Students Matter founder David F. Welch.

A judge in Northern California on Monday denied the claims in a lawsuit that challenged school districts that don’t use student test scores as part of teacher evaluations.

Students Matter, the nonprofit organization that filed Vergara v. California, sued 13 California school districts last year, saying those districts were not in compliance with the Stull Act and their collective bargaining agreements explicitly prohibited the use of student standardized test scores in assessing teacher performance. LA Unified is not a party to the lawsuit.

In the case, Doe v. Antioch, attorneys for Students Matter argued that the Stull Act requires student progress to be included as part of evaluations of teacher job performance.

In a 40-page ruling, Contra County Superior Court Judge Barry P. Goode attempted to evaluate lawmakers’ intent when it amended the portion of the Stull Act in question in 1999.

“The statutory language is not crystalline,” Goode wrote.

The disputed language of the statute is: school districts shall evaluate a teacher’s performance “as it reasonably relates to (1) the progress of pupils toward … if applicable, the state adopted academic content standards as measured by (standardized tests).”

“The phrase ‘reasonably relates’ gives the school districts discretion to determine what is reasonable in this complex situation,” Goode concluded.

It is the second legal setback for Students Matter in recent weeks. Last month, the state Supreme Court refused to take up Vergara v. California, a landmark case that challenged teacher tenure and declared some school employment laws unconstitutional.

In this most recent ruling, Goode said there is not much legislative history to evaluate lawmakers’ intent when crafting the legislation. But he pointed to a number of related points, including the fact that the California Teachers Association supported the legislation. Students Matter pointed out that teachers unions generally oppose including student test scores as part of teacher evaluations, Goode said.

“Indeed, the legislative history of the 1999 amendments is silent on the issue here,” Goode wrote. “If those amendments made the major change in teacher evaluations urged by Petitioners, one would expect the legislative history to have discussed that. Instead, the statute passed with the support of one major teachers union and the opposition of none. That, too, is relevant.”

Goode also pointed to language the state adopted when it enacted standardized tests.

“The Legislature endorses many uses of (standardized) tests, including evaluating pupils, entire schools and local education agencies. But it does not say the results should be used to evaluate individual teachers. That omission is relevant,” Goode wrote.

Goode also pointed to evidence from the school districts that questioned whether or not student test scores should or can be used to evaluate teachers.

“No district appears to ignore the standardized test results of any particular teacher’s pupils,” he wrote. “Rather, each uses those test results in a way it judges to be reasonably appropriate given the problems with the data.”

A similar lawsuit, Doe v. Deasy, was filed against LA Unified in 2011 by EdVoice. Superior Court Judge James Chalfant agreed with the plaintiffs and ordered LA Unified to renegotiate contracts with its teachers union, United Teachers Los Angeles, to develop new evaluations based in part on student progress.

This lawsuit was brought against the largest California school districts that had bargaining agreements that prohibited student test scores in teacher evaluations, according to Students Matter: Antioch Unified, Chaffey Joint Union High School District, Chino Valley Unified, El Monte City School District, Fairfield-Suisun Unified, Fremont Union High School District, Inglewood Unified, Ontario-Montclair School District, Pittsburg Unified, Saddleback Valley, San Ramon Valley Unified, Upland Unified and Victor Elementary School District. The districts serve 250,000 students.

Attorneys for Students Matter said after the lawsuit was filed, nine of the 13 school districts changed their teacher evaluation policies, practices or collective bargaining agreements to include student test scores.

Students Matter called the ruling flawed in a statement.

“Ignoring the clear and unambiguous language of the state’s longstanding teacher evaluation law, the Stull Act, the court refused to compel school districts to take student test scores into account when evaluating teachers,” the statement reads.

A spokesman for Students Matter said the organization is reviewing its options with its lawyers regarding a potential appeal.

In a statement, the organization’s founder, David F. Welch, promoted a bill by Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, AB 2826, that awaits Gov. Jerry Brown’s signature. The bill encourages school districts to adopt guidelines for teacher evaluations to include a variety of measures like student achievement, surveys from parents and students, portfolios of students’ work and classroom observations.

“If the court will not enforce the Legislature’s clear and unambiguous intent in the Stull Act, then their refusal underscores the need for Governor Brown to sign AB 2826, clarifying the measures of student progress that must be used in the evaluation of educators,” Welch said.

The California Supreme Court’s decision on whether to take up Vergara v. California, a landmark ruling that challenged teacher tenure and declared some school employment laws unconstitutional, could come as early as this afternoon. Today is the court’s last scheduled conference before the Monday deadline to say whether it will review an appellate court’s ruling in the case.

The plaintiffs, a group of nine California public school students represented by StudentsMatter, asked the state Supreme Court to review the appellate court ruling in May.

• Hear audio highlights from the Vergara appeals hearing.  

• Read previous Vergara coverage from LA School Report, which covered the 2014 trial.

The lawsuit has captured the attention of the nation and ignited a debate about teacher tenure laws and job protections that make it difficult to fire tenured teachers. It has fiercely divided education reformers and teachers’ unions.

In an April 14 decision, a three-judge appellate panel said it found the plaintiffs in Vergara v. California didn’t present enough evidence to show that minority students were more often subjected to ineffective teachers than other students. It unanimously reversed the lower court ruling.

“Plaintiffs elected not to target local administrative decisions and instead opted to challenge the statutes themselves,” the decision states. “This was a heavy burden and one plaintiffs did not carry. The trial court’s judgment declaring the statutes unconstitutional, therefore, cannot be affirmed.”

California’s teachers unions characterized that ruling as a “win.”

Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued that giving administrators the power to fire bad teachers more quickly would improve student achievement, especially for students of color. They argued the laws that make it difficult to fire teachers and allowed ineffective teachers to remain in classrooms — teaching mainly minority and poor students — and harmed student learning.

The judges acknowledged many problems in the school system, but couldn’t find the laws themselves to be unconstitutional.

“In sum, the evidence presented at trial highlighted likely drawbacks to the current tenure, dismissal and layoff statutes, but it did not demonstrate a facial constitutional violation. The evidence also revealed deplorable staffing decisions being made by some local administrators that have a deleterious impact on poor and minority students in California’s public schools. The evidence did not show that the challenged statutes inevitably cause this impact.”

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs sued the State of California and several state officials, seeking a court order declaring various parts of state’s Education Code unconstitutional. After an eight-week trial in 2014 with more than 50 witnesses, LA County Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu ruled in favor of the students. The state quickly filed an appeal.

Similar lawsuits have been subsequently filed in Minnesota and New York.

State lawmakers have been unsuccessful in attempting to make changes to teacher tenure laws at the legislative level. The California Teachers Association is one of the most powerful lobbying groups in Sacramento.

Most recently, a bill that would have extended the probationary period for new teachers from two to three years, among other changes, was defeated in June by the Senate Education Committee, even after the bill became so watered down that initial backers revoked their support.

Rafe Esquith

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge Wednesday denied LA Unified’s request to dismiss a lawsuit filed by well-known former fifth-grade teacher Rafe Esquith, who was fired in October.

Esquith filed the defamation lawsuit against the district in August after he was placed on paid leave and assigned to “teacher jail” pending an internal investigation after a fellow teacher complained that Esquith made a joke about nudity in front of his students. Esquith had taught at Hobart Boulevard Elementary School located between Koreatown and Westlake for more than 30 years.

Students, parents and fellow teachers protested outside Hobart Elementary last year when Esquith was removed from the classroom.

The district’s attorneys filed an anti-SLAPP motion earlier this year seeking to dismiss the entire case.

Ben Meiselas, Esquith’s attorney, said an “army” of LA Unified attorneys were in court Wednesday and argued in favor of dismissing the case, but the judge denied the request. Esquith was not present for the hearing, Meiselas said.

“I think that their lawyers convinced them, I think improperly, that this case was not going to go to trial, but today we’re one step closer to going to trial,” Meiselas said. “It was a really, really, really big victory in court for Rafe Esquith.”

An LA Unified spokeswoman said the district plans to appeal the ruling.

“We respectfully disagree with the court’s decision,” Shannon Haber said in an email. “As such, we intend to appeal the judge’s denial of our motion.”

Students chanted and carried signs

The lawsuit also alleges infliction of emotional distress, retaliation and age discrimination. Lawyers for Esquith said the educator was hospitalized with stress-induced thrombosis. The suit also claims retaliation for Esquith’s complaints about teacher jail and the filing of a class-action lawsuit.

“Today was a real vindication of the claims being asserted and Mr. Esquith is prepared to continue his fight and continue to succeed against LAUSD and its army of bully lawyers,” Meiselas said.

Esquith filed the class-action lawsuit against the district about “teacher jail.” In that lawsuit, Esquith claims that the district has overseen the “unconstitutional imprisonment” of at least 2,000 teachers in teacher jails. His attorneys argue that the discipline is a “shrewd cost-cutting tactic, implemented to force its older and better-paid teachers out the door” by terminating them or forcing them to quit thereby preventing the teachers from receiving their pension and health-care benefits and saving the district money. The lawsuit describes the teacher jails as “nondescript, fenced-in, warehouse facilities,” where teachers are prevented from speaking to each other and forced to stare at the walls for six hours a day. The lawsuit seeks $1 billion in damages.

The district’s $7.6 billion budget for this fiscal year approved last month includes $15 million to pay salaries for teachers and other staff “housed” in teacher jails. The district said 181 staff members, an increase from last year, are what the district describes as “housed,” but what is more commonly known as teacher jails, while the district conducts internal investigations.

The class-action lawsuit has recently been moved from state court to federal court, at the request of the district, Meiselas said, because the case cites violations of federal civil rights laws.

The investigation into Esquith began in March 2015 after a teacher overheard Esquith recite a passage from Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” that referred to the naked king. Esquith, who is known for teaching Shakespeare to his students, said his students could recognize the passage from which he was quoting.

In December, the district released documents to the Los Angeles Times investigators found in their internal investigation that claim Esquith fondled two boys and a girl in the 1970s. Investigators said Esquith’s work computer contained inappropriate pictures and videos. There were other allegations.

Esquith’s attorneys have denied the allegations and called the investigation a “witch hunt” and “specifically orchestrated to assassinate Mr. Esquith’s character.”

Esquith seeks to get his job back through the lawsuit.

Last May, LA Unified reported Esquith to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing for a formal investigation for abuse and misconduct, but that body found the allegations to be without merit, Esquith’s attorneys said.

Esquith has written best-selling books and received numerous accolades for innovative teaching, including Disney’s National Outstanding Teacher of the Year award, a Sigma Beta Delta Fellowship from Johns Hopkins University, a National Medal of Arts, and Oprah Winfrey’s $100,000 “Use Your Life Award.”

The next hearing in the case is scheduled in September.

Rafe Esquith, book cover of ‘There Are No Shortcuts’

LA School Report has confirmed that an LAPD sex crimes unit has an open investigation of celebrated teacher Rafe Esquith involving allegations of “inappropriate touching.” Meanwhile, Esquith’s attorneys are striking back with threats of additional lawsuits and a “declaration of war against LAUSD.”

One of Esquith’s attorneys, Ben Meisales, said, “This continued defamation by LAUSD knows no bounds. This is a slap at all hard-working teachers and it has created a declaration of war against LAUSD.”

Lead attorney Mark Geragos added, “People all across the country are watching these unscrupulous tactics. LAUSD is acting as a criminal cartel that needs to be put out of business, and we will put them out of business.”

Meanwhile, the Sexually Exploited Child Unit of the West Bureau Sex Crimes of the Los Angeles Police Department has a case that is opened against Esquith and being investigated by Detective Rachel Saavedra. The attorneys for Esquith said they were unaware of the investigation, which is being conducted by police at the Olympic Division of the LAPD in the district of the Hobart Boulevard Elementary School where Esquith taught fifth grade until he was unceremoniously taken out of the classroom last April and confined during the day hours to the “teachers jail” in a downtown LA building.

On Thursday, Geragos filed a class action lawsuit against LA Unified not only claiming age discrimination and unfair business practices, but defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Hours after receiving the lawsuit, LAUSD issued a letter for the first time dealing with alleged serious allegations against Esquith, including “highly inappropriate conduct involving touching of minors” during his time as a district teacher as well as “inappropriate photographs and videos of a sexual nature” on his school computer. The letter also mentions allegations of “threats to a parent and two students” and “possible ethical” violations of district policy regarding Esquith’s nonprofit after-school program, the Hobart Shakespeareans. 

Through attorneys, Esquith denies all the allegations. Esquith is the author of some popular books about teaching, won the National Medal of Arts from President Obama and was named one of the best teachers in the country by The Washington Post.

School officials are required by law to report all sexual allegations involving children to the proper authorities, and because of the “inappropriate touching” allegations, LA School Report asked LAUSD if police officials were notified.

Shannon Haber, the district’s director of Communications & Media Relations, issued a statement reading, “Yes, as mandated reporters, we always report allegations of suspected child abuse to the appropriate agency.”

LAPD officials had no further details about the ongoing investigation.

Meanwhile, Geragos said he plans to ask for a criminal investigation against the school district by going to the Department of Justice, and they also plan to file a lawsuit against Toni Tosello, the liabilities claims coordinator who wrote the Aug. 13 letter from LAUSD’s Risk Finance and Insurance Services department. The letter said that while investigating the original allegations (of a reading from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn), they discovered “additional serious allegations of misconduct” by the 61-year-old teacher.

Meanwhile, Esquith’s attorneys claim the noted teacher is a victim of a “witch hunt” and that after one day, their class action has gone from about 200 hundred teachers to more than 1,000 who have contacted the office with similar complaints.

“The only child who was been hurt by all this is one of Rafe Esquith’s students who when LAUSD started this witch hunt attempted to commit suicide when [Esquith] was taken from the classroom,” Meiselas said.

Meanwhile, in a letter dated Thursday from Student Safety Investigation Team director Jose Cantu, the district asked for an interview with Esquith for the “investigation of alleged misconduct” according to the letter. They planned the interview on Aug. 18 with investigator Ray Johnson. That interview won’t happen, Esquith’s representatives said.

“The only discussion now about this will be in court,” Meiselas said.

*UPDATED

Several LA Unified workers have filed a federal class-action lawsuit against the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 99 over what they say is an improper collection of their full dues.

In the complaint, which was prepared with free legal assistance by the National Right to Work Foundation (NRWF), the employes claim SEIU Local 99 union officials denied their requests to refrain from paying full dues, according to a NRWF press release. SEIU represents employees who work in a number of non-teaching jobs in public schools, including bus drivers, gardeners and cafeteria workers.

Under federal law set by the Supreme Court in the Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, public employees that must join a union and pay dues as a requirement for employment can request to withhold payment of any fees that support political causes not related to collective bargaining.

“Because California does not have Right to Work protections for workers, workers can be forced to pay union dues and fees to an unwanted union as a condition of employment. However, under Foundation-won U.S. Supreme Court precedent, workers who refrain from union membership can also refrain from paying for union politics and members-only events,” the press release said.

The release also added that despite “the workers’ requests to refrain from union membership and full union dues payments, the Los Angeles Unified School District continues to confiscate full union dues from the workers’ paychecks at SEIU Local 99 officials’ behest.”

The plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit were identified by NRWF as grounds keeper Douglas Kennedy, bus drivers Eduardo Berumen and Griselda Moran and cafeteria worker Magi Shanagian.

“SEIU officials are stonewalling workers’ attempts to refrain from paying for the union bosses’ radical political agenda,” said Mark Mix, president of the National Right to Work Foundation, in a statement. “This case underscores the need for California to pass a Right to Work law making union membership and dues payments strictly voluntary.”

SEIU Local 99 Interim Executive Director Scott Washburn issued a statement on the lawsuit.

“The lawsuit filed by the National Right to Work Foundation is yet another example of this group’s attempt to silence the voice and strength of working families in this country. It is no coincidence that this suit was filed on the heels of the historic $15 per hour minimum wage increase won by school workers at LAUSD,” the statement said. “Wherever workers are making big strides to improve their lives and the wellbeing of their families and communities, we can expect to see attacks like this. SEIU Local 99 members will continue to stand strong and move forward with our efforts to ensure quality schools and good jobs for our communities.””

*Includes statement from SEIU

* UPDATED

A California superior court judge ordered the state to step in at LA Unified’s Jefferson High School and fix an array of scheduling problems that have left many students without proper classes and educational time since the school year began in August. 

In his decision, Alameda Superior Court Judge George Hernandez, Jr. wrote that “the court finds that unless the court issues a temporary restraining order, plaintiffs will suffer irreparable injury before the matter can be heard on formal notice.”

He also assigned blame on the district’s new MiSiS student-data tracking system, saying “scheduling failures were due in part to Jefferson’s (and/or LAUSD’s) inability to implement new scheduling software.”

The temporary restraining order request was made by Public Counsel and the ACLU Foundation of Southern California as part of of Cruz v. California, a bigger case that asks that the state be compelled to assure the quality of education for students from nine schools around California.

As a result of today’s ruling, California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, the state Department of Education and the state Board of Education must work with the district to ensure that the school place limits on amount of course periods without instruction at Jefferson, prohibit students from being placed in courses that they have already taken and passed, and to develop a plan to compensate the students for lost learning time, Kathryn Eidmann, a staff attorney with Public Counsel and a lead counsel on the case, told LA School Report.

Eidmann also said in the ruling Hernandez “recognized that students at Jefferson are being deprived of their equal educational opportunities that they are constitutionally entitled to because of the amount of learning time they have lost and are continuing to lose.”

Hernandez directly ordered LA Unified Superintendent John Deasy to work with state representatives, starting with a meeting no later than Oct. 13. Deasy was also ordered to identify the resources needed to address the scheduling problems and help develop a remediation plan to be presented to the LA Unified school board when it next meets, on Oct. 14.

It’s unclear if Deasy or someone he appoints would carry out the orders. He is scheduled to leave for South Korea tomorrow on an eight-day cultural trip.

Deasy applauded the judge’s ruling.

“I am very pleased and encouraged that the judge recognizes that the efforts we have made by policy in this District need to be followed,” he said in a statement. “We are working with Jefferson High School’s staff to remedy the issues to ensure that all students’ academic needs are being met. And we look forward to meeting state officials to explain the new resources needed.”

He added, “This is another victory for youth in challenging circumstances. This is why I fought two years ago to have students have a full schedule, and why we are trying to negotiate the right to set a master schedule that meets individual school needs. We especially look to State Superintendent Tom Torlakson to support full and rigorous schedules for all youth.”

The lawsuit began in May with plaintiffs from seven schools, but Hernandez allowed a request that Jefferson and LA Unified’s Dorsey High School be added to the case on Monday, Eidmann said. In a letter to the court, Deasy wrote that he supported the lawsuit.

In Cruz, the plaintiffs are claiming that they “receive far less meaningful learning time than their peers in most California public schools,” and that as a consequence they “have been denied and continue to be denied their right under the California Constitution to receive an education that is not substantively inferior to the education received by other students in California public schools.”

“The buck stops with the state,” said Mark Neubauer, a lawyer for the Jefferson students. “The state has the ultimate responsibility to fix this. It’s their burden, by the California constitution.”

Eidmann said Public Counsel was pleased with the judge’s ruling.

“We’re thrilled that the rights of the Jefferson students have been vindicated and recognized by the court,” Eidmann said.

* Adds Deasy comments

]]> https://www.laschoolreport.com/just-judge-orders-state-intervention-jefferson-hs-lausd/feed/ 8 https://www.laschoolreport.com/morning-read-a-time-to-sue/ Thu, 18 Oct 2012 16:39:43 +0000 http://laschoolreport.com/?p=1927 Times Sues LAUSD for Info on Teachers
The Los Angeles Times claims Los Angeles Unified School District is violating public records law by refusing to release records tying teachers, by name, to the expected and actual test scores of their students. Courthouse News Service

LA Schools to ‘Shake It Up’ With the Rest of California
As millions of Californians participate in the “Great California ShakeOut” Thursday, so will students at L.A. Unified. The district uses the day for an annual full-scale emergency drill and an opportunity to teach kids about earthquakes. KPCC

L.A. Unified Partners With Gay Advocates to End Bullying
The initiative, called Project SPIN, seeks to help gay, lesbian and transgender students deal with bullies, and more broadly, to change the district’s culture. LA Times

T.V. Camera Crews to Join Football Players for East L.A. Classic
Next week, the 78th East L.A. Classic between the Roosevelt Roughriders of Boyle Heights and the Garfield Bulldogs of East Los Angeles will be broadcast live on Time Warner Cable-the first live broadcast in more than 20 years.  Not everyone, however, has been thrilled with the idea of watching the East L.A. Classic on T.V. Eastsider 

Deschooling California: Postmodern Theory Meets Props 30 & 38
People who care about California’s children watched in horror this week as the battle between Governor Brown and Molly Munger over their dueling education initiatives descended into a Hobbesian war of all against all (with most of the “all” firmly in the governor’s camp). Ed Source (commentary) 

Students Engaged in Justice System Given Guaranteed Entry to School
Even before Gov. Jerry Brown signed SB 1088 into law this fall, the Los Angeles Unified School District had enacted its own policy prohibiting its schools from denying  entry to a student solely on the basis that he or she has had involvement with the juvenile justice system. SI&A Cabinet Report

• Graham wants $10 Million From District: In addition to suing former superintendent Ramon Cortines for sexual harassment, LAUSD employee Scot Graham also wants $10 million from the school district for outing him, defaming him and placing him in a false light. Graham and LAUSD were on the verge of a settlement which would have given him $200,000 and lifetime benefits, but the deal fell apart when the district, according to Graham, prematurely announced it and the identity of Graham. Daily News

• AIG Will Pay LAUSD $79 Million In Settlement: AIG had refused to pay out insurance claims on LAUSD-owned properties with costly environmental hazards. LA Unified bought the insurance in 1999, as it was beginning a $20 billion constructions spree. LA Times

More reads after the jump.

• Lawsuit, Bill Aim to Keep K-12 Education Free in California: The ACLU suit is hitting out against fees for things like sports, field trips and textbooks, even the the California constitution guarantees every kid a free education. Some of these fees are legal, some aren’t, but many districts don’t seem to care. A bill in Sacramento, AB 1575, would create a formal complaint process for the illegal fees. LA Times

• Plan to Split Carson High Into Three Schools Riles Parents, Teachers: Many in the community are worried that the split will segregate the high achievers from the low ones. There is also a “general wariness, a concern that the Los Angeles Unified School District is tinkering with a local institution from afar.” The 2,800 will stay on the same campus, but 1,000 kids will join one of two pilots: the Academy of Medical Arts or the Academies of Education and Empowerment. Long Beach Press-Telegram

• Some Schools Adopting Longer Years to Improve Learning:  Increasing time in school is one of the best ways to narrow the achievement gap between rich and poor students, education advocates say. NYT

Cortines (via Laist)

A shocking (and graphic) Courthouse News Service story from last week details many of the allegations made by Scot Graham against former LAUSD superintendent Ramon Cortines, including, perhaps most damning to the district, that his claims were never investigated “due to the district’s “culture of sexual abuse, stealth and secrecy.” Graham also claims that Cortines “had targeted other LAUSD employees for refusing to submit to his sexual advances, and had a reputation of being persistent and abusing his authority.”

The CNS story includes a number of salacious details, but the alleged cover-up might be the most surprising part:

[Graham] says he reported the incidents to his supervisors and to the district’s general counsel, David Holmquist, but no action was taken.
Holmquist, a nonparty, told him to “‘forget’ about the incident with Cortines,” Graham says.
“What is the point of ruining a man’s career … what are you going to accomplish by complaining?” Holmquist allegedly asked.

Scott Johnson at the Mayor Sam blog asks, “What did LAUSD School Board President Monica Garcia know about Cortines alleged behavior and when?”