co-taught and assessed by your school’s school library media specialist will always ask children to go beyond the minimum, and in doing so, they will have no difficulty in passing tests that measure just the minimum.
■Work with your school library media specialist to make sure your school library program: ■ Has an articulated information literacy curriculum and grade-level benchmarks that include research and technology skills that are aligned to your state’s standards.
■ Teaches these skills in collaboration with the classroom teacher in projects tied to the content area curriculum.
■Helping ensure all students are technologicallyliterate.
■Students from less affluent families are much less likely to have home access to computers and the Internet.
■Yet NCLB will soon require that all students be technology-literate by the end of eighth grade. The library program can help your school meet this ambitious goal.
■Technology skills are an integral part of the information literacy curriculum. School library media specialists teach children how to use information technologies to answer questions and solve problems.
■When computers are used only for drill and practice instruction on low-level reading and math skills, students do not learn the powerful productivity and communications programs that they will use as “information age” workers.
■The library also provides ready computer and Internet access to all students before, throughout, and after the school day. The school library media specialist offers computer-using students both training and supervision.
■Work with your school library media specialist to make sure your school library program:
■Provides ready access to computers and other information technologies for all students, especially those who may not have home access.
■ Has integrated technology skills into its information literacy curriculum.
■ Provides guidance to students using technology to complete school assignments and explore personal interests.
■Helping ensure teachers have the resources andskills necessary to be deemed “highly qualified.”
NCLB is creating a greater need for effective teacher staff development. Teachers may need additional formal instruction to receive the certification that makes them “highly qualified.” Online courses often provide a convenient means for practicing teachers to obtain certification. The school library media specialist can both provide information about such courses and also help teachers master the technology skills needed to do the coursework.
When implementing new and more effective pedagogies, teachers seek out collaborative partners. Again, the school library media specialist is a willing partner in new approaches to instruction. The school library media specialist also serves as the staff reference expert, helping teachers and administrators find the lesson plans, advice and fellow educators needed to make instructional change effect, and thereby raising the achievement level of all students.
Work with your school library media specialist to make sure your school library program:
■ Serves as a resource for all staff development efforts.
■ Finds sources of information about new instructional strategies.
■ Teams with classroom teachers when moving to a more constructivist approach to teaching and learning.
Helping ensure schools remain committed to good educational practices that go beyond the requirements of NCLB.
One aspect of NCLB is its use of standardized tests as a measurement of both student and school performance. Such tests often measure only a few basic skills and penalize students who are poor test-takers. Teaching strategies and assessment tools that assess higher level thinking skills and the application of skills are also necessary.
The school library media specialist is an advocate for and creator of assessments that give parents and communities measures of abilities and efficacies. Library programs lead in the development of methods that measure and report the mastery of many different kinds of learning assessments, including critiqued portfolios of work that show growth, reports of abilities to work collaboratively, evidence of the skill of self-assessment of work, and use of skills to make a thoughtful difference in society.
The library program can also contribute to an improved school climate. By providing a safe, nurturing and productive space, the school experience for all students improves.
A good school library is an asset many parents look for when choosing a school for their children. 6
Work with your school library media specialist to determine if he/she:
■ Shares their expertise in project-based learning and authentic assessment.
■ Serves on building leadership teams, curriculum committees, and in other leadership functions.
■ Communicates regularly with parents and the community about the library program and participates in the public relations efforts of the district.
Sources:
1. A compilation of these studies can be found in School Libraries Work (2004), http://www.scholasticlibrary.com/download/slw_04.pdf
2. These writers emphasize the importance of practice reading: ■ Krashen, Stephen D. Every Person a Reader: An Alternative to the California Task Force Report on Reading. Culver City, CA: Language Education Associates, 1996.■ Trelease, Jim. The Read-Aloud Handbook, 4th Edition. New York: Penguin Books, 1995.
3. Ruby Payne makes this compelling argument in her important book A Framework for Understanding Poverty (Highlands, TX: aha! Process, Inc., 2003).
4. Kaiser Family Foundation, “Children, the Digital Divide and Federal Policy,” September 2004, http://www.kff.org
5. Michael Eisenberg and Doug Johnson, “Learning and Teaching Information Technology— Computer Skills in Context.” September 2002 ERIC # ED465377
6.SchoolMatch, http://www.schoolmatch.com
Copy developed by Doug Johnson and bibliography developed by Mary D. Lankford for the American Association of School Librarians, a division of the American Library Association, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611-2795, 800-545-2433 ext. 4382, aasl@ala.org.
Developed and distributed through a grant from the Bound to Stay Bound Books Foundation.
A LETTER TO 4LAKids + A LETTER TO THE BOARD OF ED FROM A NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFIED TEACHER-LIBRARIAN ABOUT SCHOOL LIBRARIES IN LAUSD
Mark Bobrosky, NBCT, Teacher-Librarian at Walter Reed Middle School wrote 4LAKids on April 24th:
Thank you for letting people know what is happening to our elementary school libraries, but are you aware of what is happening at middle schools?
The district decided to fund 69 Tls (teacher librarians). For weeks we had no idea how those positions would be allocated. Last week they determined that all high schools would have a TL. Middle schools would need to fund the position themselves, just how the elementary schools will do with their aide positions. I find their decision making so short sighted, contrary to their public goals, and anything but transparent. How did this decision come about? Who provided advisement, if there was any?
High school students already have cemented their reading habits. High school Tls provide research assistance. Middle school Tls have a real influence on what their students read. Elementary schools have the most impact on literacy (aides eliminated), middle schools less so, but still have impact on literacy (Tls eliminated), high school has little impact on literacy (Tls retained). Go figure.
Below is a copy of the letter I sent to the board members. You have my permission to publish if you want:
Dear Members of the Board of Education:
I just received word that the district has decided to fund all high school librarians, and will not fund middle schools. If a middle school wants a librarian, they will need to fund them themselves.
As usual, middle schools are caught in the middle. I find this decision rather curious. If we are concerned about student achievement, improving literacy, and ultimately improving test scores, it is middle school teacher librarians that have the most influence and profound, lasting effect on long-term student literacy and research skills.
Most high school TL’s don’t have book fairs...middle school Tls do.
Most high school Tls don’t participate in literacy competitions and programs like Battle of the Books, or Calif. Young Reader Medal...middle school TL’s do. High school students’ reading habits are already set, middle school students are still highly motivated and easily influenced, which is why I can book talk a title and easily sell 150 copies of that book at a book fair. That would never happen in a high school. Middle school TL’s pave the way for more advanced research. When my student’s reach high school they know how to search and access books, reference materials, databases, ebooks, and the Internet, AS WELL AS use these sources, take notes, create sub-topics and properly cite all these sources in a Works Cited. Imagine a student entering high school with none of these skills. It’s much easier to create good habits in our students early, than to wait until they are 15 or 16. Don’t get me wrong, I am not proposing that high schools don’t need Tls. Their need for support in research is far more intensive than in middle school. What I don’t understand is why that is the priority.
I understand the restraints of the budget. I understand that high schools need Tls, just as well as middle schools do. What I don’t understand is the logic behind an administrative decision that seems counter to our goal of student achievement. I don’t know how this decision as made, if there was any advisement from Library Services,or if they just took the easy way out and said, high schools yes, middle schools no.
Middle schools now have a difficult choice to make... do they spend $94,000 on a TL or buy a teacher to reduce class size, or a dean to keep a campus safe, or a nurse to keep them healthy, or a counselor, or an administrator? Fortunately, I am at a school where the principal and School Site Council has voted to fund the position. But what will become of all the middle school students where there will be no TL and the library with a CLOSED sign on the door? Two or three years from now we will find out...and it will be the high schools that feel it, and our students that ultimately pay for it.
Signed
Mark Bobrosky, Teacher Librarian, NBCT
Walter Reed Middle School
4525 Irvine Avenue
North Hollywood CA 91602
“At the moment that we persuade a child, any child, to cross that threshold, that magic threshold into a library, we change their lives forever, for the better. It’s an enormous force for good.” -- Barack Obama -
SAVE SCHOOL LIBRARIES: A poem addressed to the honorable Board of Education of the City of Los Angeles
by Carole Koneff | Library Aide – Third Street Elementary | April 23, 2010
Dear Elected School Board
sitting there today
I wish I was standing in front of you
because I have something to say.
I want to save the libraries;
I want to save the books
I want to preserve a basic need
so children can sit in nooks.
I plead on behalf of Andrew;
I plead on behalf of Kate
Who come in the library every day,
as soon as they’re through the gate!
I plead on behalf of Felix;
I plead on behalf of Reese
Who like to come in and pick up a book
in a place of sanctuary and peace!
I beg on behalf of Ella;
I beg on behalf of Mack
Who fell in love with Bill Peet
and now do not look back.
I beg on behalf of Kinder,
I read to them every week
They’re always happy to see me
and always anxious to speak.
I beg on behalf of teachers
who need to get in the door
When looking for something for STULL day
that shows a little bit more.
I implore on behalf of parents,
busy with car pools and life
Knowing their kids can get books at school
helps a bit with the strife!
I plead on behalf of “Shiloh”;
I plead on behalf of “Holes”
Books about mushrooms or dolphins,
presidents, artists or moles
I plead on behalf of “Despereaux”;
I plead on behalf of “Hoot”
I plead on behalf of the library aides
about to be given the boot!
You need to let us stay open;
you need to let someone care
So that when they come in at recess,
the books will still be there!
If the doors do not remain open,
if the doors are forced to be locked
Then millions of hungry brain cells
from life-changing words will be blocked!
I hope that you all get the message;
I hope that you will see the light
And allow us to do what we do best;
we’ll never give up the fight.
Libraries are REALLY IMPORTANT,
libraries shape students’ lives.
Access to books in a nice quiet place
and just about everyone thrives.
Don’t tell me about “extra” money
don’t tell me there was a choice
Library aides work really hard
but nobody gave us a voice
Don’t abandon the libraries,
don’t allow them to wither and die
Dear School Board who “hold all the cards”
please hear my desperate cry!
HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest of the Stories from Other Sources
"The more you read, the more you know. The more you know, the smarter you grow. The smarter you grow, the stronger your voice, when speaking your mind or making your choice."
____________________________________________________
Educated Guess: SCHWARZENEGGER, STATE BOARD SIDE WITH ACLU v. LAUSD + DIGITAL TEXTBOOKS COMING + LAO: CASH-STRAPPE... http://bit.ly/9nNy20
LAO’s OFFICE: SURVEY UPDATE ON SCHOOL DISTRICT FINANCE AND FLEXIBILITY: from the California Legislative Analyst's Office ... http://bit.ly/bLqQep
BRIEFLY…: From the LA Times LAUSD teacher charged with having sex with female student 05/05/2010, 10:40 p.m. .
EDUCATION CHIEF VIES TO EXPAND U.S. ROLE AS PARTNER IN LOCAL SCHOOLS: Duncan – in his black Suburban with siren wa... http://bit.ly/anByeq
TEACHERS HAVE A PLAN FOR SCHOOL IN SYLMAR: By Connie Llanos, Staff Writer | Daily News (from Contra Costa Times) ... http://bit.ly/av6T8J
A CHANGE OF HEART ON EDUCATION: LETTER FROM AMERICA By RICHARD BERNSTEIN in the New York Times May 5, 2010 -- NE... http://bit.ly/90MZmt
REDESIGNING EDUCATION: Why Can't We Be in Kindergarten for Life?: BY Trung Le in FastCompany "The futur... http://bit.ly/dapXhg
RUTGERS PRESCHOOL STUDY: Excellence at an Early Age + Preschool Progress Hurt by Recession + Hard Times Derail Gro... http://bit.ly/cMiJ2l
LAUSD BEGINS TO SLASH LIBRARY FUNDING: By Connie Llanos, Staff Writer | LA Daily News Library aide Fran Johnson r... http://bit.ly/bgwzFR
May 6, 2010: FIFTH ANNUAL NATIONAL CHILDREN'S MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS DAY: U.S. Department of Health & Human Se... http://bit.ly/c5gBId
May 6, 2010: FIFTH ANNUAL NATIONAL CHILDREN'S MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS DAY: U.S. Department of Health & Human Se... http://bit.ly/d6RpSA
LAUSD - A SCHOOL DISTRICT OUT OF CONTROL: Unconscionable Practices made Imperfect: Dr. Jim Taylor | from the San F... http://bit.ly/9wl3ko
STUDENTS AT L.A . MIDDLE SCHOOL GET COMPUTERS TO TAKE HOME: Howard Blume – LA Times LA Now blog May 4, 2010 | 6:... http://bit.ly/bPJeSA
BLAMING LABOR: By DAVID MACARAY | Counterpunch.org http://bit.ly/cXlNIS 5 May 2010 - The way labor unions are de... http://bit.ly/d1s4ih
NORTH HOLLYWOOD HIGH FINISHES THIRD IN NATIONAL SCIENCE BOWL: Daily News Wire Services National Science Bowl ... http://bit.ly/aZNUy1
Naush Boghossian: VALUABLE LESSON FROM THE TALE OF TWO PERFORMING ARTS SCHOOLS + smf’s response: By Naush Boghossi... http://bit.ly/bm2k20
FIVE UNCONSCIONABLE PUBLIC EDUCATION PRACTICES – “…a tragedy of national proportion in which a large segment of ou... http://bit.ly/cgED3w
OPEN ENROLLMENT APPLICATION PROCESS FOR LAUSD BEGINS TODAY: KPCC Wire Services | KPCC Monday May 3rd | 7:12 a.m. |... http://bit.ly/dxWHRF
EVENTS: Coming up next week...
*Dates and times subject to change. ________________________________________
• SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE:
http://www.laschools.org/bond/
Phone: 213-241-5183
____________________________________________________
• LAUSD FACILITIES COMMUNITY OUTREACH CALENDAR:
http://www.laschools.org/happenings/
Phone: 213-241.8700
What can YOU do?
• E-mail, call or write your school board member:
Yolie.Flores.Aguilar@lausd.net • 213-241-6383
Tamar.Galatzan@lausd.net • 213-241-6386
Monica.Garcia@lausd.net • 213-241-6180
Marguerite.LaMotte@lausd.net • 213-241-6382
Nury.Martinez@lausd.net • 213-241-6388
Richard.Vladovic@lausd.net • 213-241-6385
Steve.Zimmer@lausd.net • 213-241-6387
...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.
• If you are eligible to become a citizen, BECOME ONE.
• If you a a citizen, REGISTER TO VOTE.
• If you are registered, VOTE LIKE THE FUTURE DEPENDS ON IT.
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