LA School board president Steve Zimmer used Halloween as a way to draw attention to the public survey seeking input for the superintendent search by dressing up as Waldo--Where ARE those surveys?!
The response rate has been abysmal. Last week, less than 4000 responses had been received--in a district with 600,000 kids.
The whole nation is watching whether the LA School Board will stand up to Eli Broad’s hostile takeover and hire a superintendent who will fight for public schools. For good reason; what happens in LA has far reaching consequences. So it is only right that the board hear from the national activist community that has been fighting for public education for years. Please help us urge our school board to do the right thing by taking the two-minute anonymous survey now.
The local turnout of the community outreach forums has also been scant. A defeatist mood of “What difference does it make?” has prevailed. That’s understandable. After years of leadership that ignored the concerns of parents, teachers, and principals, many of us got at least a little beaten down. But now things could change for the long haul.
Remember FDR’s advice to those pushing him to do the right thing? "I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it."
It’s our job to remind the board members of their duty. Los Angeles Unified School District is the largest district in the country with a democratically elected board. While other big cities have lost local control of their school boards to bully mayors and governors, Los Angeles survived its former “education Mayor” Villaraigosa’s” attempt at mayoral control when the courts shot that down.
Now, a billionaire bully has threatened a hostile takeover of half our schools. That makes it more important--and more urgent--than ever to participate.
The school board has already rightly rejected the push to allow special interest groups to have a special place in the process.
Now the public interest groups need to weigh in. That means you and me. We need to remind the board that they serve the public. We need to provide good advice so they will make a better decision.
So we start by taking the survey today--and getting five friends to take it, too--and tell the school board to do the right thing.
Make them do it.