Fighting off a nasty flu at the moment. I’ll resume my writing and answering emails as soon as I am feeling better….
Be well everyone!
Mailer Maelstrom
Parents,
This School Board race is getting out of hand. It’s no secret that our little race, especially BD4 covering the Westside thru parts of the West Valley and into upper Hollywood, is garnering national attention. With NYC Mayor Bloomberg throwing money into the race as well as lots of other outside interests from the reformer PACS to the collective union PACS, it’s becoming a real dogfight. The negative ads are downright distasteful, and not at all representative of either human being running for office.
What I hope people understand is that these ads flooding your mailboxes are filled with misleading rhetoric at best and downright lies at worst, and are usually NOT paid for, approved by, or even representative of the candidates themselves.
This is our “independent expenditures” category gone wild and run rampant throwing unlimited dollars into the fray at the same time we limit individual campaign contributions to $1000 per registered voter. Personally, I think we’ve sunk to a new low as outside groups spend millions of dollars battling for control of our local school board.
Hey Super PACS…here’s a novel thought. Spend your money on our kids! We sure could use a few million and definitely could use it in more productive ways.
In the meantime, please stay focused on the issues that REALLY matter, the ones that will affect OUR children’s future school experience as you select a candidate…such as how will you prioritize the budget, will you support continued charter growth or try to shut it down, what will you do about the growing co-location issue, how can we truly get rid of poor teachers, what about our middle and hight schools that still lag behind???
Please listen to the issues, listen to the candidates themselves, and decide who you think will be the most decisive and effective leader. And parents, please vote next Tuesday! We typically are completely under-represented at the polls. These are our kids. It’s time to activate on their behalf.
Listen to my “Meet the Candidates” PODCAST and decide for yourself!
GMG “Meet The Candidates” in LAUSD BD#4 Podcast
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- Kate Anderson
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- Steve Zimmer
I am thrilled to announce the first-ever GoMamaGuide podcast, featuring Steve Zimmer and Kate Anderson, the two candidates running for LAUSD School Board District #4 on Tues, March 5th.
What does Board District #4 cover? Everything from the southwest San Fernando Valley, through Pacific Palisades, Venice, down to Westchester, and heading eastward through WLA, West Hollywood and even into parts of Hollywood.
See Map (It’s everything in white.)
With the race heating up and much of both campaigns getting mired by outside interests, deep indie expenditure dollars and negative ads, I put together a list of the Top Ten Hot Topic issues we are currently facing here in LAUSD. These are the challenges that affect YOU – the parents and families – and how they impact our current and future schools. (These are questions I hear over and over in my talks, and if you have school-aged children I know you’ve already experienced some of these issues, perhaps become frustrated by them, and/or can relate.)
Cut through the political spin and join me as I ask both candidates about the REAL ISSUES being played out right now in our school district, and hear what they intend to do about it. For convenience, I’ve indexed the questions by topic so you can get right to what peaks your interest most. Listen to both candidates’ answers back to back, get informed, but mainly, get out and vote on Tues, March 5th!
GoMamaGuide’s “Meet the Candidates” in LAUSD BD#4
Top Ten Burning Parent Questions:
Intro – Welcome to my first podcast!
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Your Vision for LAUSD
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#1. Prioritizing The Budget
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#2. Relentless Parent Fundraising
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#3. Narrowing of Curriculum/Over Focus on Test Results
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#4. Innovation
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#5. Evaluating Teachers/Firing Bad Ones
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#6. Charter Growth
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#7. Co-Location Issues
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#8. Autonomy & The Parent Voice
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#9. Middle & High School Improvement
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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#10. Charter Reform vs. Union Status Quo
Kate Anderson: Steve Zimmer:
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Thanks to both candidates for agreeing to participate in my podcast!
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- Tanya Anton and Steve Zimmer
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- Kate Anderson and Tanya Anton
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- Tanya Anton, Steve Zimmer and Julia Morgan
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- Kate Anderson in her campaign HQ
This is just the beginning of a whole series of podcasts I plan to develop on issues we public school parents care most about.
I hope you’ll join my free monthly GoMamaGuidance newsletter for breaking district news and updates, subscribe to the blog for announcements and articles, and join our wonderful community of parents on our FB page. Thanks for listening!
-Tanya Anton, creator/founder GoMamaGuide.com
LAUSD 2013-14 Calendar Approved by School Board
It’s official. Last Tuesday, the School Board voted in the 2013-14 Calendar. First day of school in the “Fall” is Tues, August 13th. Major holidays are also noted.
Pilot Schools – The New Autonomy
This is a great article by LA School Report, breaking down of the types of new autonomy models the district is dishing up. Look for more schools to follow in these footsteps as they try to staunch the flow of charter startups and conversions.
Some of the benefits of these new models of autonomy are the “thin contract” or “elect to work” contract hashed out between LAUSD and the teachers union, UTLA, requiring teachers to attend training, put in more hours, and face the possibility of being fired if they don’t pan out. Also included are varying amounts of school-site autonomy over things like budget, curriculum, and other governance issues.
http://laschoolreport.com/autonomy-models-a-real-utla-lausd-compromise/
12 new pilot schools were approved at the last school board meeting, and more go before the board next month.
SAS Apps Available April 1-30th
SAS, (which stands for Schools For Advanced Studies), will open their application window April 1-April 30th for the 2013-14 school year. Acceptance notifications will come out May 6-10th.
In order to apply to an SAS school, students must meet eligibility requirements, either by being identified as GATE (Gifted and Talented), verified by their teacher and principal, or by meeting specific testing thresholds.
For more on SAS (Schools for Advanced Studies) programs, including eligibility requirements and the list of school programs in each local area, see:
http://www.lausd.net/lausd/offices/GATE/prog-opt-3.html
It also helps to tour specific programs, as each SAS program varies significantly from school to school depending on who runs it, how they run it, and how many students they have in the program.
**Also, since April 1st is Cesar Chavez Day and technically a holiday, SAS apps will actually be accepted beginning April 2nd, not April 1st.
Inter-District Permit Requests Accepted Now
Inter-District permit requests (leaving LAUSD for another district) are being accepted now, Feb 1st through April 30th online.
Potential reasons to apply are to leave the District are: Business Address, a Specialized Program that impacts the core curriculum (such as language immersion) NOT replicated in an LAUSD school, Sibling of existing permit holder, and the dubious Exception permit decided on a case-by-case basis.
Questions can be fielded to Melissa Schoonmaker at 213.241.5255 in the Permit Office.
For online apps, go here:
https://permits.lausd.net
or
http://notebook.lausd.net/portal/page?_pageid=33%2C168887&_dad=ptl&_schema=PTL_EP
Watch the District #6 Candidate Forum Video
Here’s last Thursday’s LAUSD District #6 (East Valley) School Board Candidate Forum hosted by the United Way in Pacoima, featuring candidates Antonio Sanchez, Monica Ratliff and Maria Cano. Missed it? No worries. You can watch the video here.
Watch the District #4 School Board Candidate Forum Video
Great turnout at last Thursday’s LAUSD District #4 School Board Candidate Forum in Venice hosted by The United Way, featuring candidates Steve Zimmer and Kate Anderson. Missed it? No worries. Watch the video here.
Nearly 200 People Turn Out for United Way’s LAUSD School Board Forum in Venice
Playa Vista EL Opens Non-Resident Waitlist THIS Friday
I get asked about the new STEM focused Playa Vista Elementary School often in my talks and consultations. If you are interested in applying to the school, please find enrollment info below. As it is a neighborhood school, priority is given to those residing within the school’s attendance area. For non-residents, Wait List begins THIS FRI, Feb 1st, 2013 at PVES Main Office (open 7am-4pm)…first come, first served.
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2013-2014 Enrollment Information
Transitional Kindergarten (TK)
T-K Eligibiity: Children must turn 5 on or between Oct 2-Dec 2; Kindergarten eligible children may enroll in T-K if space is available. For more info on T-K visit: http://www.tkcalifornia.org/
Kindergarten
K Eligibility: Children must turn 5 on or before Oct 1.
Playa Vista Residents, One Westbluff Residents and LMU Employees
Registration Day – Sat, Feb 9th, 2013
9am-1pm at Playa Vista Elementary Library
Please pick-up an enrollment form at the PVES office as soon as possible and return forms on registration day. If you do not have your child’s physician card completed, you may turn in enrollment forms and bring your child’s immunization record (original and copy) and submit the physician card at a later date.
Enrollment Forms are NOW AVAILABLE for pick-up at the PVES main office (open M-F, 7am-4pm)
Please bring the following documentation with you to pick up a form.
Residents:
I. Photo ID (drivers license, passport)
II. Proof of residence (one of the following):
– Utility Bill (Gas, Electric, Water) *no phone bills*
– Rental or Lease Agreement
– Property Tax Papers
– Copy of Escrow Papers (if purchasing)
LMU employees:
I. Photo ID (drivers license, passport)
II. Recent LMU pay stub
Permits for Non-residents/Non-LMU employees
Wait List begins THIS FRI, Feb 1st, 2013 at PVES Main Office (open 7am-4pm)
Permits will be released based on available space and in order of the wait list. To be placed on the wait list, please visit the office on or after February 1st (M-F, 7am-4pm). First come, first served.
Permit applications will be available starting April 15th. Questions? Contact the school office at 424-228-1800.
GoMamaGuide 