OCDE Education in the News

Wednesday, June 10, 2020

LOS ANGELES TIMES

DAILY PILOT

Costa Mesa High grad went from learning English to AP English in few short years

When Jennifer Henriquez Ayala came with her family from El Salvador to California in 2014, the summer before her seventh-grade year, the only English she knew was “Hi, my name is Jennifer” and “I don’t speak English.” She enrolled in English language development (ELD) courses at Costa Mesa Middle School, where she and her classmates found the challenge of learning a new tongue on top of a full schedule of classes a bit daunting.

https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/story/2020-06-04/costa-mesa-high-grad-went-from-learning-english-to-ap-english-in-few-short-years

VOICE OF OC

Santa Ana Unified School District Creates Ethnic Studies Requirement in Wake of George Floyd Protests

Come the 2022-2023 academic school year, incoming high school students in Santa Ana will have to complete an ethnic studies course before they become eligible to graduate.The Santa Ana Unified School District Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday night to adopt a resolution creating a new graduation requirement that will mandate students to finish a one-year course of ethnic studies before receiving their diploma. The requirement is something for which members of the community have voiced support.

https://voiceofoc.org/2020/06/santa-ana-unified-school-district-creates-ethnic-studies-requirement-in-wake-of-george-floyd-protests/

DAILY NEWS LOS ANGELES

Teachers union board calls to defund school police at LAUSD campuses, sparking debate

Student activists say police presence on campus harms black students, and deflects funding from social services like counselors and nurses.

https://www.dailynews.com/2020/06/09/teachers-union-board-calls-for-scaling-back-school-police-at-lausd-campuses-sparking-debate/

EDSOURCE

California science teachers look for new ways to bring hands-on experiments to students

California schools were already undergoing a transformation to the way science is taught across the state before campuses were forced to close during the coronavirus pandemic. During the last few months of school, science teachers had to use a variety of tools to keep science lessons going at a safe distance, from at-home experiments to virtual simulations.

https://edsource.org/2020/california-science-teachers-look-for-new-ways-to-bring-hands-on-experiments-to-students/633302

Calls to eliminate school police in two San Francisco Bay districts intensify amid protests

Amid calls to defund municipal police in the wake of George Floyd’s killing by Minneapolis police, two Oakland Unified school board members are pushing to eliminate the district’s police force. This is an acceleration of a demand that dates back nine years, when activists began calling on the district to dissolve its police department after a black student was shot and killed by a district police sergeant.

https://edsource.org/2020/calls-to-eliminate-school-police-in-two-san-francisco-bay-districts-intensify-amid-protests/633317

MODESTO BEE

How will Stanislaus County schools reopen? With soap and sick rooms, guidelines say

Students can expect staggered schedules and prepackaged meals when they return to Stanislaus County schools this fall, according to new guidelines. The Stanislaus County Office of Education plans to release a reopening guide Tuesday, Superintendent Scott Kuykendall said, to explain coronavirus precautions specific to the Modesto area.

https://www.modbee.com/news/rebuild/article243381491.html

KPCC

Could LAUSD Disband Its School Police Department?

In the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd at the hands of police, activist groups are pushing public school districts nationwide to reconsider whether to station police officers on their campuses. In the Los Angeles Unified School District, "defunding" school police would be a lot more complicated than canceling a contract. For decades, LAUSD has operated its own police department — one of the largest independent school police forces in the nation.

https://laist.com/2020/06/09/teachers_union_defund_police_los_angeles_school_department.php

LAGUNA BEACH INDEPENDENT

For second time, judge tosses Perry’s complaint against LBUSD

A California federal judge once again granted the Laguna Beach Unified School District’s motion to dismiss a retaliation complaint filed by a school board member against fellow district leaders, according to a tentative order released Saturday. U.S. District Judge James Selna gave board member Dee Perry the opportunity to file an amended complaint within 30 days. Attorney Maria Severson wrote in an email that Perry plans to amend her complaint to address issues raised by the judge.

https://www.lagunabeachindy.com/for-second-time-judge-tosses-perrys-complaint-against-lbusd/

WHITTIER DAILY NEWS

State commission favors charter school in Montebello Unified

Montebello Unified School District doesn’t have any charter schools — even after receiving four proposals during the last two-plus years — but that may be changing after an advisory commission for the state Board of Education on Tuesday recommended in favor of one. TIME Community School’s plan for a local high school, which has been rejected twice by Montebello Unified’s school board and then the county, still needs to go to the state Board of Education for approval after the commission’s 7-2 vote on Tuesday.

https://www.whittierdailynews.com/2020/06/09/state-commission-favors-charter-school-in-montebello-unified/

OTHER NEWS OUTLETS

San Rafael school district approves deep layoffs

More than 100 classified workers at San Rafael City Schools are set to receive layoff notices, officials decided this week. The layoffs, the largest such group in Marin schools in recent months, are to allow the district to retool jobs for an uncertain fall semester with as-yet-unannounced coronavirus safety protocols, officials said. The layoffs include custodians, library specialists, instructional assistants, security staff, attendance clerks, food service and others.

https://www.marinij.com/2020/06/09/san-rafael-schools-ok-layoffs-for-more-than-100-classified-jobs/

Learning loss vs. mental exhaustion: Parents, educators and school leaders differ on whether summer school is the answer

Before a global health crisis closed schools nationwide, Kristen Roosevelt told her principal that she wasn’t interested in teaching summer school this year. Roosevelt, who teaches first grade at a high-poverty public school in Portland, Oregon, changed her mind after her school closed and she saw how the crisis was affecting her students.

http://laschoolreport.com/learning-loss-vs-mental-exhaustion-parents-educators-and-school-leaders-differ-on-whether-summer-school-is-the-answer/

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