LAUSD board confirms its union-occupied status

Dec. 18, 2012

By Chris Reed

When I heard that the Los Angeles Unified school board had passed a resolution barring its superintendent from seeking grants without board approval, I was 10,000 percent certain it was because John Deasy had sought funding that had strings attached related to teacher performance.

Bingo!

“In a move that could stem the flow of tens of millions of dollars to cash-strapped Los Angeles Unified, the school board has empowered itself to endorse — or veto — applications for grants topping $1 million.

“Members voted 4-3 last Tuesday to require the board to approve every major grant proposal before it can be submitted. The move was prompted by concerns that Superintendent John Deasy and his staff have hijacked the authority to make policy and budg”et decisions in their quest for supplemental funding.

“‘I’m looking for transparency, because every grant comes with strings attached,’ South Bay board member Richard Vladovic said in an interview. ‘We have been applying for grants that have strings regarding policy issues that were never discussed.’

“In introducing the resolution last Tuesday, Vladovic said he was upset about a $50 million grant the district received that stipulated the development of a merit-pay system for educators and the use of student test scores in performance evaluations — controversial issues opposed by the teachers union.”

I am baffled that the L.A. Daily News reporter brought up this angle but then ignored why it mattered. Nevertheless, the story is still incredibly telling because it shows what the California Teachers Association and the California Federation of Teachers are most worried about. We’re in the middle of the worst long-term Prop. 98 revenue funding situation in California history, yet the CTA and CFT are far more eager to protect bad teachers than to secure higher school funding.

Social justice? Not!