According to Caputo-Pearl, the union has not updated its dues structure since its inception 45 years ago, which now “literally threatens the future of UTLA.”

In the video, Caputo-Pearl points out that UTLA’s monthly fees are lower than other large teacher unions in the country and lower than most other teacher unions in the state.

The video also includes a humorous reference to former LA Unified Superintendent John Deasy, who resigned a year ago. Deasy and Caputo-Pearl locked horns frequently, but now Deasy is working at the Broad Center, and its affiliated Broad Foundation is currently developing a plan to expand charter schools in the district to include half of all students.

Caputo-Pearl claims in the video that UTLA has confirmed that Deasy is, in fact, the architect of the plan, which was outlined in a 48-page draft report. Caputo-Pearl calls this the “reanimation” of Deasy. Reanimation? Is that a reference to the 80s cult classic film, “Re-Animator“?

The film is about a doctor who discovers how to bring corpses back from the dead. Using the film as a metaphor, it certainly shows the ironic position Caputo-Pearl finds himself in. He helped chase Deasy out of the district, which he hailed as a “victory” for UTLA. But now Deasy is arguably in a much more powerful position as he allegedly orchestrates a plan that would wipe out half of the jobs of UTLA members.

As the trailer for the film says, “Once you wake up the dead, you’ve got a real mess on your hands.”

Check out the full UTLA video below.

A Call for a Californian 

LA Unified is currently in a hot search for a new superintendent and is already receiving applications and putting together a list of potential candidates. As the district contemplates what kind of superintendent it wants, the union that represents its principals, the Associated Administrators of Los Angeles (AALA), has an interesting request: make sure he or she is from California.

The opening of AALA’s latest newsletter reads: “The time has come for the District’s next superintendent to be from California! The previous superintendents from Florida, Colorado, Virginia, and Prince George’s County [MD] have produced a mixed-bag of results for the District at best! Besides, the proof is in the pudding with Superintendent Cortines. This is his third tour of duty with the Los Angeles Unified School District and, by all accounts and Google searches, he is a Californian!”

Just simply finding any qualified candidate, let alone one with as specific a credential as where they grew up, has proven to be a challenge for LAUSD in the past. As one district staffer told LA School Report a year ago when Deasy stepped down, “The truth is there aren’t a lot of superintendents out there who have run any government agency of this size. That leaves LAUSD with a very short list of candidates with actual experience.”

Then there is Kate Walsh, president of the National Council on Teacher Quality, who said back then: “I don’t know a single person on earth who would want that terrible job. It won’t be a change agent. It will be a status quo candidate who will make life pleasant for himself by enjoying all the wrapping of the superintendency and being smart enough not to try and change a thing.”

Certainly there must be at least one Californian out there fitting that criteria.

Girls Build LA Initiative

About 7,000 high school girls from around Los Angeles County were invited this week to the West Coast premiere of a new documentary called “He Named Me Malala” at L.A. Live. The film is about the girl who survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban and went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

The event was part of the LA Fund’s launch of the Girls Build LA Initiative, a program designed to” encourage girls to pursue their education and challenge them to be problem solvers in their schools and communities.”

The Girls Build LA Initiative will also award grants to 50 teams of eight to 10 girls around the county for designing projects that address problems affect their education and communities.

Aside from the movie, the girls at the screening were also treated to a message from First Lady Michelle Obama. See it below:

The challenge asked students to propose solutions to global problems, and Westchester’s 10-member team took on water sustainability awareness in Los Angeles, according to a LA Unified press release. 

The team will showcase its solution in at the 2015 Aspen Ideas Festival this July in Colorado.

“This was an adventurous journey for each team,” said Brenda Manuel, administrator at LAUSD’s Parent Community Student Services Branch, in a statement. “Each member brought his/her talent, creativity and dedication and in the process, gained a new voice as a leader.”

School Experience Survey

LA Unified is asking students, parents and school staff to rate schools through a new poll, the School Experience Survey.

“The School Experience Survey asks important questions about school quality, such as: what opportunities do students have to be leaders at their school; how welcoming and collaborative is the environment; how clean and safe is the campus,” a district press release said. “The deadline for responding to the survey is April 10, and the District hopes for total participation. L.A. Unified measures its performance against previous surveys, which have taken place for seven years. In addition, the information helps mark the District’s progress toward federal goals.”

Susan Steelman Bragato Scholarship Award

The California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) awarded five high school seniors with the Susan Steelman Bragato Scholarship Award at its 22^nd Annual California Charter Schools Conference, which is taking place this week in Sacramento. One of the winners is an LAUSD student from Academia Avance.

The award, which includes a $2,000 prize, honors students who demonstrate a passion for community service while reaching their educational goals.

According to a CCSA press release, Academia Avance student Jose Chitala “earned a plethora of accolades including the Principals List Award and Excellence in Leadership Award at the Hispanic Scholarship Funds’ Youth Leadership Institute. He is team captain for varsity soccer, class representative for the Associated Student Body, a facilitator of religious education at Saint Ignatius Loyola Church and volunteers for the Northeast Los Angeles Peace March. Jose also volunteers as a youth soccer coach at Kids Club Italia Soccer League.”

Anyone interested can enter a contest to go “lowriding” with Lopez around Los Angeles in a vintage lowrider, join him for a meal at one of his favorite LA restaurants and be put up in a four-star hotel for two nights. The contest works like a charity raffle with the winner randomly selected. The cost to enter spans from $10 to $10,000, and the more one spends the higher the chances to win are. 

Lopez graduated from San Fernando High School in 1979 and has previously donated funds and participated in charities for San Fernando and LAUSD schools. In 2011, the auditorium at San Fernando Elementary, where Lopez said he first performed at the age of 6, was named after him.

Robotics students gather for film screening

About 900 students on robotics teams from 11 LA Unified schools are gathering at 4:30 p.m. today at the Cesar Chavez Auditorium at San Fernando High School for a screening of the film “Spare Parts,” according to a district press release.

The film is based on a true story about a team of robotics students from Phoenix who were undocumented immigrants and beat MIT students in a robotics competition. Co-starring in the film as the students’ teacher is … George Lopez.

Actors Carolos Penavega and Alexa Penavega from the film are expected to be in attendance, according to a district spokesperson.

‘Parent Trigger’ pulled in Orange County

Parents at Palm Lane Elementary School in Anaheim have filed petitions to overhaul their school through the state Parent Empowerment Act of 2010. It is the first school in Orange County to use the so-called “parent trigger” law, according to the California Center for Parent Empowerment.

A press release from the Center said the school “has been identified by the California Department of Education as an underperforming school since 2003, posting an anemic 746 Academic Performance Index, dropping 33 API points in the last three years. Student testing results indicate that 60 percent of 5th graders are below basic levels of proficiency in mathematics, while 63 percent are below basic levels of proficiency in English Language Arts.” 

Expulsions, suspensions fall in California and LAUSD

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson yesterday announced a 15.2 drop in the number of students suspended and a 20 percent drop in the number of students expelled in 2013-14. It is the second year in a row the two statistics have declined, according to a press release from Torlakson’s office.

In LAUSD, suspensions fell 25.5 percent, according the Los Angeles Daily News, which also pointed out that African American students received 32.3 percent of suspensions while only making up 9.2 percent of the entire student body, a suggestion that the district still has progress to make on the issue.

The statewide drop was attributed to a focus on “restorative justice,” which LA Unified has committed to enacting at every school by 2020.

“These numbers show that the work of the department, districts, teachers, parents, and students around the state is paying off by keeping more students in school and learning,” Torlakson said in a press release. “You can have the best facilities, the best teachers, and the best curriculum in the world, but none of that matters if students are not in school. That’s why we have put so much effort into increasing school attendance and reducing expulsions and suspensions and will continue to do so.”

Torlakson to celebrate reelection

After defeating challenger Marshall Tuck in November and being officially re-sworn into office on Jan. 5, Torlakson is holding a Southern California inauguration reception on Friday at the William Turner Gallery in Santa Monica.

New York magazine profiles ‘the most controversial woman in school reform’

New York magazine this week profiled Campbell Brown, the former TV journalist and CNN anchor who has become the face of the education reform movement on the East Coast. Brown is the founder of the Partnership for Educational Justice, a group that has filed a lawsuit in New York state similar to the Vergara v. California case that challenged teacher job protection laws.

A new partnership between a non-profit and the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation (LADF) is ensuring that more LAUSD students can look forward to eating healthier breakfasts at school during the 2014-2015 academic year.

The partnership comes as an efforts to bolster School Fuel, an initiative launched by the Los Angeles Fund for Public Education (The LA Fund), which reduces the stigma of receiving free or discounted breakfast from federal programs by bringing free breakfasts to LAUSD students, regardless of income. Now, more than 360,000 students participate in the federally subsidized program – a jump of 200,000 in under three years.

“We are so grateful for this partnership with the Dodgers Foundation, and we know that their involvement will give students another reason to be excited about sharing a meal in their classroom community,” said Megan Chernin, CEO of the LA Fund.

To celebrate the partnership, Dodgers outfielder, Andre Ethier, surprised 6th grade students at Nightingale Middle School last week during their breakfast. As they ate, Either discussed fitness habits and the importance of reading nutrition labels, which now feature him and his fellow Dodger players Carl Crawford and Clayton Kershaw on the sides of milk cartons served in LA Unified schools.

As a follow up to the celebration, the Dodgers will present a $200,000 check to LA fund before the Dodgers vs. Red Sox game on June 16.

Now, teachers who want to enrich the education of their students, anything from obtaining new equipment to offering specialized courses, can search for grants through a centralized hub, and attend grant-writing workshops.

“The response has been amazing!” said Adena Tessler, Vice president of Mercury Public Affairs, in an interview with LA School Report, “Since we launched the program on March 17th, our classes are 97 percent full, and a few of them even have wait lists. Clearly, we’re going to have to look into creating more opportunities because there are so many teachers that want to learn how to write grants.”

As of last Thursday, more than 450 people had signed up and created profiles on the Grants HQ web site.

Before the program, teachers in LA Unified school had to sleuth around for private support to pick up where public funds left off. Even though these grants were available, finding one that fits a teacher’s grade level, project and eligibility, required a scavenger hunt to disparate corners of the Internet.

“Grants HQ put all of these grants into one place,” said Tessler, “and arranges them by category and grade level so that teachers can find the grants that they need.”

In addition to the program staples, teachers also have access to a full-time grant specialist who is available by phone or email.

Upon completing a grant application through Grants HQ, LA Fund will send an accompanying endorsement letter to the grant organization to signal both the quality of the application and that is was developed through the new program.

“We’re going to continue to look for more grants to add to our database,” said Tessler, “There are so many out there, so we’re trying to make this as comprehensive as possible.”

There are currently a dozen LAUSD Wellness Centers located throughout the district with two scheduled to open in early 2014 (click here for an interactive map of LAUSD’s Wellness Centers). The centers offer a variety of primary healthcare and family support services, and in many neighborhoods, serve as the hub for LAUSD’s School Mental Health services.

According to the district, 27 percent of LA Unified students are uninsured and 44 percent rely on Medi-Cal.

Says one mother of a Hollywood High junior on the LA Trust website: “when [my daughter] needed to get medical clearance to run on the school’s track team, she made a quick, convenient – and free! – trip to the Wellness Center on campus. Not only did my daughter get checked out for track, but the doctor gave her a full physical exam and offered recommendations to help my daughter avoid recurring joint pain she had been experiencing while she was working out.”

The run/walk begins at 9 a.m. followed by a health festival after the race in Dodger Stadium. A 1k race will also be held for younger students or for those who choose to run or walk a shorter course. You can register or donate to the “Move It!” Challenge on the LAUSD’s registration page, here.

*This version clarifies that it is the LA Trust, not the LA Fund, that is working to develop LAUSD Wellness Centers.

New Silver Lake Principal Will Be Closely Watched by Parents
A new principal has taken charge of Ivanhoe Elementary, the high-achieving Silver Lake school whose lofty test scores are the pride of the neighborhood. The Eastsider

Schools are Having a Hard Time Just Educating Students; It’s the Wrong Time for Unfunded Mandates
California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson took a look at the current shambles of the state’s once-shining educational system and thought: What we need is … better tests. LA Daily News Editorial

How Will New Testing Standards Change Teaching and Learning? (Poll)
California schools superintendent Tom Torlakson unveiled a plan yesterday to completely overhaul the tests K-12 students take every spring as the state moves toward adopting a new curriculum, called the Common Core, by 2015. What do you think? KPCC

LAPD Officer Arrests Armed Gang Member Outside Pico-Union Elementary School
An effort to increase security at local schools paid off at one elementary just one day after it began. ABC LA

EdWatch 2013: School Safety Issues Emerge
California legislators have responded to the Connecticut shooting of school children by proposing three new gun or ammunition control laws, but so far only one bill that specifically deals with school safety. EdSource

Groundbreaking Agreement Continues to Ignore Parent Voice
It is clear that the United Teachers of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Unifed School District don’t see eye to eye on many things, especially around the use of student test scores in teacher evaluations. Families in Schools Editorial

Second Phase of L.A. Arts Fundraising Plan Begins
‘Art Matters’ campaign has brought in more than $750,000 in the last three months for arts in the public schools. LA Times

John Baldessari’s LA Fund bus design. Source: LAUSD

Twelve city buses, 175 billboards, and 271 additional spaces across Los Angeles will be feature public works of art to raise awareness of the LA Fund’s push to make arts a core part of LA students’ education.

Monica Garcia and Mayor Villaraigosa at the LA Fund unveiling. Source: LAUSD

Billboards across the city will also feature inspirational messages from local entertainment and education leaders, including Tom Cruise, Mayor Villaraigosa, and LAUSD Board President Monica Garcia.

California Legislator Vows to Reintroduce Bill to Speed Teacher Firing for Abuse
A California state senator said he plans to reintroduce a bill Monday that would make it easier to fire a teacher accused of sexually abusing a student. KPCC

See also LA Daily News, Newswire

New Ideas From a New Generation of Teachers
A critical demographic shift is occurring. This one is taking place, quietly, in teachers unions: Over the past several years, teachers who have spent 10 years or fewer in the classroom have become the dues-paying majority. Washington Post Opinion

Finally Los Angeles Schools See Just How Much ‘Arts Matter’
Thanks to the widest-reaching art project in L.A. history, arts education is getting a boost. Take Part Op-Ed

Attorney: ‘Criminal Culpability’ Needed to Fix LAUSD Abuse Scandal
An attorney representing alleged child sex abuse victims from Miramonte Elementary School Friday called for a more thorough audit of the Los Angeles Unified School District. CBS

For Dropouts, a Way to Drop Back In
An increasing number of young people neither attend school nor work, a study finds. A new partnership between the city of Los Angeles and L.A. Unified aims to halt that ‘unacceptable’ trend. LA Times