In This Issue:
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AS OFFICIALS BICKER, L.A. STUDENTS LOSE |
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LAUSD PARENT CENTERS AIM TO BOOST INVOLVEMENT AT SCHOOLS + smf’s 2¢ |
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EDUCATORS AT SOME HIGH SCHOOLS TOUT BENEFITS OF 4-DAY WEEK |
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STATE AUDITOR TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT LAUSD MISCONDUCT CASES, PRACTICES |
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ARE WE WILLING TO BE A CATALYST FOR CHANGE? |
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HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest of the
Stories from Other Sources + EVENTS: Coming up next week... |
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What can YOU do? |
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Featured Links:
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Sunday is the 25 hour day.
Please use the extra time to read and mark up your sample ballot. I
strongly suggest you read the full proposition language and all the
endless blather about Props 30 and 38 – much cited below. If you’ve
voted already go find someone who hasn’t voted and encourage them to do
the above.
4LAKIDS SUGGESTS A YES VOTE ON PROP 30 because if we don’t vote yes the
trigger cuts will hurt public education and kids in the classroom. Yes,
it’s like paying blackmail – and if that really upsets you I suggest
paying it and getting even with the democratic blackmailers and their
republican accomplices on their part of the ballot: Throw the Rascals
Out!
Note to the Punctuation Police: The failure to capitalize ‘democrats
‘and ‘republicans’ above is intentional: I think that little of them in
this (lower) case.
4LAKIDS SUGGESTS A YES VOTE ON PROP 38 because it’s The Right Thing …but
not The Perfect Thing. Prop 38 increases funding to public education –
which Prop 30 does not. And a Yes vote on both can’t hurt.
4LAKIDS SUGGESTS A NO VOTE ON PROP 32 – a piece of legislation that
protects one group of special interests at the expense of another. It
declares open season (if not a bounty) on public employees unions while
declaring the poor Koch Brothers, etc. an endangered species.
THE REST OF THE BALLOT is a sad contest between the status quo and the
folks that got us into this mess. And a mix of local do-goodery and
spend-now-and tax-later-ery.
• Mayor Tony isn’t even going to be in town to promote his signature
piece of legislation: Measure J. Will a vote for it encourage him to
stay away?
• Is candy corn genetically engineered maize?
• Vote your (un)conscience. Especially on Measure B.
I will not miss the robo-calls. Especially the recordings and
impassioned election countdown calls from real well-meaning Montanans
who think I live in Missoula. Apparently they have issues too. Gentle
reader: Do not try to explain Measure B to red-state Montanans or
elementary schoolchildren.
Vote like the entire future depends on it.
They do.
¡Onward/Adelante! - smf
AS OFFICIALS BICKER, L.A. STUDENTS LOSE
L.A. UNIFIED IS MISSING OUT ON A POSSIBLE $40-MILLION
GRANT THAT COULD HAVE CUT DROPOUT RATES AND BOOSTED ACHIEVEMENT.
LA Times Editorial | http://lat.ms/Slj7OZ
November 2, 2012 :: The teachers union objected to how much an
academic intervention program for teenagers might cost. The Obama
administration insisted that grant approval be tied to whether teachers
are evaluated in part based on their students' test scores. Both parties
refused to compromise. And as a result of stubborn officials clinging
to their ideological positions, the students of the Los Angeles Unified
School District are probably out of the running for a $40-million grant
that could have reduced dropout rates and boosted achievement.
After California failed in 2010 to secure a $700-million Race to the Top
grant — a one-time infusion of federal education funding — L.A. Unified
and other districts in the state were given an opportunity to apply
directly for much smaller sums. One catch: Grant applications must
include a promise to tie teachers' performance ratings to their
students' scores on standardized tests. To ensure that this happens,
unions must sign the applications. But such evaluation policies have
been anathema to union officials, who argue, with some validity, that
the tests are a limited and sometimes misleading measure of student
performance.
L.A. Unified's application for $10 million a year over four years called
for intensive academic help for low-performing students to reverse the
trend of dropouts in early high school. Leaders of United Teachers Los
Angeles refused to sign, citing both the cost and the teacher evaluation
provision.
But the union isn't the only one to botch this opportunity. The Obama
administration has been inflexible about the role of test scores in
teacher evaluations. It's a touchy and complicated issue that's now
under court-ordered negotiation in L.A. Unified. The introduction of
scores into evaluations must be carried out with care if they're to be
accurate and fair. Moreover, the federal government shouldn't be
dictating how teachers are evaluated; schools should be held responsible
for results, not how they achieve those results.
But both UTLA and Supt. John Deasy could have been more flexible on the
cost issue. The district shouldn't lock itself into a long-term program
that it might not be able to afford; at the same time, the union should
have looked for compromise on costs.
On Thursday, Deasy announced that he'll ask for the application to be
considered without UTLA's approval. It's a reasonable request. The
Education Department should worry more about helping students than
achieving its narrow objectives — and it shouldn't give unions de facto
veto power over school districts' aspirations.
LAUSD PARENT CENTERS AIM TO BOOST INVOLVEMENT AT SCHOOLS + smf’s 2¢
DISTRICT'S PARENT CENTERS OFFER FREE CLASSES THAT
FOCUS ON PARENTS' NEEDS, FROM HELPING THEIR CHILDREN WITH THEIR HOMEWORK
TO LEARNING ENGLISH.
INSPECTOR GENERAL’S AUDIT EXAMINES PARENT CENTERS AT SCHOOLS
By Dalina Castellanos, Los Angeles Times | http://lat.ms/RzoJaY
November 4, 2012 :: At Gault Street Elementary, waves of parents flow
through the campus daily. Sometimes the tide is stronger, said parent
center director Rosalva Waterford, but they are always there.
Volunteers make copies for the teachers using one of the center's three
copy machines — including the one they call la viejita (the old woman) a
decades-old, yellowing behemoth that frequently gets passed over for
the newer models. Parents sometimes help move classroom furniture for an
activity or clean up afterward.
Centers like the one at Gault in Lake Balboa offer free classes that
focus on parents' needs, from helping their children with their homework
to learning English.
School districts around the country continually wrestle with ways to
engage parents, particularly in heavily low-income areas where many
parents don't speak English. Los Angeles Unified officials say the
centers are one way to make parents feel as if they belong on campus.
In December 2010, L.A. Board of Education members approved a plan aimed
at increasing parent involvement. They allocated $20 million last June
to improve and upgrade some of the 576 centers on campuses throughout
the district.
An audit released last month by the board's inspector general found that
if schools adopt well-designed practices to engage families, such as
parent centers, it "can result in long-lasting positive effects on
improving student achievement."
About 196 parent centers can be upgraded with the $20-million allocation at an estimated cost of $102,000 each, the audit said.
"What we really have to do is look at how we can strategically place our
resources in areas that have a really high need for them," said Maria
Casillas, administrator for the district's Parent and Community Services
branch.
Other centers are slated to receive upgrades with money from school board members' accounts.
The audit found problems at two parent centers that were funded that
way. In April 2011, centers at five schools in former boardmember Yolie
Flores' district were updated. Of those that underwent renovations, two
were found to be misusing the facility and its resources.
The parent center at Vernon Elementary was equipped with 25 laptops, but
auditors found that they were being used only for training and not for
any other needs.
"All other times the laptops were locked in the mobile laptop cart. The
bilingual coordinator explained that the technology infrastructure was
poor and connecting all 25 laptops to the Internet was impossible," the
report read.
At Huntington Park High School, parents "didn't understand the
district's goal of increasing parent and family engagement through the
centers. Prior to its transformation, the center was used for baby
showers or bake sales that didn't support students or the school."
The school's principal closed Huntington Park's center to all activities except for parent workshops and classes.
"We were not being vigilant about the use of parent centers," said
Casillas, who noted that because the centers were upgraded using board
funds, her office had no authority over their activities. "These centers
are supposed to promote family engagement. They are not the place where
you have quinceañeras."
Casillas said the goal of the centers is to encourage families to support the public education system.
"We need to ensure that mi casa es su casa," she said, meaning my house
is your house. "That way, the parents can feel a part of the school and
be advocates for the school and its programs."
Though Gault Street Elementary is not on a list to receive any upgrades,
Waterford is constantly searching for ways to make the center an
incubator for all types of learning.
Merquisedet Absalon and his wife, Laura, have a first-grader at Gault
and a son at a nearby high school. Their oldest received an
undergraduate degree from Caltech and is in a master's program at Cal
State Northridge. The couple donate as much free time as possible to
their children's schools even as Absalon juggles his duties as a
lieutenant commander for the Navy Reserve and a part-time limousine
driver.
"Who do we stay up for? Who do we sacrifice for? Everything we do is for
our kids, so when I am not working, I'm here for them," he said. "To
help the kids, we have to first educate ourselves."
On a recent day, health educators from Kaiser Permanente were
instructing a group of 25 parents on literacy, offering such tips as
using "Mad Libs" as a way to develop children's vocabulary. A couple of
hours later, a parent volunteer began a crocheting class. Both workshops
were free.
"I try to engage the parents in a type of skill development so they can
cultivate what they learn and be an example to their children,"
Waterford said. "When the kids see that their parents are present, it
boosts their self-esteem and their confidence."
●● smf's 2¢: “The spin, the spin!”
I witnessed the presentation of the Inspector General’s Audit Report to
the Bond Oversight Committee on upgrading Parent Center facilities;
Maria Casillas wasn’t there – she should have been. The report is far
more critical of the potential for future waste+abuse and the current
situation of parent center upgrades than this article or Maria Casillas
suggests.
The implication in the report: “…IF schools adopt well-designed
practices“ is not a validation but a warning. “Well designed practice”
is not the current practice. There has-been-and-continues-to-be
insufficient oversight and accountability in the OPERATION of the parent
centers AFTER the upgrade funds are spent.
If you build it they will come. If you lock them out they won’t get in.
In the end the parents at the school must help define what parent
engagement is, not an administrator downtown. The role of parent
volunteers making copies for teachers is not unimportant – but upgrading
the copier does not support parent and family engagement and training.
SCHOOL BUDGETING 101: There are Bond (“capital”) funds and there are General (“operating”) funds.
There are little-or-mo operating funds budgeted for parent centers. The
BOC’s authority is purely as a watchdog: Bond funds cannot be used for
operating parent centers and paying staff.
FIRST: The responsibility for operation and administration of the parent
centers has not been defined and sufficient operating funds have not
been allocated. Apparently everyone wants parent centers …as long as
somebody else pays for them. A $20 million capital investment with $0
in operational funding quickly becomes $20 million invested in nothing.
SECOND, there is an apparent-or-convenient misunderstanding by the
boardmembers, the writer of this article and by Ms. Cassilas about the
funding of parent center facilities and equipment upgrades from
boardmember ‘discretionary’ finds, there is a $20 million allocation for
parent center upgrade projects districtwide. The money is not a slush
fund “divided-by-seven”; it is to be allocated by need.
There are no bond funds over which any single boardmember has sole
discretion -- all expenditures of bond (not “board”) funds require the
approval-of accountability-to the Bond Oversight Committee and the full
Board of Education.
I enthusiastically support well run and welcoming parent centers – but I
remind everyone that bond funds are borrowed money; the rule of thumb
is the cost of debt service doubles the expenditure. $20 million spent
(or wasted) equals almost $40 million paid back by property taxpayers
over time.
EDUCATORS AT SOME HIGH SCHOOLS TOUT BENEFITS OF 4-DAY WEEK
By Kelsey Sheehy | U.S.News & World Report LP | http://yhoo.it/PuGqJe
●● smf's 2¢: the 4 day week may offer an alternative to shortening the
school year should Props 30 or 38 not pass (Please not!) see this:
Survey: BIG DISTRICTS DIVIDED OVER CUTTING SCHOOL YEAR IF PROP 30 FAILS +
smf weighs in with some Hawaiian thinking | http://bit.ly/YwFepS
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 :: School officials in districts across the country
are moving to three-day weekends in order to battle budget constraints.
Nearly 300 districts operated on a four-day school week last year, with
several additional districts making the move this year, and more
contemplating the move for 2013.
Cutting an instruction day allows schools to trim transportation,
janitorial, and utility costs. The Chattooga County School District in
Georgia, for instance, reported annual savings of nearly $800,000 after
switching to a four-day school week in 2010. But the shorter week
requires students to power through longer days when they are in school
in order to meet minimum class time requirements set by states.
[Read how high schools are saving money by going green.]
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has spoken out against four-day
weeks, and school boards in several states have shot down attempts in
their districts to move to shorter school weeks. Critics of the shorter
week argue high school students should spend more days in school to
prepare themselves for college and the workforce. But teachers and
administrators immersed in the schedule say students are more focused
while in school thanks to the three-day weekend, and the free day allows
high schoolers to intern or enroll in college courses.
"I think the kids are more attentive [in class]. And they know that
there's not as much downtime, so we've got to get in there and do it,"
Elanor Brown, a now-retired robotics teacher at Chattooga High School,
told the Chattanooga Times Free Press in May.
Student absences and discipline problems are down under the new
schedule, as well, according to the Times Free Press, which reports
disciplinary write-ups for high school students dropped from 1,344 in
2008 to just 375 in 2011.
[Learn why teens skipping school could mean fines or jail for parents.]
Having a day free for doctors' appointments and college visits helps
keep bodies in class, experts say. It also cuts out absences for student
athletes traveling for school-sponsored sporting events, says Theresa
Hamilton, director of districtwide services at Garfield School District
No. Re-2 in Colorado.
Students and coaches at the district's high schools missed anywhere from
a few hours to a full day of school for athletic travel before the
switch to a four-day week this fall, Hamilton says, noting the district
chose to close on Fridays in part because travel for sporting events was
most common on Fridays.
"I've actually heard this from students; if they're an athlete, they
like the fact that they're not missing class on Friday," Hamilton says.
Day care is typically not at an issue for students at the high school
level, and parents in the rural Colorado farming community say they
appreciate having their teens home to help with chores and look after
younger children, she says. The district is also working with the local
Chamber of Commerce to develop an internship program, which they will
roll out to high school students in a few weeks, Hamilton adds.
It will "let them have a full day, instead of a couple of hours after
school, to work with a business, get their hands dirty in that
business--figure out if that's really what they want to do in college
... and give them those opportunities to develop a craft for when they
get out of high school," she says.
Officials at the Waco Community School District in Iowa similarly hope
students will use their free day to intern, volunteer, or take college
courses if the district transitions to a shorter school week next year.
The state's Department of Education approved the district's proposal for
a four-day week this summer.
While the plan still needs a final stamp of approval from the school
board, which will take up the issue in December, some parents are
already keen on the idea.
"I'm hoping he can get some college credit ... He can get a jump start
on that, so I'm excited about it," Cinda Blake, whose son is a sophomore
at Waco High School, told the Cedar Rapids Gazette earlier this month.
But not all students use the free day as school officials intend. One
teen from North Branch Public Schools in Minnesota told the Washington
Post last year that he spends the day sleeping in and playing video
games.
STATE AUDITOR TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT LAUSD MISCONDUCT CASES, PRACTICES
By Tom Chorneau | SI&A Cabinet Report | http://bit.ly/YmAELR
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 :: State auditors are expected to finish in
the coming weeks a formal review of how Los Angeles Unified handled
claims of misconduct lodged against teachers and other employees,
including whether district officials followed all applicable laws.
The audit was launched in March in the wake of the sex-abuse scandal at
the Miramonte Elementary School where two former teachers have been
accused of child molestation.
The audit follows an ongoing analysis of hundreds of misconduct cases
from LAUSD referred to the California Commission on Teacher
Credentialing, which is mandated to oversee investigation of all
allegations of misconduct against credential applicants and holders.
Earlier this spring, the district sent more than 500 cases of potential violations to the CTC for further review.
LAUSD is also separately conducting its own internal analysis of more
than 8,000 employee files looking for misconduct that may have gone
unreported over the past 40 years.
State Auditor Elaine Howle and her staff are conducting a fairly broad
review of disciplinary practices at LAUSD, according to a scope of work
posted on the agency's website.
In addition to looking at how the district communicates the legal
requirements surrounding proper conduct and training, the audit team has
also taken a deeper look at the district and six sample school sites.
Among the points of focus, the team is looking specifically at how and
when the district notified parents, law enforcement officials, employee
unions and the CTC when an allegation of misconduct had been made.
The district drew significant criticism for not telling parents from the
Miramonte school about the allegations surrounding one of its teachers
for more than a year after his arrest.
The district has said that they chose not to disclose the issue because
they did not want to disrupt the police investigation – but they have
since adopted a policy that requires parent notice within 72 hours if a
teacher is removed from the classroom for suspected misconduct.
The auditor is also looking at how the district conducts its
investigations into misconduct claims; how it monitors employees who
have been found to have violated policies and ensure that the district
has a proper whistle-blower program.
The state auditor has said the report will be released sometime in November.
Both of the former teachers from Miramonte accused of molestation are
facing trial; a third teacher from a different LAUSD elementary school
pleaded guilty in August to sexual abuse.
The district is facing at least one civil lawsuit over the cases. The
families of 14 students from Miramonte filed suit in July claiming that
LAUSD did not protect their children from a teacher accused of lewd acts
involving children.
ARE WE WILLING TO BE A CATALYST FOR CHANGE?
By Heidi Brewington, A California State PTA member and LAUSD parent | http://t.co/d9o4n58O
Gandhi once said, “… You must be the change you wish to see in the
world...” We talk about the importance of education, and how our
children need to be able “think outside the box” and to compete both
locally and globally in an economy that is constantly changing and
evolving. NOW is the time to walk the walk… be the change we wish to
see…
The idea behind Prop 38 is simple and straightforward: Generate
significant additional revenue to start to restore the programs and
services that have been cut. Move California out of the basement is
school funding (currently we are ranked 47 out of 50). Make sure new
dollars go directly to every single public school (including charter
schools) in California to support our children, help our teachers, and
improve our schools.
Prop 38 is the ONLY proposition on the November ballot that
guarantees school funding MUST go per student to every school and must
be spent at the school. School sites can use the money to reduce class
sizes or restore classes in art, music, math, science, vocational &
technical education and college preparation… all based on different
needs at different schools…with input from parents, teachers and the
community: GUARANTEED. Schools absolutely may hire back teachers or
staff to restore programs, reduce class sizes or expand instructional
time.
The measure will raise $10 to $11 billion annually in new
revenue through a sliding scale income tax increase that varies with
taxpayers’ ability to pay, (keeping in mind, this is income after all
deductions have been made. We all share according to what we can afford,
and we all benefit from an educated workforce that can think outside
the box and compete both globally and locally.
The new personal income tax revenues would start being collected in
early 2013. The $3.3 billion would be a resource that schools could use
to offset or mitigate the effects of the trigger cuts in 2012-13.
The 30 percent set aside in the measure for debt payments over the
first four years will provide significant budget relief (over $4.5
billion through the end of 13-14.
Neither Prop 38 nor Prop 30 allocates funding directly to the UC or
CSU systems. While Prop 30 designates 11% of its education dollars to
community colleges, the legislature decides how much of those funds will
be used to replace current community college funding. The “trigger”
cuts to UC, CSU and Community Colleges that we’ve heard about are NOT
included in the language of either initiative. They were put in place
in the state budget that the legislature adopted in June before the
election. The legislature only adopted a scenario for making cuts if
Prop 30 fails; the Legislature did not adopt a similar plan for when
Prop 38 passes. Most likely what would happen is that the triggers would
be revisited after the election if the governor's measure fails and
Prop 38 passes.
I encourage you to take a look at the initiative… you can find it on the website, www.prop38forlocalschools.org
Someone once said, “"Life has no remote. Get up and change it
yourself". Let’s make the change and REFORM the process! WE need to be
the catalyst for change… Our children can’t wait! I urge you, YES on 38!
•• smf's 2¢: Heidi is Director of Legislation for 31st District PTA in
the San Fernando Valley, an ex-officio member of the LAUSD Board of Ed
Budget, Audit and Facilities Committee and - like almost a million PTA
mebers in California, is an enthusiastic advocate for Prop 38.
California State PTA, for whom she speaks here, has taken a position in
SUPPORT of Prop 38 and is a sponsor and principal co-author of the
proposition,
California State PTA has taken a NEUTRAL position on Proposition 30 –
members and constituent units are free to (and invited to) make up
their own minds.
If both pass the one with the most votes becomes law. Voting for both
does no harm to either and sends the strongest possible message to
Sacramento: PUBLIC EDUCATION IS IMPORTANT!
HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T
FIT: The Rest of the Stories from Other Sources + EVENTS: Coming up
next week...
Race to the Top: A MESSAGE FROM SUPERINTENDENT DEASY http://bit.ly/XbOO3q
Focus 0n 2012 Elections: EDUCATION ISSUES UNDERSCORE ELECTION STAKES AT ALL LEVELS
FROM PRESIDENTIAL RACE TO STATE INITIATIVES, VOTERS FACE POLICY CHOICES
By Andrew Ujifusa and Alyson Klein | Education Week | http://bit.ly/U1jm19
WATCH WITH GLITTERING EYES: The READesign + GRAND OPENING OF THE VALERIO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LIBRARY - By smf for 4LAKidsNews | http://bit.ly/VcC4J7
Study: "DUAL ENROLLMENT" STUDENTS MORE LIKELY TO ATTEND, GRADUATE FROM COLLEGE: PR Newswire – ... http://bit.ly/Ynp5E8
••Dual Enrollment? a concept so "two superintendents ago!" Back when LAUSD was education rather than data driven.
PROP 30 IS ‘TANTALIZINGLY CLOSE’: “For the next few days schools will be less concerned with how they conduct sc... http://bit.ly/ToSda1
L.A. UNIFIED RECEIVES GRANT TO HELP STUDENTS EXPOSED TO TRAUMA: by Marisa Gerber - LA Times/LA Now | http://lat... http://bit.ly/Vo39cw
¿ESTAMOS DISPUESTOS A SER UN CATALIZADOR PARA EL CAMBIO?: Aprobemos la Prop 38 para que Nuestras Escuelas reciba... http://bit.ly/Vo39cv
WHAT WILL MY SCHOOL AND MY COMMUNITY GET WHEN PROP 38 PASSES? The question answered with detail for every schoo... http://bit.ly/YAwQpE
DAYLIGHT SAVINGS: Don’t turn the clock back too far: on time travel: There was a young lady called Bright ... http://bit.ly/Wj0ySE
PROPOSITION 30 FACT CHECK: Four Questions: Will higher taxes push businesses to leave California? Wi... http://bit.ly/Tl669a
A LITMUS TEST FOR ETHNICITY+RACE: A FACEBOOK FRIEND POSTS: November 2, 2012 :: Anybody else think this is probl... http://bit.ly/Tl655j
ARE WE WILLING TO BE A CATALYST FOR CHANGE?: By Heidi Brewington, Legislation Director, 31st District PTSA – tha... http://bit.ly/Tl655g
Survey: BIG DISTRICTS DIVIDED OVER CUTTING SCHOOL YEAR IF PROP 30 FAILS + smf weighs in with some Hawaiian think... http://bit.ly/YwFepS
TEXAS AND CALIFORNIA COMPETE – IN FUNDING RACE TO THE BOTTOM: Peter Schrag – Commentary in EdSource Today | http://bit.ly/RzUu0q
Race to the Top: FRESNO TEACHERS+FRESNO UNIFIED WORKING ON IT, LAUSD GOES IT ALONE: L.A. Unified applies for gra... http://bit.ly/YdRs7D
CALIFORNIA BALLOT HOLDS CREDIT RISK FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS: Jim Christie Reuters | http://trib.in/YvTOhq 3:51 p.m... http://bit.ly/Sx16hK
Auto Shop: HIGH SCHOOL GETS PRACTICAL: Letter to the Editor of the LA Times | http://lat.ms/ThLtLb Re A lot new... http://bit.ly/YdQGYh
KING MIDDLE SCHOOL TO SHIFT TO ALL MAGNET CAMPUS: By Colin Stutz, Los Feliz Ledger Contributing Writer |http://b... http://bit.ly/YdQoRl
The end of an era: BARBARA FIEGE, CITY SECTION HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS COMMISSIONER FOR 19 YEARS, TO RETIRE: Fiege wi... http://bit.ly/YdQnwD
PARENTS CRITICIZE OFFICIALS AFTER CHEATING ALLEGATIONS ROIL SCHOOL + Excellent Video Backgrounder: by Howard Blu... http://bit.ly/YdQoRa
“Teacher deviated off the script…”: STATE STRIPS 23 SCHOOLS OF API RANKINGS FOR CHEATING, MISCONDUCT OR MISTAKES... http://bit.ly/TccMX8
YES ON 30 & YES ON 38: Letter To The Editor of the Santa Monica Mirror by Mary Ann Garvey, Treasurer University ... http://bit.ly/V9uAGR
NEW PLAYA VISTA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL OPENS AFTER OVERCOMING SKEPTICS: By Rob Kuznia Staff Writer, Daily Breeze | ht... http://bit.ly/YiNCcA
FOUR L.A. UNIFIED SCHOOLS TO OFFER FREE FLU CLINICS TO STUDENTS + PARENTS TODAY: — Dalina Castellanos, LA Times/... http://bit.ly/V4yNeS
LAUSD UNVEILS STATE-OF-THE-ART SCIENCE CENTER NAMED FOR ASTRONAUT SALLY RIDE: By Tami Abdollah | KPCC 89,33 Fass... http://bit.ly/W2erEp
*Dates and times subject to change. ________________________________________
• SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE:
http://www.laschools.org/bond/
Phone: 213-241-5183
____________________________________________________
• LAUSD FACILITIES COMMUNITY OUTREACH CALENDAR:
http://www.laschools.org/happenings/
Phone: 213-241.8700
What can YOU do?
• E-mail, call or write your school board member:
Tamar.Galatzan@lausd.net • 213-241-6386
Monica.Garcia@lausd.net • 213-241-6180
Bennett.Kayser@lausd.net • 213-241-5555
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! • Find
your state legislator based on your home address. Just go to: http://bit.ly/dqFdq2 • 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 Brown: 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. THEY DO!.
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