Sunday, March 28, 2010

Tea time: schools, immigration, contracts, permits and miracles


4LAKids: Sunday 28•March•2010
In This Issue:
UTLA + AALA ANNOUNCE TENTATIVE CONTRACT SETTLEMENT, SHORTENED SCHOOL YEARS FOR THIS & NEXT YEAR
L.A. UNIFIED GIVES UP EFFORT TO GET MORE STATE MONEY TO KEEP STUDENT BATHROOMS CLEAN
CONGRESS GIVES COLLEGE AID A BOOST
MIDDLE SCHOOL FAMILIES TO GET FREE COMPUTERS: Special Training Included to Improve the Home Learning Environment for Students
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:
4 LAKids on Twitter
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.
I was at the groundbreaking for a new high school in Huntington Park on Thursday morning – the poetically named New South Region High School #7 - and considered writing this week about naming schools BEFORE we build them – what a concept! I'm told we wait until they're finished to avoid local political brouhaha. So we postpone the brouhaha ...postponing and brouhaha being what LAUSD does best!

Central HS#9, the high school for the arts, is still not officially named – apparently so as not to offend the billionaire philanthropist (whose generosity is lacking) it apparently isn't going to be named after!

The Huntington Park school is being built adjacent to a city park named for Raul R. Perez – who immigrated to the US as an adult, went to HP High adult classes, community college and eventuality UCLA, ran for City Council five times before he got elected and ended up as Huntington Park's first Latino mayor. I attended a community forum on Friday about immigration reform; I could write about how the Raul Perezes of this world dream and live The American Dream ...and how education is the thread that connects the dream to life.

I was speaking to Martin Gallindo, the local district superintendent for Huntington Park about the new school and the dream and education. Marty is big on not just welcoming parents and the community to our schools – but investing them them as Owners of the Schools – a foreign and complicated concept to immigrant parents who are usually renters rather than owners. I have actually started that essay.


BUT FRIDAY NIGHT THE UNIONS AND THE DISTRICT came to agreement on their contracts – and by extension on the budget and calendar of LAUSD. I attended the the union and district press conference at UTLA HQ Saturday morning.

The reality is that the labor agreements are more important to the budget process than the School Board's input.

I believe that the Union Contract looms too large in the legend and governance of this district – not because I'm opposed to unions or hate the teachers and administrators – but because I believe that the Ed Code and the best interests of children should trump the contract. Because I believe that parents should have a voice in decisions like shortening the school year. Because on Saturday I heard from the Superintendent that "Jobs are the most important things at LAUSD". Because I heard from the president of the administrators union that children's safety was a negotiated item between the collective bargainers.

I am obviously overreacting because I am more frustrated by the need for compromise than the compromises themselves – and hyperbole is my style. The negotiators negotiated in good faith – but they negotiated on behalf of management and labor. I know that the budget and the economy and the political will in Sacramento are all minuses. But the deal was struck behind closed doors involving the futures of 700,000 children ...and parents weren't there at the table. Parents will neither be involved nor consulted in the approval process. Cortines and Duffy and Judith Perez posed, arms around each other in new found photo-op partnership ...with key partners absent.

When asked for the actual dates schools would close this year because parents need to know there was palpable uncertainty and the inevitable "it's complicated". It's really not that complicated, the proposed calendar is Attachment A to the MOU. [http://bit.ly/bozlVB] And if the teachers vote for it it's a done deal.

Also spectacularly absent – with her signature also missing from the Memorandum of Understanding - was the president of the School Board.


I AM A FAN OF THE WELL RANTED RANT, no matter how pin-headed or ill-reasoned – no matter how much of the Mad Hatter's tea consumed at the party. This from a local paper:

"Our school administrators are unbelievably overpaid kooks and commies. There are a thousand reasons to vote no on the new proposed school parcel tax. Our worthless school officials think that inflating our student numbers will inflate their status and give justification for being grossly overpaid. As it's been said already, the money from the state per student doesn't come close to the cost of educating our youth. So, we local homeowners are paying for these out-of-town students. Not only should we rejoice to send these students back to L.A., but we should double-check all student addresses and throw out all the non-Santa Monica students. I think we will find that we could close a couple schools and fire dozens of teachers and have lots of money left to give the rest of the real Santa Monica kids a great education." – letter to the Santa Monica Daily Press | 3/27/2010 | http://bit.ly/aTdogj


In other letters to the SMDP those permitted-in Westside LAUSD kids, whose parents made well reasoned, heartfelt and tear-stained impassioned appeals to the LAUSD board so their kids could continue to attend cutting edge full immersion dual language programs in German and Italian – are described as inner-city, gang-bangers. It's telling how one person's privileged Westside Anglo middle-class child is the next guys undesirable hoodlum element. And that Bel Air and Westchester are looked upon with such vitriol by the 'real' citizenry of Santa Monica. And Malibu? "The biggest drain on Santa Monica taxpayers is Malibu. ...Malibu residents can well afford to pay for their own schools and should be allowed to do so." I think the message is that the Malibu yuppie scum is worse than the Westwood yuppie scum.

As my hero, Rodney King, said: "What can't we all just get along?

I direct 4LAKids readers to the KPCC series on the interdistrict permit issue and my 2¢ worth [http://bit.ly/9QtlcK] – and add this:

1.Any money LAUSD "saves" by repatriating students is at the expense of neighboring school districts. And the "savings" are illusory: nobody makes any money on the ADA – it costs that much (or more) to educate a child!
2.Remembering Cortines "Jobs are the most important things at LAUSD" statement, recovering these students means LAUSD can RIF less teachers – but that our neighbor districts must RIF more. The hiring hall battle here between school districts and their teachers unions over who gets to hire which teachers to educate the same kids reminds me of the seagulls' refrain in 'Finding Nemo': "Mine, mine, mine!"
3.Making this policy change this late in the game, after school district budgets are submitted; and after private school, magnet school and open enrollment application deadlines are past, is unfair to other districts, parents and – lest we forget them in the food fight over the money+jobs – children.

IT IS SPRING AND SPRING BREAK TIME for the transitionally calendared. It's that time of the year where major religions celebrate major miracles and where bunnies bring eggs to good little boys and girls, the days grow longer, pastels reenter the palette and swallows return to Capistrano. There are babies out there – be safe.

Happy Eastover everyone ...and ¡Onward/Adelante!

– smf


UTLA + AALA ANNOUNCE TENTATIVE CONTRACT SETTLEMENT, SHORTENED SCHOOL YEARS FOR THIS & NEXT YEAR
Saturday, March 27, 2010 (4LAKids) – On Friday night UTLA, representing teachers, and LAUSD reached a tentative two-year contractual agreement for 2009-2011. AALA , representing administrators, reached agreement Monday - concluding more than three months of negotiations. The tentative agreement provides for the District to shorten the 2009-2010 school year by five days and the 2010-2011 school year by seven days (five instructional days and two pupil free days). See Attachment A, in the Tentative UTLA Agreement text [http://bit.ly/bozlVB], for specifics on the calendar changes for this year.

►UTLA REACHES TENTATIVE AGREEMENT TO STOP LAUSD CLASS-SIZE INCREASES & SAVE JOBS

UTLA announcement from the UTLA website

27 March, 2009 - On March 26, UTLA reached a tentative agreement (see text) with LAUSD that would maintain class sizes and save more than 2,100 jobs for the 2010-11 school year without implementing a permanent pay cut. UTLA’s bargaining team successfully pushed back against LAUSD’s demand for a 12% salary reduction. The deal would have to be approved by UTLA members. Key points include:

* Class size maintained at current levels
UTLA’s negotiating team preserved current K-8 class sizes. K-3 would be restored to 24-1 and grades 4-8 restored to current normed staffing levels. The District had demanded 29-1 in K-3 and an increase of two in grades 4-8 (no increases had been planned for grades 9-12).

* 2,109-plus jobs saved
The number of jobs saved is much higher than LAUSD’s initial proposal, which was to use much of the furlough savings for other budget areas. Under this agreement, 1,825 teaching jobs would be saved as well as 284 positions of health and human services professionals, counselors, librarians, and ROC-ROP instructors. Savings on furlough days taken by employees funded by Title I and other categorical funds would also be used to buy back additional health and human services positions, librarians, and secondary class-size reduction positions.

* Five furlough days in 2009-10 and seven in 2010-11 For this year, schools would be shut down on May 28, plus four days at the end of each calendar’s instructional school year. The dates for the seven furlough days for 2010-11 would be negotiated. Employees would receive a full year of service credit for STRS purposes.

* Two new paid professional development days added to 2010-11
These days would help offset the furlough days.

* Other items in the agreement
- Positive changes to the Public School Choice process that align with UTLA’s policy of playing a central role in school reform, including improving the timeline in which to write proposals and develop parent and teacher support for school change.
- A fair transfer process for teachers whose schools are changing grade configurations.
- LAUSD would dismiss the lawsuit against UTLA for the planned May 15 strike.

UTLA members will vote on the agreement at school sites April 7-9. There will be a citywide chapter chair meeting at 5 p.m. on Monday, April 5, at Roybal LC to distribute balloting materials. The voting timeline is very tight to cause the least disruption to sites planning for next year. A detailed Q&A will be soon posted on utla.net.


►AALA/LAUSD CONTRACT HIGHLIGHTS
from the Associaed Administrators of Los Angeles UPDATE| Week of March 22, 2010

March 25, 2010 - On Monday, March 22, 2010, AALA and the District reached a tentative two-year contractual agreement for 2009-2011, concluding more than three months of intense negotiations. The tentative agreement provides for the District to shorten the 2009-2010 school year by five days and the 2010-2011 school year by seven days (five instructional days and two pupil free days). The agreement will remain tentative until AALA members ratify it (details will be available soon). Note: UTLA must also agree to the shortened school years for the furlough days to take effect.

In exchange for AALA’s acceptance of the 12 furlough days, the District agreed to the following concessions:

• The District will not seek additional pay cuts from AALA members for 2010-2011.

• The District will restore 100+ school-based administrative positions that would have otherwise been cut.

• The District will meet annually with AALA to review possible revisions of administrative staffing norms.

• AALA will gain extended protections for members subject to demotion or dismissal.

• The District will provide two professional development days in 2010-2011 to K-12 school-based administrators assigned on B, D, or E basis. AALA members will be paid their regular rate. The days are for reviewing student test data and planning instruction.

• Beaudry and Local District AALA members reassigned from A to B basis will receive seven days of Z basis time in 2010-2011 at their regular rate. This will allow continuing services to be provided for the District’s remaining year-round schools.

• The District will create a new Professional Development Advisory Committee for administrators. Half of the committee members will represent AALA.

• The District will notify AALA in writing no fewer than 15 calendar days prior to the application deadline of any vacant or new administrative positions.

• AALA members will have parity in salary increases with any other certificated bargaining unit during the contractual period.

Please be aware that AALA remains in regular communication with the Superintendent about other key nonnegotiable issues that impact our membership. We will keep you informed on these matters as our discussions progress.

______________________________
THE MEMBER VOTE
(April 7-9)

* UTLA members will vote on the tentative agreement at school sites April 7-9.
* The voting timeline is very tight to cause the least disruption to sites planning for next year.
* There will be a citywide chapter chair meeting at 5 p.m. on Monday, April 5, at Roybal LC to distribute balloting materials.



Tentative UTLA Agreement text



L.A. UNIFIED GIVES UP EFFORT TO GET MORE STATE MONEY TO KEEP STUDENT BATHROOMS CLEAN
By Howard Blume | LA Times LA Now blog

March 26, 2010 | 5:01 pm -- The Los Angeles Unified School District has withdrawn a claim that sought millions of dollars in new state funding to keep student bathrooms clean, unlocked and in working order.

The district had sought $22 million -- and about $9 million annually -- in the wake of a 2003 state law requiring that restrooms “shall at all times be maintained and cleaned regularly, fully operational and stocked at all times with toilet paper, soap, and paper towels or functional hand dryers.”

The law also required that bathrooms be unlocked when students need them except when closed for specific repairs.

About a year later, L.A. Unified submitted a claim to the California Commission on State Mandates, which has the authority to decide that the state must foot the bill when a new law creates new costs for a public agency.

The nation’s second-largest school system said that in 2004 it had spent $13.7 million for repairs and upgrades and nearly $9 million for additional workers. The district’s new standard has been to “routinely clean bathrooms as often as every night and spot clean and restock them twice a day,” said district spokeswoman Shannon Haber.

But the commission's staff was unmoved, noting, among other things, that since 1948, state law has required “sufficient patent flush water closets.” The new law merely clarified “sufficient” and established a new complaint and response process, according to the staff analysis.

The law itself resulted from a broadcast news investigation of poorly maintained bathrooms at more than 50 schools. Bathroom issues have periodically plagued L.A. Unified. In 2000, interim Supt. Ramon C. Cortines pledged a “books and bathrooms” initiative. (The books portion referred to textbook shortages.)

The subsequent furor, in 2003, prompted calls for outside inspections and forced Cortines’ successor, Roy Romer, to pledge more resources. And that’s when the district also filed its claim.

“We were trying to take advantage of every opportunity to get projects funded,” said Mark Hovatter, director of maintenance and operations. “We saw this as a chance to get state money because we were doing something above and beyond what we were what doing before. We never had a 100% expectation of being successful. It was more like applying for a grant.”

By 2010, the expectation had dropped to near 0%, so officials gave up rather than wait for the seven-member commission to reject their claim. The commission was scheduled to act Friday; L.A. Unified withdrew the claim Thursday.

The district’s current challenges include preserving efforts to keep bathrooms clean during an ongoing budget crisis. Overall custodial services are cut 20% in the tentative budget of Supt. Cortines, who returned to the top job in late 2008.


CONGRESS GIVES COLLEGE AID A BOOST
from Ed Week by The Associated Press

26 March 2010 | Washington | More needy college students will have access to bigger Pell Grants, and future borrowers of government loans will have an easier time repaying them, under a vast overhaul of higher education aid that Congress passed Thursday and sent to President Barack Obama.

The legislation, an Obama domestic priority overshadowed by his health care victory, represents the most sweeping rewrite of college assistance programs in four decades. It strips banks of their role as middlemen in federal student loans and puts the government in charge.

The House passed the measure 220-207 as part of an expedited bill that also fixed provisions in the new health care law. Earlier Thursday, the Senate passed the bill 56-43.

The switch to direct government loans will result in savings to boost Pell Grants and make it easier for some workers to repay their student loans. In addition, some borrowers could see lower interest rates and higher approval rates on student loans.

The legislation has a wide reach. About half of undergraduates receive federal student aid and about 8.5 million students are going to college with the help of Pell Grants.

Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, praised the bill as a victory for middle-class families.

"Now they'll have the assurance that their kids will be able to afford to go to college and again, when they get out, they won't be burdened with a huge debt," Harkin said.

The changes do not go as far as Obama and House Democrats wanted. That is because ending fees for private lenders would save less money than they anticipated, according to budget scorekeepers. The bill is now expected to save $61 billion over 10 years.

As a result, the Pell Grant increase is modest and still doesn't keep up with rising tuition costs. Advocates had sought bigger increases.

"The increases in the Pell Grant are better than nothing, but they are still quite anemic," said analyst Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of the student assistance Web site FinAid.org.

When Pell Grants were created in 1972, the maximum grant covered nearly three-quarters of the average cost of attending a public four-year college. In 2008, the latest year for which figures are available, the maximum grant covered about a third of the cost. And debt affects the careers graduates choose.

"We're seeing students being squeezed out of socially valuable jobs like teaching and social work" because of their debts, said Rich Williams, who has worked on the bill for the Public Interest Research Group, a consumer advocacy organization.

Private lenders still will make student loans that are not backed by the government, and they still will have contracts to service some federal loans. But the change represents a significant loss to what has been a $70 billion business for the industry.

Key features of the measure include:

• Pell Grants would rise from $5,550 for the coming school year to $5,975 by 2017. Lawmakers had initially hoped to reach a $6,900 cap.

• More eligible students could get a full Pell Grant. Most grants go to students with family income below $20,000, but students with family income of up to $50,000 may also be eligible.

• Some college graduates will have an easier time repaying loans. The government will essentially guarantee that workers in low-paying jobs will be able to reduce their payments. Current law caps monthly payments at 15 percent of these workers' incomes; the new law will lower the cap to 10 percent.

Savings from the measure will also go toward reducing the deficit and helping to pay for expanded health care.

The loan program caused a hitch in Democrats' plan to send the health care fixes promptly to President Obama.

Republicans forced the Senate to make a slight change to the Pell Grant portion of the bill, which required the bill to return to the House for a final vote.


MIDDLE SCHOOL FAMILIES TO GET FREE COMPUTERS: Special Training Included to Improve the Home Learning Environment for Students
LAUSD News Release | For Immediate Release

March 23, 2010 - (LOS ANGELES) — Families from as many as 30 middle schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) can soon count on refurbished computers loaded with educational software, as well as specialized training, which will focus on strengthening core academic skills using technology. As many as 16,000 students and their parents will benefit.

Computers for Youth will provide the computers, known as “home learning centers,” as well as “family learning workshops.” The combination, intended for underserved youngsters, will provide greater access to information and skills, while also creating a better environment for studying at home.

“Parents want to help their children do better at school. We encourage them to be involved in the education of their sons and daughters. The Computers for Youth program will provide an important tool to families that cannot afford computers, certainly a benefit for our students,” said LAUSD Superintendent Ramon C. Cortines.

The partnership between the District and Computers for Youth is funded by a $7.6 million grant from the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s Broadband Technology Opportunity Program.

The goals include bridging the technological divide between students who can afford computers and those who cannot, improving education, increasing economic opportunities for low-income families and educating
them about broadband.

LAUSD schools will be selected based on an application and the number of students who participate in the free or reduced price lunch program, a standard indicator of low income. Training will be provided in English and Spanish.

Over the past two years, Computers for Youth has served 800 sixth-grade students and their families at El Sereno Middle School.

“We are thrilled to be dramatically increasing the number of families we serve in Los Angeles,” Elisabeth Stock, chief executive officer and co-founder of Computers for Youth, said of the upcoming expansion. “This is a cost-effective initiative that will allow us to strengthen the home learning environment of children throughout Los Angeles. By giving families the training and resources they need, we will help ensure that thousands of LAUSD students are able to reach their full potential as learners throughout their lifetime."

OTHER LAUSD NEWS:

School Board Staff to Take Unpaid Furlough Days | http://bit.ly/bn0Ijd
North Hollywood H.S. Team Wins International Moot Court Competition | http://bit.ly/cb6rLE
LAUSD Revises Inter-District Transfer Policy | http://bit.ly/bl2fMQ
Toluca Lake Elementary School Students Get Healthy for KiDS MARATHON | http://bit.ly/bTeG5w


HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest of the Stories from Other Sources
THIS JUST IN: Coverage of contract settlement - LA Times/Daily News/NBC/S.F. Chronicle/AP: LA Unified, teachers... http://bit.ly/amPtUr

UTLA + AALA ANNOUNCE TENTATIVE CONTRACT SETTLEMENT, SHORTENED SCHOOL YEARS FOR THIS & NEXT YEAR: On Friday night U... http://bit.ly/blLI00

L.A. UNIFIED GIVES UP EFFORT TO GET MORE STATE MONEY TO KEEP STUDENT BATHROOMS CLEAN: By Howard Blume | LA Times L... http://bit.ly/bEMrAX

5 days cut this year. 7 next 2100 teachers retained class size stays 24:1 needs 2 b ratified -smf

LAUSD, UTLA & AALA to announce contract, budget agreement today at press conference @ UTLA HQ @ 11am -smf

A LESSON ABOUT SPEAKING UP: Immigrant parents must demand improvement at kids' schools. Case in point: L.A. Unifie... http://bit.ly/965rTe

TODAY’S INTERDISDRICT PERMIT NEWS/LACOE WEIGHS IN: Dispute Over Permits in LA and Beverly Hills Not Over + Parents... http://bit.ly/9ei7MC

from The Times Op-Ed pages - DIANE RAVITCH TO RON WOLK: Charter Schools v. Regular Schools; MICHAEL McGOUGH: Priva... http://bit.ly/9DmVc1

LOCALLY: Permit Rollback hammers Manhattan Beach USD, PaliHi & LAUSD Resolve Busing, Community Day of Service at S... http://bit.ly/cGVMeE

TIMES LETTERS: Teachers as Target #1, Permit Plan Hurts Students: LA Times Letters to the Editor | 24 March Targ... http://bit.ly/abMEen

3 FROM KPCC ON INTERDISTRICT PERMITS + smf: L.A. Unified parents speak out against inter-district transfer cuts + ... http://bit.ly/9v6fdE

MORE L.A. SCHOOLS ADDED TO LOWEST-PERFORMERS LIST: Eight campuses, three in San Fernando Valley are included. Cort... http://bit.ly/bEjkfV

CDE WARNS THAT MANY SCHOOL DISTRICTS ARE IN FISCAL PERIL | O’Connell: "Massive state budget cuts are crippling our... http://bit.ly/bp81Tn

STUDENTS PROTEST PLANNED CLOSURE OF GREEN DOT CHARTER SCHOOL: By Howard Blume – LA Times LA Now blog March 22, 20... http://bit.ly/bXAjSQ

AT COMPTON SCHOOL, TEEN TUTORS AND ADULT STUDENTS LEARN FROM EACH OTHER: As part of a Compton Adult School tutorin... http://bit.ly/9IWk8J

TRULY A JURY OF THEIR PEERS: The teen court at Dorsey High School is one of 17 in Los Angeles County where student... http://bit.ly/bggerD


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


• 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
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.


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




Scott Folsom is a parent leader in LAUSD. He is Past President of Los Angeles Tenth District PTSA and represents PTA on the LAUSD Construction Bond Citizen's Oversight Committee. He is an elected Representative on his neighborhood council. He is a Health Commissioner, Legislation Team member and a member of the Board of Managers of the California State PTA. He serves on numerous school district advisory and policy committees and has served as a PTA officer and governance council member at three LAUSD schools. He is the recipient of the UTLA/AFT 2009 "WHO" Gold Award for his support of education and public schools - an honor he hopes to someday deserve. • In this forum his opinions are his own and your opinions and feedback are invited. Quoted and/or cited content copyright © the original author and/or publisher. All other material copyright © 4LAKids.
• FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 4LAKids makes such material available in an effort to advance understanding of education issues vital to parents, teachers, students and community members in a democracy. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
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Sunday, March 21, 2010

THE IDES OF MARCH & THE EMPTY CHAIRS


4LAKids: Sunday 21•Mar•2010
In This Issue:
LA PTA PRESIDENT APPEALS TO PARENTS: COMPLETE AND RETURN LAUSD PARENT SURVEY + SURVEY INFO FOR PARENTS, EMPLOYEES, STUDENTS & CHARTER SCHOOL STUDENTS
WELCOME TO SOUTH L.A.: Schools in gang-infested area fighting back
Empty Chairs: NOT SITTING STILL FOR CUTS
2 from Santa Monica-Malibu Unified: SMMUSD TRIES TO KEEP LAUSD RESIDENTS IN DISTRICT + SCHOOL SUPER WANTS PERMIT EXEMPTION
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:
4 LAKids on Twitter
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.
Plutarch and later Shakespeare write that on March 15, 44 BCE the Soothsayer warned Caesar to beware. And did he listen? Do elected officials ever listen?*

State law says that teachers and credentialed employees must be warned by March 15th if they may be laid off/not-rehired/RIFed/downsized/rightsized/made redundant or otherwise fired. It's a lovely concept – if the state had a budget or the Franchise Tax Board had collections or bargaining units had contracts or planning and demographics had a headcount ...or if any of us had a clue.

So, conventional wisdom* has it, school districts send pink slips - "you are subject to layoff" notices to everyone who – in the worst possible scenario – might be let go.

If one is to believe the Daily News, 22,000 pink slips went to educators in California on Monday, if one is to believe ABC-TV, 8846 were in LAUSD.

In Texas - which under NCLB was The Promised land peopled with His Chosen Education Policymakers – everyone is subject layoff every year – which may cause a certain amount of angst but certainly saves on postage. Here union rules and our own particular brand of lawgivers set a different standard. And it's always about meeting he standards.(Texas lawmakers are thankful to teachers for letting them out of the sixth grade; California lawmakers are thankful to public education unions for campaign contributions.)

But let's rewind the tape to the part about the worst possible scenario. Hard as it is to imagine, there are folks at Beaudry imagining worse than what's going on now. Which, gentle readers, is a good thing, because the sun will come up tomorrow and you can bet your bottom dollar it will shine its light on worse than today. We are entering the worst layoff of public sector employees since the Great Depression; LAUSD is the biggest employer in LA County. Getting a pink slip doesn't just ruin your self esteem, employee morale and loyalty and ghe months of March, April, May and June – it screws up your credit rating at a time when credit is harder to come by than emplyment.

This is NOT Good; it is nonetheless REAL. Of course, at another level it's all jockeying for favorable press in the battle between labor and management. One wonders why we didn't get a photo of of the superintendent dumping a boxful of the notices into a post box. If he could find a post box.

That said, the District's communications office and the media outlets can't even seem to reach any agreement on how many pink slips were sent out on Monday March 15th. 2300? 3000? 4700? 5200? 5400? 8846? I'd be interested in the cost of certified mail alone.

But unless the bargaining units bargain and deal with furloughs, salary reductions and some work rules changes the Worst Possible Scenario will go into production on September 8th. Stay tuned.

BUT ENOUGH ABOUT THE MOVIE METAPHORS, LET'S TALK ABOUT LIVE THEATER.

On March 15 UTLA arranged 2826 empty chairs on in the street on Beaudry Ave in front of LAUSD HQ to symbolize the layoff's. (Someone may have figured it's easier to turn out empty seats than actual demonstrators!) It was a bit of street theater, performance art and traffic disruption (Hey... I was inconvenienced!) It wasn't civil disobedience; there was a street closure permit and barricades and traffic cops.

One wonders why LAUSD signed off on the permit –especially as it was primarily School Police doing the security. Remember, school police are supposed to protect students. I don't think there was a student within a block of Beaudry on Monday!

Did UTLA pay for the LAUSD security?
What would the labor organizers of yore say if they knew their modern brethren were paying for the bullyboys and management goons to monitor their work actions of today?
Reality and the Theater of the Absurd intersect at Third and Beaudry.

BUT ALL SEROUSNESS ASIDE: Not everyone who gets a pink slip will be laid off. Not every child will fail because we will have more kids in a classroom. But some will be laid off, some will fail, less will graduate. Maybe not less than are graduating now – but less than 100%. The truth is that public school performance in California and LAUSD has been improving despite the past few years of budget cuts, layoffs, underfunding and lack of leadership in Sacramento.. Imagine if we had paid enough...

All of this is tragic. We need more people to be working and paying taxes so we can educate our children ...but instead we are laying off school employees. And jerking around kids who are attending schools in other school districts because their parents believe they have better opportunities there. What do parents know? Way to win their heats and minds! Whatever happened to to the Champions of Choice of a month ago? And SB 680 (Romero) the "District of Choice" Bill - which would allow parents to send their children to whatever public school they choose?

But it's better to build a subway to Santa Monica and the sea than a cooperative relationship and a trust between school districts.

IN OTHER NEWS: The Feds began to talk about NCLB/ESEA Re-authorization, The Ted Mitchell chaired Teacher Effectiveness Task Force made unimplementable recommendations, W's Ed Secretary Spellings: 'No Child Left Behind' Is A 'Toxic Brand': http://bit.ly/9RJcgP . More questions began to accumulate about Charter Schools, The Deadline for the Parent, Employee Student Satisfaction Survey approaches and the spending and oversight of the community college construction bonds is looking suspect.

Spring sprung. Swallows returned. Somewhere a child look his first step, read her first book, memorized the seven-times tables, mastered calculus. El Camino HS won the State AcaDeca Championship and goes on to the National Competition; Marshall HS won the new AcaDeca Large School category and goes on to that national competition.

¡Onward/Adelante!

- smf

PS: You got your census questionnaire in the mail last week. Please: fill it out and send it in!

* Rome was a republic at the time, making Caesar a republican.


LA PTA PRESIDENT APPEALS TO PARENTS: COMPLETE AND RETURN LAUSD PARENT SURVEY + SURVEY INFO FOR PARENTS, EMPLOYEES, STUDENTS & CHARTER SCHOOL STUDENTS
by Tenth District PTA/PTSA President Ilene Ashcraft

19 March, 2009

Dear PTA Unit Presidents and Members,

I need your urgent attention. The 2009-2010 school report card survey has gone out. Please encourage your parents to complete the form and send it in before the Spring break.

Last year the district only received 25% of them back.

It is essential they get as many back as possible to present an accurate report card for each school - so the schools can try to set goals needed to improve for next years report card ratings.

IF YOU WANT YOUR SCHOOL TO IMPROVE - COMPLETE + RETURN THE SURVEY TODAY.

I suggest PTA's give away prizes to those that completed the survey - or something. We need these surveys returned. If you're not sure if you received one or not sure if you returned one - you can go to http://bit.ly/bxPXLK to complete the survey today online.

Thank you -

Ilene Ashcraft
President, Los Angeles
Tenth District PTSA

●●smf adds:

The 'survey' is actually four SCHOOL EXPERIENCE SURVEYS – for Parents, Employees, Students and Charter School Students - (apparently Charter school Employees, Charter School Parents and Community Volunteers are chopped liver!) all available at that same link: http://bit.ly/bxPXLK

….or you can go to each individual survey through the links below:


TAKE THE SCHOOL EXPERIENCE SURVEY ONLINE NOW!

Click the link below to take the survey as a student, parent, or school employee. If you received a letter with an authorization code, be sure to have that with you before you complete the survey. Thank you for participating!

I AM A PARENT or GUARDIAN (SOY PADRE o GUARDIÁN) http://bit.ly/cRwnod

I AM A SCHOOL EMPLOYEE (SOY EMPLEADO DE LA ESCUELA) http://bit.ly/aqWyOS

I AM A STUDENT (SOY ALUMNO) http://bit.ly/beVfS9
IMPORTANT NOTE FOR STUDENTS: In the student survey, several schools were inadvertently listed with the name of one of their magnet schools instead of the name of the primary campus. Please select the magnet school if your primary campus is not listed. OUR APOLOGIES FOR THE ERROR.

I AM A CHARTER SCHOOL STUDENT (SOY ALUMNO EN UN ESCUELA CHARTER) http://bit.ly/aIhqmW

smf: This is the third year of the School Report Card process – and as you will see from the limited outreach and documented errors (failure to differentiate between magnets and regular schools - and the errors/issues reported below*) the customer and employee satisfaction information is meaningless if not contributed to. If we are going to be data driven we need good data (GIGO: Garbage In/Garbage Out + NINI: Nothing In/Nothing Out) and unfortunately waiting-for-next-year to include everyone, improve or fine tune outreach, communication or collection techniques is what this district does best.

Please take the survey. Thank you.


*2008-09 SCHOOL REPORT CARD: KNOWN ISSUES
February 25, 2010 - Since the release of the 2008-2009 School Report Card LAUSD identified three instances where the data reported were not correct (NOTE: these are issues for printed School Report Cards that were distributed n January 2010 only. School Report Cards available for download on this site have been updated).
● ELEMENTARY ONLY: The graph on the front cover of the elementary report card reads 47% when it should be 42%. The bar graph is correct; the number is a misprint. The data reported within the report card is correct.
● HIGH SCHOOL ONLY: The data is reversed for “English learners” and “Students with disabilities” in the graph on page 4 in the section titled “Student Groups”.
● SPANISH ONLY: The labels for “English learners” (aprendices de inglés) and “Students with disabilities” (educación especial) are reversed in the table on Page 5 in the section titled “Learn More”.


WELCOME TO SOUTH L.A.: Schools in gang-infested area fighting back
By BRETT CLARKSON, Toronto sun

March 20, 2010 5:39pm -- LOS ANGELES — It’s mid-morning in Watts and there is little traffic. The occasional helicopter buzzes overhead. Backyard roosters crow in the distance.

Sergio L. Franco, who has spent most of his career as an educator here, approaches the intersection of 103rd St. and Wilmington Ave.

He nods toward the vacant lot at the southeast corner, a fenced-off parcel of concrete overrun with weeds and broken glass.

There used to be a Church’s Chicken there, he explains, until rioters burned it to the ground after the Rodney King verdict in 1992.

“Nothing has changed,” Franco says. “In the ’90s our economy was a lot better than it is now, but the needs of this community weren’t addressed.”

Franco, the student integration services co-ordinator with the Los Angeles Unified School District, oversees the LAUSD’s Ten Schools Program.

Ten Schools is the longtime centrepiece of the L.A. school board’s effort to combat the brutally low grades that were plaguing the poverty-stricken inner city.

Begun in 1987 with a budget of $10 million, the initiative originally encompassed 10 of the worst-performing schools in the notorious South Central district of Los Angeles, where most of the students were, and continue to be, either African-American or Hispanic.

The program sets out a teaching method that is heavily instructional and language-intensive, with the focus on helping the students with weak language skills to become literate, and ultimately, critical thinkers, Franco says.

It also creates a rigorously structured school environment. Teachers in the program schools sign a pledge of commitment to the program and undergo 10 extra professional development days.

Franco urged educators in Toronto, who face the same challenges in trying to improve the comprehension levels of multicultural student populations, to look at the L.A. teaching methods.

“I think it would be prudent to share this with educators in Toronto — provide an oral language — intensive instructional program for low-performing (students) based on the Eastman model,” he says.

“The Eastman model was a bilingual model, and really what they did is take the children’s language and build on what they knew.”

In 2006, the Toronto District School Board rolled out a similar program to L.A.’s Ten Schools Program called the Model Schools for Inner Cities, which identifies seven schools with disadvantaged student populations.

Driving south on Compton Ave., Franco spots a group of young men hanging out near a store front. Some of them turn their heads to glare as the car approaches, prompting Franco to instruct his passenger to avoid eye contact as he turns onto 112th St.

He points out a depressing cluster of shoebox-like buildings on the left.

“These are Nickerson Gardens,” he says. “This is a Blood neighbourhood.”

The stunted white-and-black structures, which look like a military barracks, stretch deep into the heart of Watts.

With 156 buildings and 1,000-plus units, it’s the largest housing project in the U.S. west of the Mississippi River. It’s also the birthplace of the Bloods street gang.

A few minutes later, Franco pulls up to 96th St. Elementary School, a pre-kindergarten to Grade 5 school in the heart of Watts.

Across the street from the school, a fire-ravaged SUV is parked on the curb, its front end completely torched.

Franco is the former principal of 96th Street, one of the original Ten Schools, where 68% of the kids don’t speak English as a first language. Many of them have family members in gangs. Most don’t have fathers in their lives.

In the school’s play area, where a third of the school’s 970 students are playing volleyball and other games on their rotating lunch break, current principal Luis R. Heckmuller says poverty and language barriers are used by some teachers as an excuse. He refuses to go there.

“At some point, educators need to start taking responsibility,” Heckmuller says.

“If we focus on all the things that are wrong with the community, etc., then we’re spending our energy on something we can’t control.”

Heckmuller, who supports Ten Schools, points to 96th Street’s Academic Performance Index (API) results over the past 10 years as a reason to continue the program.

The API is considered the benchmark of educational progress in California. Based on the state’s standardized testing, the API measuring stick was implemented after the state’s Public Schools Accountability Act of 1999.

A score around the 500 level means most of the students at the school are performing at a level considered below basic. A score closer to 700 and 800 means most of the kids are basic or proficient. Higher scores of 800 and 900 indicate a majority of the students at the school being either proficient or advanced. The state’s goal is to get all schools to 800.

Since 2000, 96th Street has jumped from a base score of 486 to 747 in 2009.

“That’s huge, it’s a huge improvement,” Heckmuller said. “Our goal is to try to get to 800 this year.”

The other elementary schools in the program have all seen similar jumps — from base scores in the 400 and 500 levels in 2000 to the 700 level, with the exception of Compton Elementary’s 668, in 2009.

Local parent Quinana Thibodeaux, 33, whose nine-year-old daughter Quinana Thibodeaux Jr. attends 96th Street, swears by the program.

“She was reading 20 words per minute in the first grade,” Thibodeaux says of her daughter. “They only want them to do 13.”

Heckmuller acknowledges that some in the North American education community oppose grading kids and schools based on standardized testing.

Toronto District School Board education director Chris Spence recently told the Sun he’s not in favour of ranking schools based on standardized test scores because “all schools are different and students that populate the schools are different.”

Heckmuller says the standardized testing that provides the API scores in California is not something educators should run from.

“Is it a form of standardized testing? Yes, but it’s a form of standardized testing based on the standards that we’re supposed to be teaching anyways,” he says.


Empty Chairs: NOT SITTING STILL FOR CUTS
By Connie Llanos, Staff Writer | LA Daily News

3/16/2009 -- Dramatizing the impact of looming layoffs, teachers placed nearly 3,000 empty chairs over an entire city block in front of L.A. Unified headquarters Monday, each seat representing a classroom instructor, nurse or counselor facing job cuts.

The elaborate scene was set up to mark the legal deadline for all teachers and school support staff to receive preliminary notification if there job is at risk for the following school year. Statewide some 22,000 pink slips were mailed out to educators by Monday, including nearly 2,300 teachers, and 600 nurses, counselors and librarians at Los Angeles Unified School District. “After 6 years of being dedicated to my job, 180 days a year, rain or shine, with paper and supplies or not, they are going to tell me I cannot teach... why?” asked Trinidad Hernandez, a fifth-grade teacher at Sunny Brae Avenue Elementary School, who received her pink slip notice late last week.

“They gave me a job and I have done magic with it... it’s just not right.” Like school districts in Oakland, Burbank, and Long Beach, Los Angeles Unified officials said the budget crisis has left them with no choice but to increase class sizes and eliminate workers to keep local schools financially solvent. Currently, LAUSD is facing a budget gap of some $640 million for the 2010-11 school year. With fewer teachers, class sizes are expected to rise.

For example, kindergarten through third-grade classes will grow to 29 students and middle school classes will grow to 44 students. Cuts also call for the virtual elimination of school nurses and librarians, deep cuts to arts education programs and counselors could be left overseeing up to 1,000 students each. “It is a very somber occasion when nearly 22,000 educators are notified that they may be terminated,” said State Superintendent Jack O’Connell. “It hurts schools and it hurts communities.”

Along with the effects that layoffs will have next year, the notices ring in a season of anxiety for school workers who must wait and see if their jobs will be preserved next year. Traditionally, notices are sent out to all school workers that could be laid off — even though many times a majority or all pink slips are rescinded as district officials tinker with budgets to avoid cutting staff. Last year, more than 26,000 pink slips were sent out statewide to teachers and 16,000 were laid off. This year though it is expected that more teachers and school workers will be laid off, since district officials say they have no more areas left to cut. Vivian Ekchian, LAUSD’s chief human resource officer, said last year only one out of four teachers who received pink slips were actually released.

But she noted that last year, the district had federal stimulus money. This year they do not. At this point, Ekchian said the only way school positions will be saved is if employee unions agree to take paycuts and furloughs to help cut costs. “It is not too late to save these jobs,” Ekchian said. “Together we can make a decision that allows us to save positions... it requires shared sacrifice but it maintains stability at school sites, reduces class sizes and preserves our workforce.”

Currently LAUSD officials are asking all employees to consider taking 12 furlough days — in the form of cutting back the school year a week this year and next - and a 10 percent paycut to avoid losing jobs. Labor leaders though argue that district officials still have to prove that all possible cuts outside of the schools have been made before they can ask school workers to take paycuts, including the elimination of all outside contract professionals and unnecessary programs and administrators. “The most important thing is keeping the classroom and school site whole,” said A.J. Duffy, president of United Teachers Los Angeles.

Duffy stressed that district officials should also not only focus on what employees are willing to sacrifice but on pushing state officials to increase funding for education. “There needs to be a steady stream of funding for education from Sacramento not this crazy up and down every year,” Duffy added.

Over the last two years, lawmakers have slashed some $18 billion from California’s K-12 schools and community colleges, leaving the state last in the nation in per-pupil spending and last in teacher- and administrator-to-student ratios.

This year, despite claims from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger that schools would not see new cuts, the state budget keeps school funding at the heavily slashed rates of last year. Without stimulus money, school officials say they will feel the hit harder. However H.D. Palmer, spokesman for the State Department of Finance, said that at a time when the state is facing a nearly $20 billion budget deficit, and when deep cuts are being proposed elsewhere in social services, schools have received the best deal the governor could draft.

“There are others who say they want us to provide more money and the governor would like to do that, and as soon as legislators send other reductions we can take, on top of what has been proposed to increase education we will take a look at it,” Palmer said. In the meantime though, teachers like Hernandez must continue teaching their students and preparing them for high stakes state tests in the spring, while they wonder if they’ll have a job to come back to next fall. Hernandez said as far as she is concerned, her students will not notice the difference in their teacher’s classroom energy.

“I have told them at the start of every year that in Room 36 their dreams can come true... I still have that job to do,” Hernandez said, wiping tears. “That doesn’t mean that when the bell rings and I go home I don’t cry... but they don’t have to know that.”


For Visual Learners: this Story, with photographs



2 from Santa Monica-Malibu Unified: SMMUSD TRIES TO KEEP LAUSD RESIDENTS IN DISTRICT + SCHOOL SUPER WANTS PERMIT EXEMPTION

► SMMUSD TRIES TO KEEP LAUSD RESIDENTS IN DISTRICT
By Jonathan Friedman | Lookout [online presence of former Santa Monica Outlook staff]

March 19, 2010 --In response to the Los Angeles Unified School District’s (LAUSD) plan to cancel most of its interdistrict permits, Superintendent Tim Cuneo is preparing a proposal to exempt students from LAUSD residences currently enrolled at Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) schools.

Cuneo’s proposal would also apply to siblings of current SMMUSD students from LAUSD residences. He said at Thursday’s Board of Education meeting that he had spoken with LAUSD Superintendent Ramon Cortines, who has agreed to consider the proposal.

More than 1,200 students living within the LAUSD boundaries are attending SMMUSD schools, with the largest number going to Santa Monica High School and Edison Language Academy. Some of those students would be exempt from the LAUSD plan because it excludes those with parents working within other district boundaries and those entering fifth, eighth and 12th grades, the finals years of each school level.

Cuneo on Wednesday hosted a session for parents of students affected by the new LAUSD policy. More than 250 people attended the event. Further information on the policy and the rights of those affected by it, including how to file an appeal, are provided on the District’s Web site at www.smmusd.org. To access the information, click “Permit Appeal” at the top left side of the site. Informational letters have also been mailed to interdistrict parents.

Those denied interdistrict permits from the LAUSD can appeal the decision within the LAUSD. If that appeal is denied, an appeal can be filed with the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE). With more than 12,000 students affected by the LAUSD policy countywide, LACOE could have its hands full.

“They’re attempting to try to gear up and figure out how to even manage all that,” Cuneo said.


Board member Jose Escarce said parents wanting to keep their children in the SMMUSD would have a good case based on the issue of “continuity of education.”

The LAUSD policy is an attempt to bring more money into that District, which is facing a $640 million budget shortfall. School District income from Sacramento is based on daily attendance, and LAUSD officials say their new policy would mean an extra $51 million. But it would also mean a high seven-figure dollar loss for the SMMUSD.

Since State funding for School Districts is based on attendance from the previous school year, the policy would not affect the SMMUSD financially until the 2011-12 school year.

The LAUSD policy was initially approved with little fanfare at a Board of Education meeting last month. It was formalized on Wednesday. The news did not reach other Districts until earlier this month. Various Districts are now scrambling to address the issue on a tight timeline.

Shari Davis, president of the Santa Monica-Malibu PTA Council, said the council voted unanimously to oppose the LAUSD policy because of the impact it would have on the children.

“We believe such directives will have a detrimental impact on the welfare of those children, on parental involvement in our school communities and on the educational experience and success of these students academically, and in other important pursuits that constitute a well-rounded education,” Davis said.

Several board members said they were troubled by the policy. Board member Oscar de la Torre said he would like the Board to make a formal resolution in opposition to it at a future meeting.

“This is one community, one school community,” de la Torre said. “And we want to make sure we do everything we can to protect those students and those families to continue their education in our schools.”


► SCHOOL SUPER WANTS PERMIT EXEMPTION

By Nick Taborek – Santa Monica Daily Press

March 19, 2010 -- SMMUSD HDQTRS — The Los Angeles Unified School District wants to boost enrollment — and increase the amount of money it gets from the state — by cutting back on the number of permits it grants to students who live within the district's boundaries but attend classes in other public school systems.

Under a plan LAUSD Superintendent Ramon Cortines outlined in February, about 10,000 of the more-than 12,000 students who receive permits to leave the district would have to return to the LAUSD.

With more than 1,200 students who go to school in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District but live in LAUSD territory, the plan has caused concern among SMMUSD officials and district parents who say the new permit policy would disrupt students' education and cost SMMUSD money.

Now, SMMUSD Superintendent Tim Cuneo is pushing back against the idea, announcing that he'll send a proposal to Cortines next week asking him to exempt all current SMMUSD permit students and their siblings from the policy change.

Cuneo said he understands LAUSD's need to increase revenue, but said the new LAUSD permit policy shouldn't affect students who have already established ties at their schools.

"I think that that's fair," he said. "It's fair to the families, it provides for continuity of education and it doesn't separate families."

LAUSD has said its permit policy change would generate $51 million for the district, which is facing a $640 million budget deficit.

SMMUSD School Board member Oscar de la Torre said Cuneo's proposal to grandfather in current permit students would benefit SMMUSD at least in the short term.

"It's what makes the most sense if you care about kids," he said. "From a financial point of view, we can't afford to lose those students. On top of that those students can't afford to have their education disrupted."

Under LAUSD's plan, permit students who go to SMMUSD schools would be eligible to continue attending if one of their parents works within the school's attendance boundary. Students entering fifth, eighth and 12th grade next year also would be eligible for permits to leave LAUSD, so that they can finish out the final year at their current schools.

Cuneo said about half of the district's LAUSD permit students would likely fall into one of those two categories.

On Wednesday, 250 to 300 parents attended a meeting at John Adams Middle School to discuss LAUSD's new permit policy and the process for appealing permit decisions, Cuneo said. SMMUSD has posted information for permit families on its Web site, www.smmusd.org.

District parents also have begun a letter writing campaign to urge LAUSD board members to implement the new permit policy gradually, Cuneo said.


HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest of the Stories from Other Sources
L.A. PTA PRESIDENT APPEALS TO PARENTS TO COMPLETE AND RETURN LAUSD PARENT SURVEY + SURVEY INFO FOR PARENTS, EMPLOY... http://bit.ly/cBeMzO

Themes in the News: LINKING TEACHER EVALUATIONS TO STUDENT TEST SCORES: By UCLA IDEA Staff | http://bit.ly/9LpLHl ... http://bit.ly/cW7BmK

SMMUSD TRIES TO KEEP LAUSD RESIDENTS IN DISTRICT: By Jonathan Friedman | Lookout [online presence of former Santa... http://bit.ly/bYWJoU

Educated Guess: STUDY: SCHOOLS STILL BAD AFTER 20 YEARS + SOMEONE IS MISINFORMING FEDS: Schools still bad after 20... http://bit.ly/bhKSzg

TEACHERS’ UNIONS SLAM OBAMA K-12 BUDGET PROPOSALS: By Stephen Sawchuk | Edweek| | Vol. 29, Issue 27 March 17, 201... http://bit.ly/a41AZr

STUDENT LOAN REFORM BILL STRIPPED OF EARLY ED, SCHOOL FACILITIES AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE SUPPORT: By Alyson Klein| E... http://bit.ly/byt515

THE PUSH BACK ON CHARTER SCHOOLS: By THE EDITORS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES Piotr Redlinski for The New York Time... http://bit.ly/98Cits

FROM THE NY TIMES: School Suspensions Lead to Legal Challenge + Bill Proposes Increased Aid to the Needy for Colle... http://bit.ly/bu4qpA

ADULT SCHOOL STUDENTS PROTEST POTENTIAL LOSS OF PICO-UNION CAMPUS: Howard Blume – LA TimeS LA Now blog March 19, 2... http://bit.ly/avBVbL

Democracy: warts+all …or let’s replace your volunteers with paid professionsals| A Very Expensive Failed Project C... http://bit.ly/d09ixK 3:27 PM

SCHOOL SUPER WANTS PERMIT EXEMPTION: By Nick Taborek – Santa Monica Daily Press IMPACTING THE CLASSROOM: San... http://bit.ly/cK13HN

PANEL RECOMMENDS L.A. UNIFIED TEACHER OVERHAULS + L.A. Unified panel recommends changes in teacher evaluations: Ad... http://bit.ly/aEppfA

Beware the Ides’/Pink slip day: NOT SITTING STILL FOR CUTS: By Connie Llanos, Staff Writer | LA Daily News ... http://bit.ly/9QqnhE

IN-STATE RATES FOR UNDOCUMENTED STUDENTS: By Public Radio International’s The World |PRI/BBC/WGBH⋅ |⋅ Transcrip... http://bit.ly/d5dtMO

REFORM DIVIDES A VALLEY CAMPUS: Some at San Fernando Middle School leery of pilot effort.: By Connie Llanos, Staff... http://bit.ly/dbanTh

LA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT TO ELIMINATAE ALL CERTIFIED LIBRARAIANS: By Rocco Staino -- School Library Journal 3/1... http://bit.ly/dn2XtI

BOARD PRESIDENT ADMITS THAT COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOND FUNDS MISUSED: Van de Kamps Coalition Press Release LACCD Boar... http://bit.ly/da7sz9


EVENTS: Coming up next week...
Wednesday Mar 24, 2010
9th STREET SCHOOL Span K-8 Redevelopment: CEQA Scoping and Design Development Update
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Location:
9th Street Elementary School
820 Towne Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90021

Thursday Mar 25, 2010
SOUTH REGION HIGH SCHOOL #7 & RAUL R. PEREZ MEMORIAL PARK GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Location: South Region High School #7
6361 Cottage St.
Huntington Park, CA 90255
*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


• 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
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.


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




Scott Folsom is a parent leader in LAUSD. He is Past President of Los Angeles Tenth District PTSA and represents PTA on the LAUSD Construction Bond Citizen's Oversight Committee. He is an elected Representative on his neighborhood council. He is a Health Commissioner, Legislation Team member and a member of the Board of Managers of the California State PTA. He serves on numerous school district advisory and policy committees and has served as a PTA officer and governance council member at three LAUSD schools. He is the recipient of the UTLA/AFT 2009 "WHO" Gold Award for his support of education and public schools - an honor he hopes to someday deserve. • 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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