Sunday, November 16, 2014

Lead us not into temptation



4LAKids: Sunday 16•Nov•2014
In This Issue:
 •  LA UNIFIED ARGUED MIDDLE SCHOOLER CAN CONSENT TO SEX WITH TEACHER
 •  THIS WEEK IN MiSiS
 •  2 Stories: RATLIFF ASKING FOR REVIEW OF LITIGATION COSTS OVER LAST 5 YEARS
 •  From the wonderful folks who brought us the Common Core Technology Project and MiSiS: LAUSD POLICY BULLETIN NINE NINE NINE (POINT) NINE + smf's 2¢
 •  HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest (but not necessarily the best) of the Stories from Other Sources
 •  EVENTS: Coming up next week...
 •  What can YOU do?


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The young teacher, Gordon Sumner, did not last in teaching long. Fresh out of teacher’s college he taught for a couple of years at St. Paul's First School in Northumberland.

Young teachers and young girls need some careful watching, as he recounts in a song he wrote:
Young teacher the subject
Of school girl fantasy
She wants him so badly
Knows what she wants to be

Inside her there's longing
This girl's an open page
Book marking she's so close now
This girl is half his age

Don't stand, don't stand so
Don't stand so close to me
Don't stand, don't stand so
Don't stand so close to me

Her friends are so jealous
You know how bad girls get
Sometimes it's not so easy
To be the teacher's pet

Temptation, frustration
So bad it makes him cry
Wet bus stop, she's waiting
His car is warm and dry

Loose talk in the classroom
To hurt they try and try
Strong words in the staffroom
The accusations fly

It's no use he sees her
He starts to shake and cough
Just like the old man in
That book by Nabokov

In that same period, Sumner, a part time musician, wore a yellow and black striped sweater to a gig and was forever after Sting.


WEDNESDAY EVENING a small party of us first heard the story that broke Thursday morning - about the middle schooler and her affair with her teacher.

LA UNIFIED ARGUED MIDDLE SCHOOLER CAN CONSENT TO SEX WITH TEACHER (follows)

All seemingly old water long under the bridge. The teacher was caught in 2010 and convicted in 2011, the girl and/or her parents tried to sue LAUSD a year ago – but the court found the District had acted appropriately as soon as it suspected what going on.

Whistle blown. Teacher removed, Charges filed. Conviction obtained.

The District actually won a civil lawsuit in a child abuse case.

The couple had carefully hid the affair from everyone the District’s attorney argued. They had lied to the girl’s parents and deceived the school. The District successfully argued that it didn’t know the abuse was going on, and when it found out….
Loose talk in the classroom
To hurt they try and try
…one of the girl’s friends told a teacher, who dropped a dime…
The District acted immediately – a perfectly good and legitimate defense.

Case closed; all by the book. Just like the mandatory Child Abuse Awareness Training says.

But the LAUSD attorney went on, bringing up the girl's past sexual history – and pretty much painted the fourteen year old (like in the song, twice the teacher’s age) not as the victim but as an offender.

She was, as the bad boys say: Asking for it.

The lawyer went as far to claim that under a couple of interpretations of California Law a 14-year-old middle school student was mature enough to consent to having sex with her 28-year-old teacher, and that she bore responsibility for what happened. .

It seems our attorney was mounting a two phase defense:
A.) The District wasn’t responsible because it was unaware and
B.) It was OK anyway, the girl was a tramp

(I remind you here that the teacher was already in prison for the offense.)

In a radio interview the LAUSD attorney went on to say: "Making a decision as to whether or not to cross the street when traffic is coming, that takes a level of maturity and that's a much more dangerous decision than to decide, 'Hey, I want to have sex with my teacher,'"

By the book. The one by Nabokov. Or maybe Kafka.

I’m sorry, gentle readers, I like that Police song. I love the book by Nabokov – it’s a passionate and almost libidinous love letter - not to little girls - but to-and-in the English language.

I confess that pubescent girls are attractive and can be seductive. But if you’re a teacher or a stepparent or a priest or an adult of any flavor - and a fourteen year old is asking for it - the answer is always “No!”

There is no moral or ethical or legal ambiguity.

And if there is ambiguity in California Law we need to change the law.

The story of course continues; they always do.

L.A. TIMES & LA OPINÓN ON LAUSD’s ‘BLAME THE VICTIM’ COURTROOM STRATEGY | http://bit.ly/1ucaBXr
L.A. UNIFIED ATTORNEY APOLOGIZES FOR SAYING IT'S MORE DANGEROUS TO CROSS STREET THAN HAVE SEX WITH A TEACHER | http://bit.ly/1ucaBXr

• The civil case is being appealed because the girl’s sexual history was inappropriately brought up in trial
• Other people are coming forward with other alleged instances of inappropriate and or questionable conduct by the teacher in question.
• The District initially stood behind, then criticized and finally fired the attorney (but not his law firm) – all within about 36 hours.


IN THE MIRAMONTE CASE the judge has ruled against the District’s motion for a gag order CITE

BOARDMEMBER RATLIFF, an attorney herself, has asked for an investigation going back five years on LAUSD’s action in civil cases. 2 Stories: RATLIFF ASKING FOR REVIEW OF LITIGATION COSTS OVER LAST 5 YEARS | http://bit.ly/1y4VH5O


I SUPPOSE THIS CAN BE ASCRIBED TO SOME DEASIAN EXCESS, an abundance of urgency or Win-at-All-Costs zeal. It would probably be a mistake to paint the girl in Mary Janes, bobby socks and a gingham dress; this was nor Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm.

But please – these are children – and some of them like some of us make huge mistakes.

Somebody should be always looking out for the kids.
Somebody should always be looking out for young teachers, the subjects of schoolgirl fantasies.
Somebody should look out for outside counsel.

Nabokov said of Freud: “I don't want an elderly gentleman from Vienna with an umbrella inflicting his dreams upon me.”

Vladimir Nabokov, the novelist - like all novelists - created+populated a unique world. In his, one John Ray, Jr, Ph.D., a prominent psychiatrist from Widworth, Massachusetts with a penchant for platitude and a taste for semicolons is asked to edit the first person testament of Humbert H. Humbert (not his real name Ray assures us) who has died in judicial custody, awaiting trial. After a page or two of New English moralizing Ray introduces us to the novel Lolita thus:

“As a case history, Lolita will become, no doubt, a classic in psychiatric circles. As a work of art, it transcends its expiatory aspects; and still more important to us than scientific significance and literary worth, is the ethical impact the book should have on the serious reader; for in this poignant personal study there lurks a general lesson; the wayward child, the egotistic mother, the panting maniac — these are not only vivid characters in a unique story: they warn us of dangerous trends; they point out potent evils. Lolita should make all of us — parents, social workers, educators — apply ourselves with still greater vigilance and vision to the task of bringing up a better generation in a safer world.”


¡Onward/Adelante! – smf


LA UNIFIED ARGUED MIDDLE SCHOOLER CAN CONSENT TO SEX WITH TEACHER

by Karen Foshay | KPCC 89.3 | http://bit.ly/1yCxsMo

13 Nov. 2014 | 5am [This story has been updated] :: Last November, Los Angeles Unified School District lawyers fighting a civil lawsuit argued in court that a 14-year-old middle school student was mature enough to consent to having sex with her 28-year-old teacher, and that she bore some responsibility for what happened. The district's attorneys also introduced the girl's sexual history into the trial as part of their defense strategy.

Two legal experts sharply criticized the school district for using those tactics. They also said the case highlights a little-known conflict in California law: while the age of consent is firmly set at 18 in criminal cases, at least two appellate court rulings have found that in civil cases, it is possible to argue that a minor can consent to sex with an adult.

Last November's case involved a math teacher at Thomas Edison Middle School in Southeast Los Angeles who in December 2010 began a six-month sexual relationship with a girl who went to the school. The teacher, Elkis Hermida, was convicted of lewd acts against a child and sentenced in July 2011 to three years in state prison.

The girl's family filed a civil lawsuit against L.A. Unified, claiming the district was negligent and the experience had emotionally damaged the girl, endangering any future romantic relationships she might have.

During the three week civil trial, district lawyers denied that L.A. Unified had any knowledge of the relationship, argued the girl knew what she was doing when she chose to have sex with Hermida and suggested the girl was to blame for her situation, not LAUSD.

"She lied to her mother so she could have sex with her teacher," said Keith Wyatt, L.A. Unified's trial attorney in the case, in an interview with KPCC. "She went to a motel in which she engaged in voluntary consensual sex with her teacher. Why shouldn't she be responsible for that?"

Wyatt cited a 2009 legal ruling by the US District Court for California's Central District that said in certain circumstances a minor can consent to sex. That ruling, in the case of Doe v. Starbucks, cited a 2001 decision by the California Supreme Court in a criminal case, People v. Tobias. In Tobias, the supreme court argued that when the state legislature added the crime of "unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor" to the penal code in 1970, the lawmakers "implicitly acknowledged that, in some cases at least, a minor may be capable of giving legal consent to sexual relations."

In its Doe ruling, the District Court went on to cite another court decision as grounds for its conclusion that "the rule that 'a minor may be capable of giving legal consent to sexual relations' has been extended to non-criminal cases."

The Doe and Tobias decisions left California law "horribly flawed," said Jennifer Drobac, a law professor with Robert H. McKinley Law school at Indiana University who has studied consent laws nationwide, including the Doe v. Starbucks case.

California is one of several states where the criminal age of consent laws clash with the civil laws, according to Drobac, noting a minor can be a victim in a criminal case, but found at fault in a civil case related to the same crime.

"It doesn’t make sense," said Drobac. "The same parties, same behavior, same everything, consent is no defense in a criminal trial. But the same set of facts in a civil prosecution, consent is a complete defense. How is that possible? It's not logical."

Drobac called L.A. Unified's courtroom tactics in the civil lawsuit "shocking."

Another leading expert, law professor Marci Hamilton of the Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School in New York, called the school district's approach in the civil trial "outrageous," and accused it of "engaging in scorched earth tactics."

Hamilton echoed Drobac's criticisms of the California court rulings on consent.

"If this is a correct interpretation of California law, California is in the dark ages and against the great weight of the social science on brain and emotional development," said Hamiliton, who added, "the legislature needs to take this up.

"This reasoning is incoherent, especially in the school context," she went on. "It would have the court focus on the child's consent without taking the authority and power of the adult into account...This reasoning takes a page out of the old 'consent' defenses for rape based on a woman's sexual history, which have been thoroughly discredited."

L.A. Unified lawyer Wyatt insisted that a 14-year-old can have the maturity to consent to sex.

"Making a decision as to whether or not to cross the street when traffic is coming, that takes a level of maturity and that's a much more dangerous decision than to decide, 'Hey, I want to have sex with my teacher,'" Wyatt told KPCC.

In his closing argument during the civil trial, Wyatt maintained that the girl was pursuing the case for purely financial reasons.

"She wants to be paid for doing something that she knew was wrong, that she acknowledged was wrong, that she knew was from the beginning," Wyatt argued, adding, "She doesn't want therapy, she wants money. That's what they are asking you for."
Minor's sexual history heard

During the trial, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Lawrence Cho allowed L.A. Unified to introduce evidence of the girl's sexual history as part of its defense.

California's rape shield law prohibits evidence of a sexually abused victim's sexual history in criminal trials, but it is allowed in civil cases, according to Jeff Dion, Deputy Executive Director of the Washington, D.C.-based National Center for Victims of Crime.

"I think it's unusual that we are seeing it being used against a child," said Dion.

Marci Hamilton went further, saying, "basically they are treating child victims worse than an adult victim of rape. It makes no sense."

L.A. Unified also persuaded Judge Cho to place the girl's name on the jury's verdict form, which provided an opportunity for jurors to find her comparatively negligent, or at fault.

Cho admitted his ruling was unusual, saying, "There is currently no published decision in California" allowing the consideration of a child victim's comparative negligence in a school sex abuse case.

The judge "went beyond the bounds of common sense," said Hamilton.

Cho's move surprised the girl's attorney, Frank Perez.

"I have never seen a verdict form where the child has been listed as partially responsible for his or her own molestation," said Perez.

In the end, the jury didn't fill out the verdict form. It ruled in favor of LAUSD, accepting the district's argument that it had no knowledge of the relationship and therefore was not at fault.

Perez said the case is being appealed, in part because the girl's name was on the verdict form.

UPDATED: November 13, 03:04 PM :: Following publication of this story, L.A. Unified issued a statement from Keith Wyatt Thursday.

"While we are sympathetic of the pain that this type of inappropriate relationship could cause this young woman and her family, the case focused on whether the school district could have done anything to prevent it," Wyatt said. L.A. Unified tried the case "in a respectful manner," he said, adding, "our argument shared in the disgust with this teacher’s actions, but it focused on the decisions of this teacher and young lady to hide their behavior from the school district."

Wyatt issued another statement from his law office on Thursday in which he apologized for his remarks:

“Upon reflection, I realize how insensitive the comments I made to KPCC were, and I am truly sorry to this young woman and her family. My statements were ill thought out and poorly articulated and by no means reflect the opinions of the school district or its leadership. It is regrettable that my remarks have taken away from the respectful manner in which this case was tried.”

L.A. Unified spokesman Sean Rossall* said the district is continuing its professional relationship with Wyatt’s firm, Ivie, McNeill & Wyatt. He said the firm has represented the district "for over 20 years," and is currently handling 18 lawsuits on behalf of LAUSD. Regarding the upcoming trial over the Miramonte sexual abuse civil suit, Rossall said the firm’s only involvement was "in a very limited capacity as legal counsel for one of the witnesses."

Seeking reactions from members of the L.A. Unified Board, KPCC reached board members Tamar Galatzan, Monica Ratliff, Steve Zimmer, Richard Vladovic, and Monica Garcia. None would comment. The district did not respond to a request for comment from Superintendent Ramon Cortines.

One former longtime school board and L.A. city council member, Rita Walters, did comment.

"I think that the attorney for the district went out of his way to blame it on the victim," she said.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled the Robert H. McKinney School of Law.
________
* Rossall is a special crisis management consultant on LAUSD sex abuse litigation, not an LAUSD employee


THIS WEEK IN MiSiS

►MiSiS OVERSIGHT REPORT

From the AALA Weekly Update for the Week of November 17, 2014 | http://bit.ly/JidN0H

13 Nov. 2014 :: The report from the Viramontes Group, a consulting firm hired to provide oversight of the My Integrated Student Information System (MiSiS) implementation, was released to the public on November 6, although dated October 16, 2014. We have read through the report and note that it finds fault with many of the same issues that the AALA MiSiS Committee noted for the past two years. For example, it mentions multiple warnings that the system was not ready that were ignored by District staff prior to its implementation. What the report does not say, and apparently no one who was interviewed mentioned, is that for two years AALA’s committee delineated problem areas and noted the lack of functionality of the system, to no avail. The report states, “Project management mandates that the team be communicative, change control be aligned, deliverables modified and timelines changed when a business requirement is not meeting needed functionality.” It goes on to identify that no one was willing to make a “No-Go” decision despite resource deficiencies, late deliverables and lack of stakeholder involvement.

AALA has published myriad articles about MiSiS over the past two years. It is not our intent to rehash what has been said multiple times; nor is there any need to gloat. What we do find disconcerting, however, is that Viramontes, who was hired by former Superintendent Deasy and who has a contract with the District through February 2015, actually comes up with little new information and regurgitates much of what we have previously written, albeit using more organizational management semantics. For example, “The Help Desk had not been tiered to handle the call load or have the level of expertise needed.” Hmmm…we said that last spring. Also, “There appeared to be a significant lack of input from the community of personnel that would eventually use the applications.” Gee, didn’t we say that too? In fact, for AALA members and those on the MiSiS Committee, there is really little new information in the seven-page report. (To access the entire report, click here: Viramontes Report. | http://bit.ly/1xpKDC2)

The Viramontes Group’s analysis finds that the project cannot be completed with the current management structure and staffing models. It asserts that more developers, quality assurance personnel, subject matter experts and dedicated stakeholders are needed. Perhaps, in response to this, Superintendent Cortines requested assistance from Microsoft Corp., which sent sixteen staff members this week to work with the District team in resolving MiSiS problems. In addition, a District news release indicated that the company is exploring a long-term relationship with LAUSD in which Microsoft would potentially lead the MiSiS efforts. While we appreciate Mr. Cortines’ hands-on approach to resolving the issues with MiSiS and his weekly communication updates, we anticipate that complete functionality of the system will not happen in the near future and this school year will continue to be one of the most challenging ever.

_______________________

LAUSD’s MiSiS: 2,580 STUDENTS WITHOUT SCHEDULES, 1,136 STUDENTS HAVE NO ID NUMBER, 1,251 HAVE DUPLICATE NUMBERS …AND IT JUST GOES ON+ON+ON
By Thomas Himes, Los Angeles Daily News | http://bit.ly/1sV2awK

Posted: 11/15/14, 8:47 PM PST While progress has been made in some areas, at least 2,580 students still have no class schedules, according to a report released by a computer expert hired to oversee Los Angeles Unified’s plans to fix a disastrous new computer system, MiSiS.

Superintendent Ramon Cortines has said correcting the computer system is key, especially as the district begins a second semester and students will again need to be assigned class schedules. The program launched on the first day of school caused massive disruptions, as students were missing from the system and educators scrambled to create course schedules and class rosters by hand. Middle and high schools are being asked to put together their course offerings and master schedules for the second semester by Friday.

Aside from missing schedules, 1,136 students have no identification number listed, which ensures the correct student’s records have been called up, and 1,251 have duplicate numbers. Counselors have complained that they must search the records of all 650,000 students each time they need to pull one student’s records. Even when the searches pull up the correct student, listing the right name and identification number, the course schedules and other records provided can be for a different student with the same name.

The district’s technological staff, meanwhile, is working to solve 229 programming bugs, including 34 in enrollment, 34 in grades, 30 in scheduling and 22 in attendance, according to the report.

Cortines last week took a step toward speeding up the time frame to fix the system by persuading Microsoft’s top executives to dispatch 16 employees to help fix and develop the software. Microsoft was one of the contractors hired to help LAUSD develop MiSiS, but the district’s has not identified the specific role Microsoft played in building the system, despite repeated requests from this organization.

“Already, our IT team and Microsoft have worked with schools to resolve the majority of transcript issues,” Cortines wrote in an update for the school board on Friday.

Some 300 school employees, and retirees hired on a temporary basis, were sent to high school campuses earlier this month to find transcripts for college-bound students facing deadlines for early application and financial aid.

In a Nov. 7 letter requesting Microsoft’s help, Cortines wrote: “Microsoft’s assistance with the My Integrated Student Information System (‘MiSiS’) is critical, given the that the systems malfunctioning continues to negatively impact the entire Los Angeles Community.”
_______________________

► LAUSD REPORT SAYS NEARLY 5,000 STUDENTS STILL AFFECTED BY MiSiS ISSUES

by LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1sV5kAK

MiSiSPosted on November 14, 2014 5:45 pm :: The outside consultant hired by LA Unified to help fix the district’s new data tracking system is reporting that, through yesterday, nearly 5,000 students had been affected by flaws in the MiSiS computer system.

In a breakdown the district released today, the Viramontes Group found that 2,580 students were without schedules, 1,251 had duplicate IDs and another 1,136 were missing their district IDs — for a total of 4,967 students suffering issues linked to the system.

In addition, the report identified 229 “programming bugs” through Nov. 10, a list of problems affecting more than two dozen categories of data, such as attendance, grade books, state reporting and transcripts.

The seven page report also includes a section of “observations,” which lists problems found, steps taken to eliminate them and further work that needs to be done.

The report lists 30 issues to be dealt with, 29 of which require additional work.


THIS WEEK's LAUSD THIRD PARTY MiSiS STATUS REPORT



2 Stories: RATLIFF ASKING FOR REVIEW OF LITIGATION COSTS OVER LAST 5 YEARS

by Vanessa Romo, LA School Report | http://bit.ly/1xJFtRu

November 13, 2014 4:08 pm :: Building on her success investigating LA Unified’s controversial iPad program, Board Member Monica Ratliff is now asking for an overall examination into how the district allocates support for legal matters as a way to find added funding for improving school safety.

In two resolutions set to come before the board next Tuesday, Ratliff is calling for a report on litigation expenses, awards and settlements over the last five years arising out of child abuse accusations against district employees and in cases where criminal actions occur on school campuses.

LA Unified Board Member Monica Ratliff>>

The idea, according to Ratliff, is to redirect these funds toward boosting school police or other security measures and adding a second adult to all classrooms.

“Both resolutions call for analyses and plans to be done with all deliberate speed so that the Board and Superintendent can determine what, if any, logical and effective next steps in school security and safety need to be implemented as quickly as possible,” Ratliff said in a statement.

In recent years the district has paid out millions of dollars in child abuse or molestation settlements, some of which are still ongoing. The Miramonte Elementary School case in which a veteran teacher, Mark Berndt, was found guilty of lewd acts on 23 children, sending him to prison, is still in civil court, after $30 million in settlements for 65 victims. More plaintiffs are waiting their turn.

Although the district employs 41 attorneys in house, all of the Miramonte cases were outsourced to two high-level law firms, Andrade Gonzalez, LLP and Sedgwick LLP.

“Cases are outsourced when there is a capacity issue and/or specific legal expertise is required,” Chief General Counsel David Holmquist explained in an email to LA School Report.

“The vast majority of legal work is handled in-house, and the General Counsel’s office is continually increasing that amount. That said, outside counsel will always be needed,” he added.

If the resolutions are approved, Ratliff expects the reports to be completed by Jan. 16
________________

LAUSD BOARD MEMBER QUESTIONS DISTRICT LEGAL COSTS

AT ISSUE IS THE HIRING OF A LEGAL DEFENSE FIRM FOR MORE THAN TWICE THE HOURLY COST OF THE DISTRICT'S STANDING LAWYERS.
By John Cádiz Klemack, KNBC | http://bit.ly/1xJGhWy

Friday, Nov 14, 2014 • Updated at 8:14 PM PST :: On the eve of what could be the biggest child sexual abuse case against a school district in the country, a board member with the Los Angeles Unified School District is questioning how the district allocates its money for legal cases.

Board Member Monica Ratliff, an attorney, plans to request two resolutions at the Nov. 18 board meeting focusing on what she says will increase school safety. The resolutions, titled "Assessing Possibilities for Increased School Safety Resources" and "Increasing Safety and Educational Outcomes Through Augmented Classroom Staffing" could rely heavily on an internal investigation into recent litigation costs against the district.

Ratliff declined to be interviewed by NBC4 but submitted a statement, writing, “I appreciate the interest that my resolutions have generated regarding this important topic. I want to know that I have done everything possible to protect our children. I hope my colleagues on the board will join me and pass the resolutions.”

She goes on to say that both resolutions call for analyses and plans to happen quickly, "so that the board and superintendent can determine what, if any, logical and effective next steps in school security and safety need to be implemented as quickly as possible.”

In an online report from LASchoolReport.com, Ratliff says she wants to see if the district can "redirect certain funds toward boosting school police or other security measures and adding a second adult to all classrooms." Ratliff is asking for a report on all litigation expenses, awards and settlements over the last five years arising out of child abuse allegations against district employees and in cases where criminal actions occur on school grounds.

It comes more than nine months after NBC4 reported allegations against LAUSD's general counsel of cronyism and malpractice for the law firms chosen to handle the Miramonte Elementary School child sexual abuse case, set to go to trial Monday. In a complaint filed by the district's former risk manager, Gregg Breed, he claimed the district chose the law firms because of their ties to Assistant General Counsel Greg McNair.

When NBC4 asked McNair if he had previously worked for the Sedgwick Law Firm, which documents obtained by NBC4 show is charging the district upwards of $460 an hour to handle the Miramonte case, he admitted the connection, but denied it was the reason for hiring the firm.

In an exclusive one-on-one interview with the district's lead attorney, General Counsel David Holmquist, he stood by the decision to hire the law firm. Holmquist called the $460 an hour price tag reasonable, and "a result of extensive negotiation."

"Mr. McNair made the recommendation to me but at the end of the day, it's my decision," he said in February. "I am very confident that we have chosen the right team, the right group of attorneys to be able to represent us and I would choose the same ones again, today."

But the cost to the District thus far, according to records obtained through California's Public Records Act, show the District's bill reaching $8 million just before the case is to begin with jury selection Nov. 17.

"Greg came to me and said, these are the firms that I want to assign this work to because they have the capacity and expertise that we need," Holmquist said of his conversation with McNair, "This is bigger and grander than our typical situation that we face so we need that level of expertise and I certainly agreed and it was absolutely the right decision."

LAUSD has a defense panel of attorneys that have successfully argued liability cases for the district in the past with a flat rate fee of $175 an hour. But Holmquist said the expertise and capacity for the amount of documents to be discussed and potential victims involved in the Miramonte case were far too much for the district's panel to handle.

The costs of the litigation in Miramonte and other cases over the last few years are what Ratliff wants to investigate. Ratliff similarly investigated the district's iPad program, which ultimately lead to the resignation of former Superintendent John Deasy.

Holmquist told NBC4 his choices in the Miramonte were well-documented by the school board.

"They were apprised of the process we intended to employ in the Miramonte case and we intended to act under their direction," he said.

At the time he said the district was dealing with 2,000 pieces of litigation, claiming to keep board members in-the-know on each case would be an unreasonable burden.

"That is my responsibility as the General Counsel of the school district," he said. "So I did tell them who was representing us but it's not a decision that they make, that's delegated to me. They could choose to do something if they wanted to but they've delegated that responsibility to me. If they're not happy with my decision, then they need to take that out on me."

When asked in February if Holmquist would be willing to allow for an investigation into the decisions made behind the Miramonte defense, he said he would, but commented, "There's no need for one and I don't want to have one going on while we're in trial. I don't think we need to do that at this point in time but I remain open and willing to have anybody look at our process after this is all concluded."

It could be an issue to spar over as Ratliff has requested the investigation be finalized by mid-January, which is only possible if the rest of the board approves her resolutions.


From the wonderful folks who brought us the Common Core Technology Project and MiSiS: LAUSD POLICY BULLETIN NINE NINE NINE (POINT) NINE + smf's 2¢

TITLE► RESPONSIBLE & ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY (RAUP) FOR DISTRICT COMPUTER AND NETWORK SYSTEMS

NUMBER► BUL - 999.9

ISSUER► Matt Hill, Chief Strategy Officer

DATE► November 3, 2014

ROUTING► Administrators, Instructional Technology, Applications Facilitators, Principals*, Teachers, Parent Community Representatives

POLICY► Teachers, administrators, and other school personnel should ensure District data systems are used in a responsible, efficient, ethical, and legal manner, and that such use be in support of the District’s business and education objectives.

MAJOR CHANGES► This revision replaces BUL-999.8 dated June 19, 2013, renaming the policy as the Responsible & Acceptable Use Policy and adding language on the District’s web content filtering system(s).

BACKGROUND► On January 8, 2002, the LAUSD Board of Education established Board Rule 1254 as the Acceptable Use Policy as required by the Children’s Internet Protection Act.

All uses of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) computer and network systems by students, employees, contractors, and consultants are subject to the LAUSD’s Responsible & Acceptable Use Policy (RAUP). This bulletin will undergo periodic review to ensure it reflects current laws and regulations.*

PROCEDURES► Users of District computer systems, networks, or the Internet must adhere to the Responsible & Acceptable Use Policy
.
Students:
Site administrators must annually distribute, collect, and keep on file the completed
attached forms from students prior to authorizing access to the Internet or the District’s network:

ATTACHMENT A: RAUP information and sign-off form for Students and Parents
ATTACHMENT B: Employees will confirm their assent to the RAUP electronically when they activate their District account and/or change passwords.

ASSISTANCE: For further information, please contact the IT Helpdesk on the web
http://helpdesk.lausd.net or by telephone at (213) 241-5200.

●●smf’s 2¢: See the Attachments at the link below.

In the part of my early life before my misspent youth I lived in London, and the big hit TV show was a police procedural called “Dial 999”, that being the telephone number one dials in the U.K. in an emergency. It’s also an obscure rock song about unrequited love by The Loose Ends; I’ll spare you the lyrics.

A finer legal mind than mine will have to determine if the policy requiring “such use be in support of the District’s business and education objective” proscribes District technology from being used by staff to surf the internet, answer personal email, shop, play Solitaire/Candy Crush or Words with Friends on the public’s time from their desks, cubicles, offices …or from the horseshoe in the boardroom.

BULLETIN 999.9 ATTACHMENT A (THE PARENT AND STUDENT ATTACHMENT) requires parental signature and return; its legalistic boilerplate pretty much states that LAUSD isn’t responsible for anything much and that parents are responsible for everything else and [Direct Quote] “Students under the age of eighteen should only access LAUSDnet accounts outside of school if a parent or legal guardian supervises their usage at all times. The student’s parent or guardian is responsible for monitoring the minor’s use.”[End Quote]

“ONLY IF A PARENT OR GUARDIAN SUPERVISES THEIR USAGE AT ALL TIMES” – in what reality is this going to happen? Even June and Ward didn’t supervise Wally and the Beav’s homework at all times!

The Policy Bulletin requires that parents sign off on the policy annually – and that school offices keep the signed documents on file – and of course the legal CYA continues, with provisions to make sure that the signed agreements are binding even if they didn’t get last year’s form .

And my favorite: [Quote] “Even without signature, all users must follow this policy… [End Quote]

There is something in law called a Contract of Adhesion: a contract between two parties where the terms and conditions of the contract are set by one of the parties, and the other party has little or no ability to negotiate more favorable terms and is thus placed in a "take it or leave it" position. It’s like the bogus declaimers on the back of parking lot tickets or software agreements on the internet. Except that this is worse because “even without signature, all users must follow this policy.”

No provision is made in the policy for those who choose to not agree to it.

Though I suspect that carving it into the stone of an LAUSD Policy Bulletin doesn’t necessarily make it binding upon all humanity in perpetuity.

See: Sierra David Sterkin, Challenging Adhesion Contracts in California: A Consumer's Guide, 34 Golden Gate U. L. Rev. (2004). | http://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/ggulrev/vol34/iss2/3


LAUSD POLICY BULLETIN 999.9 with Attachments A + B



HIGHLIGHTS, LOWLIGHTS & THE NEWS THAT DOESN'T FIT: The Rest (but not necessarily the best) of the Stories from Other Sources


THIS WEEK's LAUSD MiSiS STATUS REPORT | http://bit.ly/1ztFBDP

LAUSD REPORT SAYS NEARLY 5,000 STUDENTS STILL AFFECTED BY MiSiS ISSUES | http://bit.ly/1ztFBDP

LAUSD’s MiSiS: 2,580 students without schedules, 1,136 have no ID# 1,251 have duplicate #s & it just goes on+on+on | http://bit.ly/1xF0VpU

Associated Press: PARENTS LIE ON SURVEY TO IDENTIFY ENGLISH LEARNERS | http://bit.ly/1vfbTVd

REPORT DETAILS MISSTEPS BY MARLBOROUGH SCHOOL IN RESPONDING TO ALLEGED SEXUAL HARASSMENT OF students | http://lat.ms/1xuwkO5

MEMO TO LAUSD: A 14-YEAR-OLD CAN'T CONSENT TO SEX | http://lat.ms/1qMHO8h

DEASY’S DEFEAT: Superintendent is beaten by the 2-big-2-reform LAUSD + smf’s 2¢ http://bit.ly/1xERQ07

MIRAMONTE ABUSE TRIAL PARTICIPANTS WILL BE ABLE TO SPEAK TO MEDIA: Judge denies LAUSD's request for gag order | http://bit.ly/1uyWbBY

2 Stories: RATLIFF ASKING FOR REVIEW OF LITIGATION COSTS OVER LAST 5 YEARS | http://bit.ly/1y4VH5O

L.A. UNIFIED ATTORNEY APOLOGIZES FOR SAYING IT'S MORE DANGEROUS TO CROSS STREET THAN HAVE SEX WITH A TEACHER | http://bit.ly/1ucaBXr

L.A. TIMES & LA OPINÓN ON LAUSD’s ‘BLAME THE VICTIM’ COURTROOM STRATEGY | http://bit.ly/1ucaBXr

U*P*D*A*T*E*D :: LA UNIFIED ARGUED MIDDLE SCHOOLER CAN CONSENT TO SEX WITH TEACHER | http://bit.ly/14ih2Qq

2 STORIES ON CLASS SIZE REDUCTION IN LAUSD: http://tl.gd/n_1sie6ik

LA UNIFIED’S UNPAID RETAIL JOBS FOR HIGH SCHOOL CREDITS DRAW CRITICISM | http://bit.ly/1ugAMOi

LA UNIFIED ARGUED MIDDLE SCHOOLER CAN CONSENT TO SEX WITH TEACHER | http://bit.ly/14ih2Qq

"GROSSLY UNFAIR" Rep. George Miller of House Education & Workforce Committee responds to TIME's "Rotten Apples" cover http://bit.ly/1zl27Pf

“I have a BS in electrical engineering.Even I cannot explain the common-core math approach, nor get the answer correct.” http://bit.ly/1sF5eMs

MiSiS: SUPE’S WEEKLY UPDATE+BOARD INFORMATIVE ON MICROSOFT DEPLOYMENT OF ADDL RESOURCES + LETTER TO MICROSOFT CEO & BOARD| http://bit.ly/11j9kV8

JOIN THE FUN - Seeking PARENT Representative for LA Unified Environmental Comtee Read: http://tl.gd/n_1siddod

PARENT TRIGGER: LA Unified schools chief to restore parent power to overhaul failing schools + smf’s 2¢ legal opinion http://bit.ly/1qEdzQV

PARENTS (Still) FIND LA SCHOOLS MAGNET PROGRAM APPLICATION DAUNTING + smf’s 2¢ [The Deadline is Friday!] http://bit.ly/1v3KhlW

NY Times: STATES LISTEN AS PARENTS GIVE RAMPANT TESTING AN ‘F’ | http://bit.ly/1xE0laK

A TECHNOLOGICAL NIGHTMARE | La Opinión | http://bit.ly/1xDkygU

“THE TEACHER WARS”: EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN” | http://bit.ly/1GIa3z4

BIG YEAR FOR SCHOOL BONDS - Voters in 89 school districts & community colleges passed bonds worth $11.5 billion. | http://bit.ly/1GHWsb8

INSTEAD OF INTEREST TAKING ⅓ > ½ OF THE COST OF A BOND MEASURE, INTEREST FOR A TECH BOND WILL BE APPX 5% OF THE COST http://bit.ly/1GHWsb8

55%/Prop 39 compliant Ed-Tech Bonds: DISTRICTS FIND NEW WAY TO FUND TECHNOLOGY | http://bit.ly/1GHWsb8


EVENTS: Coming up next week...
The BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE meets at 10AM at Beaudry on Thursday Nov 20th in the Boardroom
*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:
Tamar.Galatzan@lausd.net • 213-241-6386
Monica.Garcia@lausd.net • 213-241-6180
Bennett.Kayser@lausd.net • 213-241-5555
George.McKenna@lausd.net • 213-241-6382
Monica.Ratliff@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!.


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




Scott Folsom is a parent leader in LAUSD and is Parent/Volunteer of the Year for 2010-11 for Los Angeles County. • He is Past President of Los Angeles Tenth District PTSA and represented PTA on the LAUSD Construction Bond Citizen's Oversight Committee for ten years. 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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