The application period began Tuesday for LA Unified’s popular magnet schools and centers, which next fall will add nearly a dozen new options for families seeking a specialized education. Applications will be accepted online and by mail until 5 p.m. Nov. 10 for one of the 225 themed magnets, which will have an estimated 87,000 available seats...

For the second year in a row, LA Unified’s independent charter schools outperformed the district’s traditional schools on California’s standardized math and English language arts (ELA) tests, according to data released Monday by the California Charter Schools Association. The district’s magnets topped both.  The district’s independent charters saw 46 percent of its students meet or...

By Barbara Jones Los Angeles Unified’s popular magnet centers and schools outscored independent charters by double-digit margins on California’s new state assessments, and also beat statewide averages on the rigorous math and English tests, according to data released today. In the analysis of the Smarter Balanced Assessments, 61 percent of magnet students met or exceeded...

Three years ago, the school now known as the LAUSD/USC Cinematic Arts and Engineering Magnet converted from a performing arts magnet into one with a cinematic focus, and it hired Matt Waynee to head up the new cinematic arts department. To add to his success at the school, Waynee has now been named National Magnet School Teacher of the...

Updated Feb. 10, 2021 | This is part of an LA School Report series taking an in-depth look at the different categories of schools that exist within the massive LA Unified school district. Today we conclude a three-part mini-series on magnet schools. Check here for Part I and Part II.  Jai’Myah Henderson may have fallen right...

The LA Unified school board put its money where its mouth is at its May 10 meeting and approved a $3 million expansion of its growing magnet program. The move comes after months of public comments from district leaders pointing to the popular magnet program as a way to increase enrollment in the district. Two...

Almost without comment Tuesday, the LA Unified school board voted unanimously to seek help from outside the district to replicate high-achieving schools. The resolution was introduced by Monica Garcia and Ref Rodriguez and asks the district staff to “seek outside support for the funding” to replicate successful school programs in areas of high need in the...

This is part of a series looking at the different types of schools that make up the Los Angeles Unified School District. As part of our examination of magnets, LA School Report visited Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet to learn what makes it one of the top schools in the district.  A nondescript building next to the...

LA Unified has so many different kinds of schools, it’s hard to keep them all straight. With such varied terms as affiliated charter, independent charter, magnet school, pilot school, continuation school, option school and others, it can be a challenge to understand what they are, what they offer and how they differ.  This is the first part...

For all the successful magnet schools in LA Unified and elsewhere, they are not attracting as much federal support as charter schools. That was a stark message from the district’s federal lobbyist, who told a district board committee this week that Washington is increasing national support for charter schools by nearly 32 percent but by...