Budget and Finance
Back to homepageHow can computer science not be state graduation requirement?
Feb. 20, 2013 By Chris Reed The reports earlier this month that the state will no longer require eighth-graders to take Algebra 1 and allow them instead to take a somewhat less rigorous course covering algebra touched off a minor
Read MoreKFI’s John & Ken talk about CalWatchDog.com report
Feb. 20, 2013 By Chris Reed John & Ken of KFI 640 AM Los Angeles had me on Tuesday to talk about my CalWatchDog.com report on the L.A. Unified School District committing to spending $500 million in 30-year school “construction
Read MoreWill Blue-State California become Detroit on the Pacific?
Environmentalists have used the allusion of the canary in the mineshaft when describing the importance of protecting the endangered Desert Sand Fly, Stephens Kangaroo Rat or the infamous Delta Smelt. By placing these insignificant creatures on the Endangered Species List,
Read MoreWanted: Education reporters who know about, well, education
Feb. 18, 2013 By Chris Reed Shouldn’t education be covered by people who know a lot about education? About the history of public schools in the U.S. and what triggered the education reform movement in the early 1980s? That’s not
Read MoreSplit-roll property tax would hit small business hard
Feb. 18, 2013 By Wayne Lusvardi The attacks on Proposition 13 never seem to end. The 1978 tax-cut initiative’s enemies, such as former Assembly Speaker Willie Brown, conjure up a misleading image of large corporate owners of commercial real estate dodging
Read MoreBond scandal now has villain; prosecutor, come on down
Feb. 18, 2013 By Chris Reed The steadily building scandal involving school districts and capital appreciation bonds now has a specific villain — and the potential for a criminal investigation by Orange County’s district attorney or the state attorney general.
Read MoreShocked teachers union confronts superintendent with a spine
Feb. 16, 2013 By Chris Reed The CTA’s L.A. branch, the United Teachers Los Angeles, is almost cartoonish in its villainy. UTLA members are the only suspects in a pathetic 2009 incident in which Latino parents of students attending a
Read MoreBad economic news could confound state budget projections
Feb. 15, 2013 By John Seiler Gov. Jerry Brown’s cheery announcements of the state’s budget health are guiding budget spending priorities. As he said in his State of the State address, “The message this year is clear: California has once again
Read MoreL.A. Unified uses ‘construction bonds’ to buy $500 million in iPads
Feb. 14, 2013 By Chris Reed My five-month-old crusade to get the California mainstream media to acknowledge the insanity of “construction bonds” which take 30 years to pay off being used routinely by school districts for short-lived electronics and basic
Read MoreDriving K-12 scams: push to preserve automatic teacher raises
Feb. 12, 2013 By Chris Reed The state Senate committee report last week showing districts stealing federal funds meant for school lunch programs came as no surprise to students of California’s education establishment. There’s a strange mentality afflicting school governance
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