Leadership magazine Sept/Oct 2017 V47 No. 1 | Page 31

forward in Los Angeles . These projects include the Ten Schools Program , 1987-1992 ; the New American Schools Project – Los Angeles Learning Center , 1992-1995 ; LEARN and Annenberg Initiatives , 1995- 2000 ; and the growth of affiliated and independent charter schools , 1999-present .
Ten Schools Program
In 1987 , the Ten Schools Program was launched . It was a five-year pilot initiative designed by the district superintendent , working jointly with community leaders , to improve student achievement in the 10 lowest scoring elementary schools . All of the schools were in South Central Los Angeles .
In the second year of the initiative , Ten Schools partnered with Michael Milken , the money marketing and mathematics maven . He brought unbelievable resources to the schools : his own Mike ’ s Math Club and a valuable consulting relationship with two educators in New York . Schools received the benefit of the best expertise in New York ’ s public schools . The consultants assisted the principals in expanding their leadership repertoire with additional professional development in organizational theory and walkthroughs of successful schools .
After four years , the district stopped working with Milken and the New York folks because they felt L . A . Unified no longer needed outside support . This was my first insight into the difficulty the district experienced with outside influences .
New American Schools
The New American Schools Project – Los Angeles Learning Centers involved key players in the Los Angeles educational arena , including the president of the union United Teachers Los Angeles , the former superintendent of L . A . Unified , notable community leaders and a non-profit learning organization . The goal was to create two K-12 model schools in urban Los Angeles to house best practices , and then replicate the model at other public schools in Los Angeles .
This was the first time the union and the district partnered to create two ideal K-12 learning communities . Committees of teachers , leaders and experts in the field helped design the learning centers . Staff received additional training on instruction , decision making , and many aspects of teaching and learning . Everyone took advantage of the knowledge and richness of the experts and learned from each other .
On many occasions , the union and district worked together to implement effective research practices and offer training to teachers . The committees also included teacher leaders – exemplary teachers who soaked up the new methodology and successful strategies . Some of them went on to become successful principals in L . A . Unified .
After the federal monies ran out , what remained were two K-12 learning communities , one in South Los Angeles and one in South East Los Angeles , that are still flourishing today . Some of their best practices have been replicated .
LEARN and Annenberg
In 1998 , the Los Angeles Educational Alliance for Restructuring Now ( LEARN ) was initiating its program with its first cohort of 30 schools that would change governance structures and work together in a new way . I applied for my school to be in that first cohort . Schools needed 75 percent of their staff to agree to join the initiative .
LEARN included many community and university partners . University of California , Los Angeles hired strong organizational facilitators and former school administrators who provided staff and leadership training . Each school sent a leadership team to Palm Springs for two weeks each year to participate in intensive leadership training . Staffs grew in collaborative decision making and in running a more effective school site . The partners helped many administrators and teachers grow their leadership skills .
In 1998 LEARN collaborated with another project , the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project ( LAAMP ), a coalition of civic , educational and business organizations working with school professionals to improve educational access and quality throughout Los Angeles . We were responsible for recruiting additional schools into the reform movement and helping people learn to work together across K-12 families of schools . We helped these schools invest in training and devel-

Equity issues and school choice

California has embraced the concept of school choice . It ’ s first charter law was passed in 1992 , and California is now home to more charter schools than any other state in the nation .
In addition , California offers Districts of Choice , allowing up to 10 percent of a student population to attend a school outside of the district of residence . Magnet schools , Linked Learning communities and dualenrollment with community colleges are all part of public school choice in the state .
As charter schools become an increasingly popular public school choice for students , it ’ s important for ACSA to advocate for practices and policies that protect student rights and ensure student safety regardless of the choice , according to Legislative Advocate Cathy McBride .
ACSA will continue working to ensure students attend high-quality schools that provide a fair and equitable opportunity for each student , while being transparent and accountable to the parents and communities they serve , McBride said . At the direction of its Board of Directors , ACSA has created a Charter School Task Force to begin a thoughtful and important policy discussion that aims to strengthen ACSA ’ s commitment to California students .
While ACSA supports public school choice options , the association opposes school vouchers . ACSA believes privatization of public education funding undermines the nation ’ s school systems , denying equitable educational opportunities to all students .
ACSA ’ s position , which the association continues to advance in state and federal lawmaking circles , is that there is a lack of transparency and accountability to taxpayers for funds appropriated to private schools . Furthermore , reports show that students with disabilities often cannot find a private school that can or will serve them .
Students who attend private schools with vouchers are often denied First Amendment rights , due process , and other constitutional and statutory protections provided to them in public schools . ACSA believes schools that do not provide students with basic civil rights should not be funded with taxpayer dollars .
ACSA Governmental Relations
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