Voices From The Community
What happens when Hollywood money is used to promote charter schools? Guest columnist Francine Matthews-Flores, shares her experience.
“If we want to protect our Valley neighborhoods we must push back on Hollywood power players…who use their money, power, fame to spin a story. We need to fight back before they grab more valley schools.”
- Francine Matthews-Flores
In honor of a new year with new beginnings, I have asked representatives of communities throughout the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) to express their concerns about the district and how they would like to move forward. In the first article, Emiliana Dore wrote about how charter schools interfere in the fight for racial equity. …
2022 LAUSD ELECTIONS
Public school teacher and parent Marvin Rodríguez will attempt to unseat the LAUSD School Board President in the 2022 Board District 6 election.
“Representation on the school board should come from within the community whose members are directly affected by district schools.”
- Marvin Rodríguez
In the election that just passed the charter school industry won one seat to take the majority on the LAUSD School Board. In order to keep control, these publicly funded private schools will have to win all of the three board seats that are before the voters next year. The seat for Board District 2 will be open as Monica Garcia will be prohibited from running due to term limits. After finding himself involved in a series of scandals, Nick Melvoin has yet to announce his intentions for the seat in Board District 4. Newly elected Board President Kelly Gonez in Board District 6 has filed to seek reelection. …
A Nation In Crisis
Even those who did not enter the Capitol Building were trying to overthrow an election and disenfranchise millions of mostly minority voters.
- Rudy Giuliani
On November 3, 2020, Americans went to polls in record numbers and by a margin of over seven million votes declared that Donald Trump would be a one-term president. The outcome should not have surprised anyone; Joe Biden was heavily favored to win in most pre-Election Day polls. Trump had lost the popular vote in the 2016 election and he had done nothing during his term to reach beyond his base and grow support. His approval rating was underwater during his entire presidency ranging from a low of 35% to a high of 49% and averaging just 41%. …
LOS ANGELES CITY HALL CORRUPTION CASE
The fallout from the John Lee controversy continues to grow as Northridge West Neighborhood Council whistleblower resigns after alleging misconduct.
“People’s words are being manipulated.”
- Kelly Sooter, Former NWNC Board Member
When former Los Angeles City Councilmember Mitch Englander was indicted last March by federal prosecutors as part of the ongoing City Hall Corruption Scandal, attention immediately shifted to his successor, John Lee. As Englander’s Chief of Staff, Lee was part of the entourage that visited Las Vegas as guests of “Businessperson A.” The perks that Lee and the rest of the group were offered included casino chips, a $2,481.00 dinner, $34,000 worth of bottle service, and female escorts.
While his name does not appear in the indictment, Lee is widely considered to be the person referred to as “City Staffer B.” According to the plea agreement signed by Englander, “City Staffer B” coordinated testimony with his boss in an attempt to cover up any crimes that were committed. This person also obstructed justice by purposefully postdating a check to obscure the actual date that a partial reimbursement was made to “Businessperson A.” …
Voices From The Community
Guest columnist Emiliana Dore makes the case for preserving public schools as a way of fighting racial injustice in our communities.
“We have a long way to go before we reach an equitable education system in this country, but charter schools are not the answer.”
- Emiliana Dore
New Year’s Day is celebrated as a chance to move on from past mistakes and take the opportunity of a fresh start. After the year that was 2020, this is needed now more than ever. In this spirit, I have asked representatives of communities throughout the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) to express their concerns about the district and how they would like to move forward.
In this first article in the series, parent Emiliana Dore writes about the role of public schools and the fight for racial equity. Dore is a Los Angeles copywriter and longtime public school advocate who is grateful that her kids have grown up with an incredible and diverse group of anti-racist role models at their local public…
A COUNTRY IN CRISIS
A member of the judiciary is the latest public official to advance an anti-semitic conspiracy theory that is popular among white supremacists.
- An unidentified judge
A basic tenet of our judicial system is that judges are supposed to remain impartial and rule based on an unbiased review of the facts. It is, therefore, concerning that the Metropolitan News-Enterprise was able to find several members of the judiciary who were willing to make their views about newly-elected District Attorney George Gascón public. This violates the Code of Judicial Ethics which prohibits judges from making “any public comment about a pending or impending proceeding in any court.” …
The Rear-View Mirror
The COVID-19 pandemic upended the second-largest school district in the country. A look back at some of the major events…
- LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner
As the year began, it appeared that the dominating story within the LAUSD would be the school board elections. All four of the seats that would appear on the ballot were held by public school supporters, meaning that a clean sweep was needed for them to keep their narrow majority over the block supported by the charter school industry. …
A Nation In Crisis
As COVID-19 spread through a fractured populace, it exposed a nation unable to confront a crisis. Is 2020 the year that the American experiment died?
For you, the blind who once could see
- Neil Peart (1952–2020)
For me, the first inclination that 2020 was going to be a disaster occurred on January 7 when the band Rush announced that their drummer and lyricist, Neil Peart, had died. As a drummer, I had been in awe of Peart’s abilities since I was first introduced to the album Moving Pictures by my friends in junior high school. …
AnotherDayAnotherCharterScandal
While the LAUSD continues to feed children and adults during the holiday break, Granada Hills Charter leaves students to fend for themselves.
“All 63 Grab & Go Food Centers will continue to operate through the Winter Break and until students return to classes on campus.”
- LAUSD
One of the Los Angele Unified School District’s (LAUSD) biggest accomplishments during the COVID-19 pandemic was to ensure that the issue of food insecurity was addressed during this crisis. Through the ongoing Grab and Go program, the district has served approximately 90 million meals for students and others who are in need, including adults. The LAUSD has been serving these meals since schools closed in March, even during periods when schools are normally closed for breaks. …
#AnotherDayAnotherCharterScandal
The Northridge East Neighborhood Council requests that the City Of Los Angeles assist the LAUSD in solving PROP-39 co-location problems.
- Northridge East Neighborhood Council
Under Proposition 39, charter schools in California have the right to demand space on public school campuses. The amount of space that they receive is based on the number of students that the charter claims have a “meaningful interest” in attending the charter school during the following academic year. …
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