Fact Check: On Education, Gains Difficult To Demonstrate
Education reporter Howard Blume fact checks last night’s debate between President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. LA Times 

California Schools On The Brink
If the state’s voters don’t approve a package of emergency tax increases at the ballot box in November, the system – already pushed to the brink by decades of budgets cuts, swelling class sizes, skyrocketing inner-city dropout rates, shrinking libraries and disappearing arts and music programs – will start to shut down altogether. Salon

A Missed Opportunity To Reform Teacher Evaluations
AB 5 was not perfect, but for the community groups and advocates who supported it, its demise represents the loss of a much-needed reform of the state’s teacher evaluation system. In figuring out a way forward, it’s worth examining the loudest arguments opposing AB 5 and whether and how to address them. Ed Source

2011-12 Education Bills Come Due
A review of all the bills that came through the state legislature this year. Ed Source 

Inglewood High Grad Takes Over City’s Troubled School District
Kent Taylor, who graduated from Inglewood High in 1982 and was recently an education official in Kern County, steps in to lead the state-controlled district. LA Times 

Community Colleges’ Crisis Slows Students’ Progress To A Crawl
Thousands of degree seekers are able to enroll in only one class at a time. Hopes of graduating or transferring wither as years pass. LA Times

California School Funding Formula Not Easy To Change
Columnist Dan Walters writes about how a plan “to streamline state aid and shift more money to low-performing schools with large numbers of students who are poor or ‘English learners,'” met its untimely end. Sac Bee

Heatwave Leaves Southland Residents Weary
By the end of the school days, technicians had responded to calls for air-conditioning service at 65 San Fernando Valley campuses, about 20 percent more than usual, Los Angeles Unified School District Deputy Maintenance Director Robert Laughton said. San Bernardino Sun

Post-Miramonte, Attorney Calls For More Aggressive Measures
The Los Angeles Unified School District should agree to an independent monitor over safety issues, said Attorney Luis A. Carrillo in a news conference at his South Pasadena office. LA Times

Miramonte: Lawyers Say Picasso Print Distressed Students
The alleged victims’ lawyers claim that at least one of their clients experienced “suffering” because a print of a Pablo Picasso painting was posted in Mark Berndt’s classroom. Berndt is the former teacher who’s accused of abusing 23 students over at least five years. KPCC

State-Appointed Administrator For Inglewood Unified To Be Announced Wednesday
Inglewood Unified union leaders and a school board member say California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction is set to announce on Wednesday his pick to run the Inglewood Unified School District for the state. It’s the result of the school district’s rescue from bankruptcy. KPCC

Brown signs bill spelling out evaluations (for principals) Ed Source: Without the acrimony and fanfare that doomed a teacher evaluation bill last month, the Legislature with near unanimity passed and Gov. Brown has now signed a milestone principal and teacher evaluation bill.

Backers say bills signed by Brown will reduce school suspensions LA Times: Advocates aiming to reform school discipline policies hailed the governor for signing four bills they say will help reduce the number of California students suspended each year.

Letter from CA to Inglewood Unified school board: you’re relieved of authority KPCC: It’s official. California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction sent a letter Thursday to Ingelwood’s elected school board members telling them the state’s taking over the school district.

San Pedro’s Science Center to remain open until June as LAUSD searches for new group to run the place Daily Breeze: San Pedro’s Science Center received a reprieve on Friday. Threatened only a week ago with closure by Oct. 1, the center now will remain open until June as Los Angeles school officials seek bids from a nonprofit or private entity to operate the facility, school officials announced.

California’s community colleges staggering during hard times LA Times: Demand is up but funding is down for California’s community colleges. Many students are shut out of needed classes, making it harder to get their degrees or transfer.

Nonprofits Unite to Keep Music in LAUSD ATVN: Adopt the Arts and Little Kids Rock—two nonprofit organizations– announced a partnership on Thursday, Sept. 20th at Rosewood Elementary School to revitalize and develop music programs in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).

Harvard-Westlake building reflects standout student’s interests LA Times: The Kutler center is named for Brendan Kutler, who died in 2009 at 17. It will house a new interdisciplinary studies department that reflects Kutler’s many passions.

Georgia team meets with LA officials to reform school discipline KPCC: Los Angeles school, law enforcement and county officials are meeting Thursday with a team from an Atlanta suburb that pioneered methods to reduce on-campus arrests. They hope to create a similar, more holistic system to deal with misbehaving students.

Tamar Galatzan: Outsiders’ protest lacks health knowledge of LAUSD schools Daily News: An editorial by the school board member denounces a June protest against a Planned Parenthood health clinic at Roosevelt High.

African American School Girl Sent Home Over Skin-Tone Tights? LAUSD Defends Itself LA Weekly: A district official tells the Weekly that tights are, in fact, banned under district policy. A letter was subsequently sent to the girl’s mother explaining that dress code, which includes the rule that “no tights shall be worn alone.”

Inglewood Unified cuts employee pay 15 percent to avoid bankruptcy KPCC: The district’s solvency hangs in the balance. Inglewood Unified may run out of money to meet its expenses as soon as March.

UC to pay settlement in Davis pepper spray case LA Times: The University of California will pay damages to the UC Davis students and alumni who were pepper sprayed by campus police during an otherwise peaceful protest 10 months ago, officials said Thursday.

Computers to play larger role in statewide assessments SI&A Cabinet Report: The state is moving closer to unveiling its plan for transitioning to a new student assessment system that will require potentially expensive improvements to school technology infrastructure.

Senate backs eliminating BIP mandate; online learning, math adoption move ahead SI&A Cabinet Report: In a cost-cutting move that has near unanimous opposition from schools, a majority in the state Senate moved Wednesday to back a plan to eliminate most state funding tied to school management behavior issues of special education students.

100-Year-Old Driver Plows Into School Crowd AP:  A 100-year-old man backed his car on to a sidewalk and hit 11 people, including nine children, across from an elementary school in South Los Angeles just after classes had ended Wednesday, authorities said.

Lawmakers approve bailout loan for Inglewood Unified SI&A Cabinet Report: Sen. Roderick Wright’s SB 533 authorizes a loan of up to $55 million and requires Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, in consultation with the Los Angeles County Superintendent of Schools, to appoint an administrator to run the district.

After a Year Teaching High School, Tony Danza Says We Owe Educators an Apology GOOD: During the 2009-2010 school year the actor ditched Hollywood for a gig teaching tenth grade English at Northeast High School in Philadelphia. Now Danza’s written a book about the experience.

Crystal Brown: Fighting For An Excellent Teacher Huffington Post:  Yesterday, my worlds collided and the resulting flash of light has allowed me to see — with absolute clarity — why I am fighting so darned hard to improve the public education system in California.

Even Super-PACers Don’t Like Super-PACS, But Prop. 32 Won’t Stop Them  CTA Blog: Proposition 32 will do nothing to rein in Super-PACs or limit the contributions of a range of business entities, including limited liability corporations (LLCs), real estate trusts, and other wealthy special interests.