Tag: lausd

It’s so simple, So very simple, That only a child can do it!

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

NSS&F just walked in with some great news. She got an “A” on her Science test. She got an “A” on her History test.

Oh, and her teacher recommended her for Algebra 1AB next year, instead of Honors Math 7. So what’s the difference? I found this description on the web site for the Portola Gifted Magnet of LA Unified:

  • Honors Math 7. This course continues the topics introduced in Math 6, with an emphasis on algebraic concepts, geometry and problem solving strategies.
  • Algebra 1AB. This is the equivalent of an honors high school Algebra I course. Topics include operating with both radicals and rational expressions, factoring, quadratics, systems, functions, graphing, statistics, probability and an introduction to trigonometry. Applications and word problems are emphasized throughout.

(Oh, and not to brag, but Nobel’s scores are significantly higher than Portola‘s, even though Portola has the gifted magnet)

Way to go, NSS&F. It will be hard for her, but she loves math.

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Oh, give me land, lots of land under starry skies above / Don’t Fence Me In

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Today’s Los Angeles Times has a front-page article on my daughter’s school. The issue is fences. You see, most schools in Los Angeles Unified are surrounded by fences that keep the “bad folks” out, and the “students” in. Guess the only school in the district that doesn’t? My daughter’s.

It’s been a big bone of contention. The school has been unfenced for 44 years, and turned its back this spring on a $300K plan to surround the school with a security fence. More than 600 students wrote letters and circulated petitions opposing the proposed fence. Teachers and parents also protested. It’s not just about aesthetics, they said, but also about the notion that freedom promotes responsibility, and students rise to the challenge.

How do I feel? I didn’t want the fence, and neither did my daughter. I think having the fence makes a statement. There is already enough fear in our society today, and the problem elements find their ways to attack their targets regardless of a fence.

The article notes that the 20-acre campus — in an upper-middle class neighborhood along a busy thoroughfare, midway between a freeway exit and a shopping mall — has for years been a shining light in a district under fire for its foundering middle schools. It has the highest test scores of any district middle school, even though half of its 2,200 students are bused in from other neighborhoods — some to attend the school’s math and science magnet and others to get away from crowded inner-city schools. Its attendance record is always among the district’s best and there is little crime or vandalism.

Addressing that last point: My daughter has told me of the zero-tolerance for violence. I hear of more violence indicents at other schools than I do at hers. And as for vandalism: there is the occasional tagger, cleaned up the next day.

The neighborhood is a key factor. Locals know who the students are… and if a student is seen off campus, the school is called immediately. Very effective.

They even interviewed my daughter’s PE Teacher, Mr. Tovey. I never realized he had been teaching there for 38 years!

Interesting article. Of course, I’m not sure I wanted the fact that her school doesn’t have fences publicized. It’s like saying “Hey, vandals, … Over here!”.

In any case, all together now…

I want to ride to the (north)ridge where the west commences
And gaze at the moon till I lose my senses
And I can’t look at hovels and I can’t stand fences
Don’t fence me in

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Kids Today

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

Just as there are good kids (see my last post), there are bad kids. My daughter reported that there was tagging at her school over the weekend (I think it is already cleaned up), and we’ve been having increasing incidence of kids at the elementry school behind our house throwing dead juice containers into our backyard… and that’s not all… tonight I found a kids wallet (school ID card) with a 500 peso note in it. My wife will bring it into the principal’s office tomorrow.

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Wrong Thing to Say

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

I just received a mailer from the LA Unified School district trying to get me to support Measure Y, a bond measure to fund additional school construction. After touting the project in my community that will be built, it goes on to say:

Of course, new schools cost money. Measure Y will cost less than $5/month per $100,000 of assessed–not market–property valuation. The average cost will be less than half that amount.

First, this is the wrong thing to say to someone who just bought a new house and is facing significantly higher property taxes. For me, this is $480/year. Second, the last sentence makes absolutely no sense. The average cost is meaningless, because the cost per $100K will be the same for all homeowners. The folks that will take it on the chin will be the folks who just bought houses–the ones with kids who needed more space. The folks that will have it easy are the retired, who have owned their houses for years and benefit from Prop 13, and renters, who are insulated either by rent control or leases.

I agree with the Daily News. LAUSD came back for more funds too soon. We’ve seemingly had a bond measure for schools every year. They are doing construction, but they are also pouring dollars down the pit at Belmont.

I’m going to have to think about this one some more.

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If You Build It, They Will Come?

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

I’ve written in the past, during our search for a new house, of the importance of the school in making our selection. The Daily News had a very interesting article today related to schools in the valley.

You have to understand that the valley has seen its share of enrollment rises and falls. There were many years where schools were shuttered due to insufficient enrollment; the grounds being leased to private groups, or at times, the land even being sold. This was in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In the past few years, however, enrollment has appeared to be booming: there are at least three new high-schools being built in the valley to releve overcrowding and to permit campuses on year-round schedules to go to conventional schedules.

Thus, I was surprised when I saw the Daily News reporting that campuses in the valley are faced with more than 4,000 open seats for the next school year, and that some San Fernando Valley schools are aggressively marketing their campuses to attract private school students. New construction and demographic shifts have left District 1 campuses in the West and Central Valley with about 3,100 of the Los Angeles Unified School District’s 6,300 open-enrollment seats. East Valley schools have about 950 openings.

I find this pretty amazing, although I do note that most of the new construction was in the “East” Valley (which is where we’re moving out of). The article noted that for three years, the number of available open enrollment seats has increased districtwide. If the seats are not filled, schools may close, or have to reassign teachers or administrators. It is often the parents that are doing the recruting. LAUSD parents have been walking their neighborhoods, knocking on doors and making their sales pitch. These parents tell prospective parents that, by donating just 25 percent of what they would pay in private school tuition, the public school can fund arts, music and physical education classes.

Think about that. It shows the effect of parent involvement, which I have seen firsthand. Instead of bemoning the poor quality of the public schools, if the parents get involved, the school succeeds. Ask yourself why private schools do so well. Is it that the teachers are better? Not really. It is that the parents are involved and active, and that they give extra money so the school can provide the extras. The universities have learned the importance of this. UC and CSU do active fundraising to supplement what they get from the state. Our school districts do this somewhat, at the level of individual schools (I know I’ve contributed numerous times to fundraisers at NSS&F’s school). But we shouldn’t have to buy drek to support our schools. We should just do it because our kids are our future.

I’m the proud product of public schools (LAUSD: Paseo Del Rey Element, Orville Wright JHS, Paul Revere JHS, and Pacific Palisades HS). I see the mentality of private schools being “better” and it bothers me. Here’s a quote from the article that reflects this:

Riverside Drive PTA President Aleca Abrams said she drew some dirty looks from her fellow preschool parents by just mentioning that she was considering public school. “It was virtually unheard of that we would even consider public school,” she said. Or as another parent explained: “It’s like saying your daughter is pregnant in high school; a hush falls over the crowd.”

Pinecrest School Principal Patty Patano said she’s not worried about public schools stealing her 440 elementary-school students. Patano said that last year several parents who had opted for public school ended up calling her with regrets within a month. “They called and said, almost to the word, ‘I can’t sleep at night,”‘ she said. “It’s not like I ever have to do any convincing. … Parents just don’t want to take a chance. These are their only little darlings.”

At least the article goes on to note that several schools are so popular they have to turn students away: With its dozens of rose bushes and high test scores, Portola Middle School in Tarzana expects at least 250 applications for its 75 open seats. I also don’t see open seats mentioned in the article for NSS&F’s middle school.

So: Are you a public school supporter, or a private school supporter?

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Morning Musings: Real Estate and School Districts

Posted onAuthorcahwyguy

As I wait for my morning Gigantic-Mug-O-TeaTM to cool down so I can start the day, a few musings…

As folks reading this blog know, we’ve been involved in house hunting of late. Initally this was just to help out our friend  ellipticcurve, but the bug was reactivated in my wife, so we’re looking for ourselves as well. She’s already won a big part of the battle: I have accepted the fact that I do want to move, and get a larger, slightly more elegant place.

However, I’m stubborn at times (I can hear the snickering out there), so we’re not moving right away. First, I need to figure out how to do this right financially. I do think real estate is a better investment than the stock market (unless you are dollar-cost averaging). However, I need to work out how to handle our current place: do we sell it, or rent it out to bring in extra income. That decision influences what repairs must be made to it, and how much we need to declutter it before we move. I need to figure out what loan products in today’s market will be within my financial comfort level. I also need to figure out timing with respect to the real estate cooldown I know is coming (which is why you’re seening me monitoring the real estate news more). However, such ruminations aren’t the subject of this post.

What are we looking for in a house? More space, of course. I’d like to have space for an office, master bedroom, our daughter’s room, sewing room, and a guest room. Ideally on one floor, although some could be upstairs. We’d like it in a relatively nice neighborhood, with decent resale values. And, of course, a decent high school. That’s the subject of this post.

We believe in public schools. Our daughter has attended public schools all her life, primarily in LAUSD‘s magnet program. She should have sufficient points to enter a middle school magnet. It’s high school we’re thinking about. Where we live currently has Monroe High School as its local high school. Monroe has a 2004 API of 599… which is pretty low. My wife would like us to be in the area for Granada Hills High (2004 API: 754). That would be fine with me. Other possibilities in our part of the valley are Kennedy High (2004 API: 626) and Chatsworth High (2004 API: 666). My concern is that the API in 3 years will reallly be unknown, and will likely be much higher. First, there is the effect of students raised in the API era with smaller class sizes matriculating to high school, and thus improving the overall API. Second, LA Unified has embarked on a large construction program. This will result in a significant number of new high schools in the San Fernando Valley. Ones likely to affect our area are East Valley High School #2 in Arleta (on the former GEMCO property right around the corner) with 1512 seats; East Valley High School #3 (on the former Carnation Research property in Van Nuys) with 2142 seats; Valley New HS #1 (on CSUN land) with 870 seats; and the new High School to be built on the former site of Granada Hills Hospital. I think the effect of all these new seats will also improve the schools in the valley. It should also improve the ability to get into a high-school magnet program. Thus, I’m a little bit less concerned about the school: I think being in a good neighborhood is what is important. However, I don’t know if I’m off.

In any case, my tea has cooled enough to drink, and so it is time to get off to do some real work. Expect more real estate musings and pointers to articles about valley real estate as I work this out in my head. For example, there was a great article in yesterday’s LA Times about how right now there is better appreciation of values in mid- and low-priced neighborhoods than in the pricier ones (with the exception of Malibu, 90265). Very interesting article.

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