Sunday, June 01, 2008

Oh and I can see Daniel waving goodbye


4LAKids: Sunday, June 1, 2008 Lummis Day
In This Issue:
CARSON PRINCIPAL PROTESTED
CALIF. RULES MASK DETAILS OF SEX-RELATED EDUCATOR MISCONDUCT: Past misdeeds may be off-limits to other districts.
WHY CALIFORNIA STATE PTA CONTINUES TO SAY: FLUNK THE BUDGET
THE ROAD TO HEAVEN IS TOO DARK: an earthquake poem posted online by an unknown Chinese poet
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:
FLUNK THE BUDGET, NOT OUR CHILDREN Website
PUBLIC SCHOOLS: an investment we can't afford to cut! - The Education Coalition Website
4LAKids Anthology: All the Past Issues, solved, resolved and unsolved!
4LAKidsNews: a compendium of recent items of interest - news stories, scurrilous rumors, links, academic papers, rants and amusing anecdotes, etc.
There is a mystifying quality about the Elton John Song "Daniel", caused perhaps by the fact that the last verse that explains the lyric was never recorded.

Today's Daniel with the red tail lights heading for Spain is DANIEL MURPHY HIGH SCHOOL, a Catholic boy's school in the Fairfax District forever shuttering this summer.

I'm a public school boy - Hollywood High with real girls - but I've come to respect a good parochial education. I've known a number of graduates of DMHS; I remember long moral debates - a lynchpin of Ignacian pedagogy - in the bullpen of a film company where I worked between a production assistant who graduated from the school when it was St. John Vianney High School and another who graduated a few years later when it was Murphy. I questioned the morality of changing the name from a saint to a mere donor.

In the end the blessings and the largess from both simply ran out.

¡Onward/Hasta adelante! - smf


¿LUMMIS DAY? see here!



CARSON PRINCIPAL PROTESTED
TEACHERS, PARENTS AND STUDENTS PROTEST PRINCIPAL ANNA BARRAZA'S PLACEMENT AT DOLORES ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BECAUSE THEY DON'T LIKE THE WAY SHE RUNS THE SCHOOL IN CARSON.

by Shelly Leachman & Denise Nix, Staff Writers | Daily Breeze

05/31/2008 - Claiming they are stuck with a "lemon" principal who has been passed from school to school, teachers and parents picketed outside a Carson campus on Friday urging her ouster.

Protesters said Dolores Elementary School Principal Anna Barraza intimidates students, speaks in a demeaning manner to parents and teachers, and won't support activities like fundraisers, field trips or student council.

The principal said in a Friday phone interview that "there are two sides to every coin" and "in order to make progress there needs to be change."

Barraza argued that teachers set in their ways are just upset she's been enforcing, among other things, a staff tardiness policy and has resumed the once-waning practice of classroom evaluations.

"When I came to the school and saw the direction test scores were going, I knew I had to do something before it's too late," Barraza said.

What's she's doing, the protesters argued, is only making things worse at the Los Angeles Unified School District campus.

Second-grade teacher Ana Gomez said Barraza treats her job like a "dictatorship," describing her as an overly extreme stickler for the rules and asserting that her strict policies won't help test scores.

"There has been a lot of resistance here," Barraza said of the criticism. "This is a school where the culture

has been embedded many, many years. Simple things like following policies and procedures have put obstacles in my way as far as the direction the school needs to go."

"(Teachers) have found these things as obstacles because they've not been held accountable in the past," Barraza added. "All of a sudden it's `Barraza's polices and procedures.' I'm clearly not a policy writer."

Unions on both sides of the matter are also engaged in a he-said, she-said.

While the United Teachers of Los Angeles are calling Barraza a "lemon principal" who should be removed from the profession altogether, the Associated Administrators of Los Angeles argue that the teachers are simply resistant to change.

Decrying that notion, UTLA Harbor Area leader Aaron Bruhnke said it's Barraza who needs to change.

Dolores Street is the third school in three years for the 19-year administrator.

And, Bruhnke claimed, Dolores marks the third school where parents and teachers have banded together to seek Barraza's ouster.

After complaints at Riordan Primary Center, Barraza was sent to Dena Elementary School for the 2006-07 year. The UTLA says teachers there experienced similar problems to those now alleged by Dolores staffers.

"We would hope that the dance of this lemon will stop here at Dolores Elementary School," Bruhnke said Friday.

Barraza, meanwhile, retorted that "it is not unusual for a principal to be moved from a school."

"I don't know of any principal who has had only one assignment, unless that person becomes a principal close to retirement," she said.

Barraza has never been the focus of the district's official grievance process and has never received a negative evaluation from her superiors.

Ceding there is "some indication" of that, Bruhnke said the lack of bad reviews for Barraza is indicative of "LAUSD falling down on management accountability."

"And it's not fair for the city of Carson, its teachers and parents and children, to have to bear the brunt of the failures of the past," Bruhnke added.

________________

smf's 2¢: The are obviously issues at this school that need to be worked out - and there are processes for working them out.

• The teachers and the staff of the school have a grievance process - through the district and through their collective bargaining units that they have apparently elected not to follow.
• The parents have options to address their local district superintendent, their board member, the general superintendent and the board of education.
• There is the UNIFORM COMPLAINT PROCEDURE.
• And demonstrating in front of the school is a right - if not the best course of action.
However the photos of the protest show children on the picket line, eleven year olds photographed and identified by name (one of whom accuses the principal of 'not being the fairest one of all' - a level of expectation beyond even 4LAKids or NCLB!) …and that seems to me to be on the far side of a prudent course of action.

Maybe we all need to look at ourselves in the magic mirror?


FULL ARTICLE w/photos and link to Uniform Complaint Procedure policy



CALIF. RULES MASK DETAILS OF SEX-RELATED EDUCATOR MISCONDUCT: Past misdeeds may be off-limits to other districts.
By Juliet Williams | Associated Press and EdWeek

Originally published October 24, 2007 - More than 300 California educators had their teaching licenses revoked or suspended because of sex-related offenses from 2001 through 2005.

But you can’t tell that from the state’s enforcement records—at least not those available to the public.

While some of the most egregious sex abuse is flagged, state law allows many offenses to remain confidential in education records, even when teachers go to prison and register as sex offenders.

The lack of information reflects a system for disciplining teachers that, across the country, is often shrouded in secrecy. That makes it difficult for states to share valuable information about errant teachers, and allows some to find other jobs in the classroom.

In California alone, the Associated Press reviewed more than 2,000 cases in which teachers there were punished for misconduct. Among them were hundreds of cases classified as “general misconduct.”

The case of Tanda Rucker, a former college basketball star who taught and coached girls basketball at Encinal High School near Oakland, was one of those. After several teenagers each reported having a sexual relationship with Ms. Rucker, she pleaded no contest to 18 felony counts. She was sentenced to a year in jail and ordered to register as a sex offender.

Yet an official bulletin from California’s Commission on Teacher Credentialing reported only that Ms. Rucker’s teaching credential was revoked for misconduct under broad sections of state law that cover everything from theft to murder.

DANGEROUS LOOPHOLE

The AP’s review found dozens of similar cases, often involving pleas of no contest, a common legal agreement that allows a person to avoid a trial or civil liability, but still leads to conviction. California law also bars the credentialing commission from revealing the reason teachers who plead no contest lose their licenses.

It’s a dangerous loophole, says state Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, a Republican from Orange County.

“There is the possibility that one of these people could move to another jurisdiction, most likely another state, and you wouldn’t be able to find out their history,” says Mr. Spitzer, a former prosecutor and high school English teacher.

Here’s how it can happen: California submits information on teachers who lose their licenses to a national database. But because of California’s law, the state provides only limited details.

So officials in another state may find out that someone they want to hire had a problem in California, but it’s nearly impossible for them to learn more from education records.

RECORDS OFTEN SEALED

In some cases, school officials have only a one-year window to access California disciplinary records.

That came into play in 2002, after California granted a probationary license to Craig Kinder. He’d been forced out of a suburban St. Louis district amid accusations that he’d touched students inappropriately.

Mr. Kinder was acquitted on criminal charges, but California officials gave him a license only on the condition that he tell prospective employers about his past.

He didn’t do that when he applied at California’s Newport-Mesa Unified School District. And by the time district officials figured out he’d lied, the state—and the very California agency that required Mr. Kinder to disclose his history had sealed his disciplinary records.

That made it tough to fire Mr. Kinder, says Lorri McCune, then the district’s assistant superintendent of human resources. “This to me was a gross miscarriage of their responsibility,” Ms. McCune says. “We had basically no recourse, which really made me sick.”

Mr. Kinder eventually voluntarily surrendered his California license in 2003, after the Newport-Mesa district spent hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to force him out.

His attorney did not respond to messages left by the Associated Press.

Mary Armstrong, the state credentialing commission’s legal counsel, couldn’t discuss the Kinder case, but says her agency seals some disciplinary records because state law requires it.

“It’s a balance between the rights of a teacher who may be falsely accused,” she says, “and the rights of the public.”
_______________________

smf: …and the rights of children not to molested? Where are those?


WHY CALIFORNIA STATE PTA CONTINUES TO SAY: FLUNK THE BUDGET
From the California State PTA

May 31 - Based on the severe cuts that continue to be proposed by the Governor, California State PTA is opposed to the May revision of the state budget. To assist our members in communicating our concerns we’ve prepared the following set of questions and answers.

Q: I’VE HEARD THAT THE REVISED BUDGET RECENTLY PROPOSED BY GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER RESTORES THE FUNDING TO SCHOOLS AND MEANS EDUCATION PROGRAMS WON’T BE CUT. IS THIS ACCURATE?
A: No. The Governor’s first budget released in January proposed the most severe cuts to schools in our state’s history. Parents, teachers and other education advocates across California have been vehemently protesting these cuts. Unfortunately, the Governor’s most recent budget proposal (“the May Revise” released on May 15) – while restoring some of the funding into the education budget – would still significantly under-fund our schools and force more than $4 billion in cuts to education programs. That’s why the PTA opposes this most recent budget. It still flunks the basic test of good government: It hurts our kids.

Q: BUT, DOESN’T THE MAY REVISE FULLY FUND PROPOSITION 98 – THE STATE’S MINIMUM GUARANTEE FOR EDUCATION FUNDING LEVELS?
A: The May Revise would meet the minimum legal funding level for schools, but it still proposes far less than the minimum amount needed by schools to pay for the increased costs just to keep programs at their current levels. The May Revise would eliminate annual cost of living adjustments to schools, despite the steadily increasing operating costs for local districts. Once again, schools and students are being asked to do more with less. In addition, this budget proposal would make across-the-board cuts to many vital programs that contribute to student achievement and engagement, such as class size reduction, arts and music, instructional materials, and career technical education programs. While the May Revise proposes to partially restore some cuts from the January budget proposal, it still cuts billions of dollars from public education. All cuts hurt students and California’s schools are already woefully under-funded.

Q: HOW WOULD IT IMPACT CHILDREN’S HEALTHCARE?
A: If the May Revise is implemented, it would impose new, draconian policies in the Medi-Cal and Healthy Families programs that would result in more than 500,000 California children losing their health coverage over the next two years — increasing the number of uninsured children in California by 70%.

Q: WHAT ABOUT PROGRAMS FOR FOSTER CHILDREN AND WORKING FAMILIES STRUGGLING TO MAKE ENDS MEET?
A: The proposed budget would eliminate financial assistance for 200,000 children whose parents are in the CalWORKs program – often single mothers working their way out of poverty. It would also cut $84 million from the child welfare services budget, limiting counties' ability to ensure the safety and well-being of the more than 70,000 California children in foster care. It would reduce state funding for child care and development programs in 2008-09. This budget would also make across-the-board reductions for a number of programs that assist children and families, including the Child Welfare Services Program, the Foster Care Program, the Adoption Assistance Program, and the California Food Assistance Program.

Q: DOES THIS BUDGET PROPOSAL INCLUDE ANY NEW PROPOSED REVENUES OR DOES IT RELY FULLY ON CUTS TO BALANCE THE BUDGET?
A: A few fee increases are proposed, such as a state park admission fee increase of $1, and student fee increases to the UC and CSU systems and a $6 - $12 annual surcharge on homeowners’ insurance to fund emergency response services. The Governor has also proposed a plan to borrow money from future State Lottery revenues to help balance the budget. This proposal would need to be placed on the ballot as a measure to be approved by California voters in November. In the event the voters reject the Lottery ballot measure, the Governor is asking the Legislature to support a 1% increase in the state’s sales tax rate. By and large, the May Revise continues to rely mostly on a “cuts-only” approach to closing the budget deficit gap.

Q: What’s PTA’s solution to address the budget deficit and provide necessary funding for schools and other children’s services?
A: PTA continues to advocate for a balanced approach – one that generates enough revenues to prevent cuts to education and children’s services and recognizes the need to invest in our children’s futures.

Q. So, what’s PTA’s message moving forward?
A: Our message has and will remain the same since January: no cuts that harm children or California’s future. We must continue to “flunk the budget” because it contains severe cuts to education and children’s services. We believe legislators and the Governor must develop a balanced solution that allows us to invest in our children’s future and the future of the state. And we must raise our voices throughout this spring and summer on behalf of California’s children, they did not create this financial crisis, and their future should not be undermined because of it.

Q: WHAT CAN PTA MEMBERS AND OTHER PARENTS, TEACHERS AND CONCERNED CITIZENS DO TO HELP PROTECT SCHOOL FUNDING AND CHILDREN’S SERVICES?
A: Help us ensure children have a voice in this debate, now through the end of summer. Please call your local state assembly and senate representatives. Let them know you do not want to see cuts to children’s services, and that you expect them to find a balanced approach that invests in our children’s future and the future of our state. You can find their names and contact information on-line at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html. Just enter your zip code, and your elected officials’ contact information will appear. They are YOUR representatives in Sacramento – are they representing your interests?


"Since January, parents and community members throughout the state have raised their voices in overwhelming opposition to the damaging cuts to education and children's services proposed in the state budget. The May Revise appears to reflect some of those concerns by not suspending the minimum education funding guarantee. However, there is still much work to be done by the Legislature and Governor to ultimately ensure a balanced budget solution that does not jeopardize the health, safety and education of our children and our future workforce. Many essential programs and services are still extremely vulnerable. California State PTA will continue to carry the message that shortchanging education funding and services to children is the most expensive mistake California can make.

“The dialogue at the Capitol needs to continue moving towards how much we should invest in our children and California’s future, not how much can we afford to cut. California has been operating for too long with a broken, outdated budget process. By adequately investing today, we can ensure that California has a viable economy in the future.

“Now is the time to invest in our children and in the future of California.”

- Pam Brady, California State PTA President


THE ROAD TO HEAVEN IS TOO DARK: an earthquake poem posted online by an unknown Chinese poet
translated by Alex Tang | from the New York Times and MySpace.China pages

Come, my child,
Hold onto mom's hands.
The road to Heaven is too dark.
I'm afraid you might be hurt again.
Come, hold mom's hands tightly.
Let mom go with you.

Mom, I'm afraid,
The road to Heaven is too dark.
I can't see your hand,
Since the fallen walls took away the sunlight.
I shall never see your gentle eyes.

Move on, my child,
The road ahead has no worries,
No books that you can't finish, nor dad's complaints.
You must remember dad's face and mine,
In the next life, we shall be together again.

Don't worry, mom,
The road to Heaven is crowded, there are my classmates and pals.
Don't cry, we all say
Anyone's mom is our mom.
Mom, every child has a mom.
In the days without me,
Give your love to other children.
Mom, mom, don't cry.
Tears won't shed light on our path.
Let us go away.
I'll remember your face and dad's looks.
Let's promise,
In the next life, we'll be together again.



photos+links



HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest of the Stories from Other Sources
click on the ALL THE NEWS THAT DIDN'T FIT FROM JUNE 1 link (below) to jump to:

Randomly observed: SOMETIMES WHEN YOU TAKE ROLL YOU NEED TO COUNT WHO'S NOT THERE.
A celebration at and of Jefferson High School.

A LINGERING SHAME: An EdWeek/AP series on Sexual Abuse of Students by School Employees
This special collection of stories, "A Lingering Shame: Sexual Abuse of Students by School Employees," assembles reporting on a problem that is only sporadically recognized as a national issue. The collection features a three-day 2007 Associated Press series on teacher sexual misconduct based on a seven-month investigation by AP reporters across the country. Some of the stories in the series appeared in the October 24, 2007, issue of Education Week; the entire series is available here.

The collection also highlights special Education Week coverage, including "A Trust Betrayed," an award-winning series based on a six-month investigation the paper conducted in 1998, as well as an update of the series based on fresh research done five years later.

DANIEL MURPHY CATHOLIC HIGH'S LAST GRADUATION
After 55 years as a prominent fixture in its Fairfax District neighborhood, Daniel Murphy Catholic High School graduates its last class of young men today.

STUDENT ART EXHIBIT
About 100 students from 10 Los Angeles schools are coming together for the second annual "Colors for Unity" art exhibition. The theme is "no color lines."

NEW POLLS SHOW EDUCATION AS TOP ISSUE
The Pew Research Center's latest poll reveals that education is the No. 2 priority for voters this fall, trumping taxes, the war in Iraq and other issues

Report: SEIZING THE MIDDLE GROUND – Why Middle School Creates the Pathway to College and the Workforce

LAUSD MIDDLE SCHOOLS FEEL 'LOST IN THE SHUFFLE': "Seizing the Middle Ground" report

LOS ANGELES UNIFIED TEACHER ARRESTED ON SUSPICION OF HAVING SEX WITH A STUDENT
Sheriff's deputies found the Bell High School teacher with the girl in the back seat of a car, a department spokesman says.

...and now, for something completely different: SANDRA TSING LOH ON THE CALIFORNIA CHILDRENS' RALLY

BURBANK HIGH SCHOOL MOURNS TEACHER KILLED IN CATALINA HELICOPTER CRASH: Tania Hurd, 46, had taught at the campus since 2003, restarting its culinary arts program, which has flourished

Local Elections: 7 BALLOT MEASURES SEEK MONEY FOR SCHOOLS - June 3 election will include taxes and bond issues in districts serving Covina, Hawthorne, Hermosa Beach, Lawndale, Santa Fe Springs, South Gate, Torrance and Whittier.

LAUSD FLOUTS LAW, FAILS OBLIGATION TO PROMISING CHARTER SCHOOLS

"Forgotten in the Middle": LAGGING MIDDLE SCHOOLS TARGETED - New plans to boost student achievement to roll out this summer

NOW IS THE WRONG TIME TO CUT HIGHER EDUCATION BUDGET
As state funding for education declines, college opportunity also declines for future students ...which will mean a decline in economic prosperity for California.

STATEWIDE LEGISLATION PROMOTES PHYSICAL FITNESS IN YOUTH + BODY-BRAIN CONNECTION: California high schoolers must now pass 5 out of 6 fitness tests or take another year of P.E.

BUSY STUDENTS GET A REQUIRED NEW COURSE: LUNCH
from the New York Times: High school students in this well-to-do Westchester suburb pile on four, five, even six Advanced Placement classes to keep up with their friends. They track their grade-point averages to multiple decimal places and have longer résumés than their parents. They don't each lunch.

CALIFORNIA'S NEW TEACHERS ARE READY BUT HAVE NO PLACE TO GO
Newly minted educators are looking for jobs during a time of decreasing positions, school budget cuts and declining enrollment. Some are looking out of state, some overseas.

ORANGE COUNTY TEACHER-OF-THE-YEAR LAID OFF IN BUDGET CUTS
Bergeson teacher questions her future. Her contributions to professional environment praised by school principal.

FINANCIAL CRUNCH HURTS LAUSD ATHLETES
Why is it always the good stuff, the stuff that makes things special, that gets cut when times are lean?
Why do we always need to resort to nickel and diming our way to balancing the budget?
Is it really less painful that way?
Over the next couple of years, every kid who plays sports in the Los Angeles Unified School District will find out as the district attempts to get through these lean economic times by cutting into nonessential expenses and raising revenues from facility usage.

First up on the chopping block: Funding for championship venues. In other words, the City Section has probably played its last football championship at the Coliseum, its last basketball championship at the Sports Arena and its last volleyball championship at Cal State Northridge.


ALL THE NEWS THAT DIDN'T FIT FROM JUNE 1



EVENTS: Coming up next week...
LUMMIS DAY 2008
The Third Annual
Festival of Northeast Los Angeles
Sunday, June 1, 2008
10:30am - 7pm
Come Celebrate the Spirit and Diverse Culture of L.A.'s Northeast Neighborhoods with Food, Music, Art, Poetry and Dance ! Admission+Entertainment is Free!!

LUMMIS HOME - 200 E. Ave 43
10:30 am - Noon
SYCAMORE GROVE PARK - 4700 N. Figueroa St.
12:30 - 7PM
http://www/LummisDay.org
____________________

Monday Jun 2, 2008
Valley Region High School #4: Groundbreaking Ceremony
Ceremony starts at 10:00 a.m.
Valley Region High School #4
10445 Balboa Blvd.
Granada Hills, CA 91344


Tuesday Jun 3, 2008
South Region Elementary School #3 and South Region Early Education Center #1
Groundbreaking Ceremony
Ceremony starts at 10:00 a.m.
South Region Elementary School #3
4449 Live Oak St.
Cudahy, CA 90201

Tuesday Jun 3, 2008
Central Region Glassell Park Early Education Center and Affordable Housing Project
Draft Environmental Impact Report and Schematic Design Community Meeting
6:00 p.m.
Glassell Park Elementary School
2211 W. Avenue 30
Los Angeles, CA 90065

Tuesday Jun 3, 2008
South Region High School #6: Preliminary Environmental Assessment Hearing
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Washington Preparatory High School Auditorium
10860 S. Denker Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90047

Tuesday Jun 3, 2008
Valley Region Elementary School #8: Pre-Construction Community Meeting
6:30 p.m.
Morningside Elementary School Auditorium
576 N. Maclay Ave.
San Fernando, CA 91340

Wednesday Jun 4, 2008
Verdugo Hills High School New Media Academy: Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony
Ceremony starts at 10:00 a.m.
Verdugo Hills High School
10625 Plainview Ave.
Tujunga, CA 91042

Wednesday Jun 4, 2008
Valley Region Elementary School #10: Groundbreaking Ceremony
Ceremony starts at 1 p.m.
Valley Region Elementary School #10
7335 N. Lubao Ave.
Canoga Park, CA 91306

Wednesday Jun 4, 2008
East LA Area New High School #1: Construction Update Meeting
6:00 p.m.
Utah Elementary School
255 Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Los Angeles, CA 90033

Thursday Jun 5, 2008
Valley Region Elementary School #13
CEQA Scoping Meeting and Presentation of Design Development Drawings
6:30 p.m.
Burke High School
14630 Lanark St
Panorama City, CA 91402

*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: 213-893-6800


• LAUSD BOARD OF EDUCATION & COMMITTEES MEETING CALENDAR



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.


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




Scott Folsom is a parent and parent leader in LAUSD. He is immediate past President of Los Angeles Tenth District PTSA and represents PTA as Vice-chair on the LAUSD Construction Bond Citizen's Oversight Committee. He is a Community Concerns Commissioner, Legislation Team member and a member of the Board of Managers of the California State PTA. He serves on various school district advisory and policy committees and is a PTA officer and/or governance council member at three LAUSD schools.
• 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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