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LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT Board of Education Report

Bd. of Ed Rpt No. 159-14/15 Page 1 of 4 Board of Education October 14, 2014

Report Number: 159 -14/15 Date: October 14, 2014 (Special Board Meeting) Subject: Request for Approval of the Jefferson High School Plan Responsible Staff: Dr. John E. Deasy

Superintendent of Schools

Name

Office/Division Office of the Superintendent Telephone No. (213) 241-7000

BOARD REPORT

Action Proposed:

Staff is seeking Board approval of the Jefferson High School Plan to fulfill mandates listed in the Temporary Restraining Order issued by the Alameda County Courthouse in the County of Alameda in the matter of Cruz v. State of California, et al., Case No. RG14727139 and approval to add instructional minutes at the school as set forth in Attachment A.

Background:

On October 8, 2014, the District received a Temporary Restraining Order issued by the Alameda County Courthouse in the County of Alameda in the matter of Cruz v. State of California, et al., Case No. RG14727139. requiring the District to provide a response to the following items:

1. Each Defendant shall immediately make a representative with decision-making authority available for an in-person meeting with Superintendent Deasy, at LAUSD office if necessary, to be attended by all Defendants’ representatives (and counsel, if desired), and which shall take place as soon as possible but in any event no later than October 13, 2014.

2. At the meeting, Defendants shall work with Dr. Deasy to discuss the findings herein and shall attempt to devise a plan designed to do the following (at a minimum):

a. Identify each Jefferson High School student who is currently

assigned to (i) two or more periods per day of Home, Service, College, Library or Adult classes, and or (ii) one or more courses that the student has already taken and passed (other than those intended to be repeated, such as art or music classes) (“Affected Students”)

b. Make immediately available to each “Affected Student” the

LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT Board of Education Report

Bd. of Ed Rpt No. 159-14/15 Page 2 of 4 Board of Education October 14, 2014

option to enroll in substitute course(s) that are substantive, instructional, appropriate for that student’s grade level and fulfill Jefferson’s obligation to ensure that the student has timely access to courses needed for graduation and college eligibility;

c. Immediately establish a systematic and comprehensive

program, including but not limited to additional instruction time, for the purpose of helping every Jefferson student who was enrolled in any academic course more than one week into the semester to grasp the material presented in the course, to date;

d. Ensure that there are adequate teachers, classrooms, seats,

desks, and instructional materials, and any other resources needed to implement the proposed plan as quickly as possible (no later than November 3, 2014).

3. To the extent that any Affected Student’s schedule must be

adjusted in order to accomplish the foregoing, the proposed plan shall provide that the resulting class schedule may not include two or more periods without educational content in one day, nor may it include courses already taken and passed by that student (other than those intended to be repeated, such as art or music classes).

4. The proposed plan shall provide that any adjustments to a Special Education Student’s schedule may not, under any circumstances, interfere with that student’s Individual Education Plan (IEP) or any other federal legal requirements applying to that student.

5. Defendants shall ask the Superintendent to identify the resources that are needed to implement the foregoing plan and to determine whether LAUSD possesses such resources or requires assistance (financial or otherwise) from Defendants; Defendants shall also determine the types of assistance they can quickly and lawfully provide to LAUSD.

Expected Outcomes:

Upon Board approval of the attached plan for Jefferson High School, District staff will systematically implement the plan and provide the Board with an update concerning the monitoring and implementation of the school plan in December 2014 and February 2015.

Board Options and The Board has the option to approve the proposed plan, so the District

LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT Board of Education Report

Bd. of Ed Rpt No. 159-14/15 Page 3 of 4 Board of Education October 14, 2014

Consequences:

could take steps to implement it to meet the deadline of November 3, 2014 set by the Court. If the Board does not approve the proposed plan, it may delay the implementation and inhibit the District’s ability to implement by deadline. Failure to meet the deadline may result in the Court issuing an Order to Show Cause why a Preliminary Injunction should not be issued consistent with the Court’s TRO.

Policy Implications: The proposed plan implicates the District’s policy as it relates to the assignment of students to home and/or service periods and to retaking courses.

Budget Impact: The District estimates the following costs: Estimated total budget: $1,100,000.

• Approximately $340,000 to extend school day by .5 hours for 124 school days.

• Approximately $300,000 for 15 additional sections to expand curriculum offerings.

Approximately $460,000 for additional services & support (e.g. support services personnel, transportation, and expenses).

Issues and Analysis:

Staff recommends that the proposed plan be approved by the Board. Implementation of the proposed plan will allow Jefferson students who are assigned two or more home and/or services periods an option to enroll in a substantive course. In addition, implementation of the proposed plan will allow Jefferson students who were not enrolled into class more than week after school commenced to receive additional instructional time.

Attachments: Informative Desegregation Impact Statement

Attachment A: Jefferson High School Plan re: Cruz v. State of California, et al Informative: Inquiries regarding Jefferson High School (Cruz vs. CA – TRO)

MEMBERS OF THE BOARD LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT

LAUSD Proposed Plan re Cruz v. State of California, et al. The Los Angeles Unified School District (“LAUSD” or the “District”) hereby submits the following proposal (the “Proposed Plan”) in response to the Temporary Restraining Order issued by the Court in the matter of Cruz v. State of California, et al., Case No. RG14727139 before the Honorable George Hernandez, Jr. in the Rene C. Davidson Alameda County Courthouse in the County of Alameda. The District provides the following response for each component of the Court’s Order. 1. Each Defendant shall immediately make a representative with decision-making authority available for an in-person meeting with Superintendent Deasy, at LAUSD office if necessary, to be attended by all Defendants’ representatives (and counsel, if desired), and which shall take place as soon as possible but in any event no later than October 13, 2014. District Response: On October 10, 2014, representatives from Defendants State of California, State Board of Education, State Department of Education, and State Superintendent Tom Torlakson met with representatives from LAUSD at the District’s Central Offices located at 333 S. Beaudry Avenue, Los Angeles, California 90017 at 10 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. to discuss the findings and to devise a proposed plan as outlined in the Court’s TRO. The following representatives attended: On behalf of Defendants State of California, State Board of Education, State Department of Education, and State Superintendent Tom Torlakson: Richard Zeiger, Deputy State Superintendent; Ilene Straus, State Board of Education Member; Amy Holloway, Chief Counsel for Department of Education; Judy Cias, Chief Counsel for State Board of Education; Karen Stapf Walters, State Board of Education Executive Director; Peter Krause, Deputy Legal Affairs Secretary of the Governor’s Office; Jill Habig and Susan Carson of the Attorney General’s Office; Robin Johansen and Karen Getman of Remcho, Johansen & Purcell, LLP. On behalf of LAUSD: Michelle King, Senior Deputy Superintendent of School Operations, Tommy Chang, Instructional Area Superintendent; Pedro Salcido Governmental Relations Office; Tony Atienza and Cheryl Simpson from the Office of Budget Services; John Walsh, Deputy Chief Financial Officer; Vivian Ekchian, Chief Labor Negotiator; Alexander Molina, Chief Labor & Employment Counsel; David Holmquist, General Counsel; and Sue Ann Evans of Dannis Woliver Kelley.

RICHARD A. VLADOVIC, Ed.D., PRESIDENT TAMAR GALATZAN MÓNICA GARCÍA BENNETT KAYSER DR. GEORGE J. MCKENNA III MÓNICA RATLIFF STEVEN ZIMMER

Office of General Counsel 333 South Beaudry Avenue, 24th Floor Los Angeles, California 90017 Telephone: (213) 241-6601 Fax: (213) 241-8444

JOHN E. DEASY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS

Board of Education Report No. 159-14/15 For 10/14/14 Board Meeting

Attachment A LAUSD Proposed Plan re Cruz v. State of California

Page 2 of 4

2. At the meeting, Defendants shall work with Dr. Deasy to discuss the findings herein and shall attempt to devise a proposed plan designed to do the following (at a minimum): a. Identify each Jefferson student who is currently assigned to (i) two or more periods per day of Home, Service, College, Library or Adult classes, and/or (ii) one or more courses that the student has already taken and passed (other than those intended to be repeated, such as art or music classes) (“Affected Students"); District Response:

i. District staff supported school personnel to analyze current enrollment data and discovered that 48 students are currently enrolled in two or more periods of Home or Service. No student is listed as being enrolled in a College, Library or Adult classes on the master schedule. Of the students enrolled in two or more periods of Home or Service, 7 students are not on track for graduation. Support will be provided to all those students to ensure they are back on track for graduation.

ii. District staff supported school personnel to analyze current enrollment and student transcripts. The analysis found 204 juniors and seniors retaking a course for a second time that they already passed. However, the vast majority of those students are either retaking a course they received a D or F, making the course UC/CSU ineligible, or retaking an elective such as Computer, Design, PE, Band, Leadership, and other mandatory courses such as CAHSEE prep. Such courses are intended to be retaken and the TRO suggests the same.

b. Make immediately available to each Affected Student the option to enroll in substitute course(s) that are substantive, instructional, appropriate for that student's grade level and fulfill Jefferson’s obligation to ensure that the student has timely access to courses needed for graduation and college eligibility; District Response:

The District has devised a plan with Jefferson staff to meet with each Affected Student and provide them the option of enrolling in additional foundations and college-prep classes currently not available to students in their master schedule. The District plans to complete meeting with each Affected Student by October 17, 2014. c. Immediately establish a systematic and comprehensive program, including but not limited to additional instruction time, for the purpose of helping every Jefferson student who was enrolled in any academic course more than one week into the semester to grasp the material presented in the course, to date;

Board of Education Report No. 159-14/15 For 10/14/14 Board Meeting

Attachment A LAUSD Proposed Plan re Cruz v. State of California

Page 3 of 4

District Response:

The District, in collaboration with students, staff, and parents, are adding 3600 minutes to the existing school calendar which would effectively add approximate 30 minutes each day for the remainder of the school year. In addition, District staff will determine, with Jefferson administrator and teacher input, the necessary changes in the matrix of classes for second semester to alleviate large class size and expand curriculum offerings by adding courses needed by students. d. Ensure that there are adequate teachers, classrooms, seats, desks, and instructional materials, and any other resources needed to implement the proposed plan as quickly as possible (no later than November 3, 2014). District Response:

As a result of the TRO, the District has conducted a complete inventory of the campus to ensure that there are adequate seats and desks. The inventory revealed that there is adequate seats and desks on the campus but for some classrooms the seating is inadequate and for others there is a surplus. Adjustments are being made immediately. The campus has the instructional materials to implement the current master schedule. The school will likely need additional teachers and instructional materials in order to offer additional coursework which satisfies A-G requirements. 3. To the extent that any Affected Student’s schedule must be adjusted in order to accomplish the foregoing, the proposed plan shall provide that the resulting class schedule may not include two or more periods without educational content in one day, nor may it include courses already taken and passed by that student (other than those intended to be repeated, such as art or music classes). District Response:

The District will ensure that changes in student schedules of the Affected Students will not result in a student having two or more periods without educational content in one day, nor will schedules include courses already taken and passed by any student (other than those intended to be repeated, such as art or music classes). 4. The proposed plan shall provide that any adjustments to a Special Education Student’s schedule may not, under any circumstances, interfere with that student’s Individual Education Plan (IEP) or any other federal legal requirements applying to that student. District Response:

Prior to making any changes as outlined in the TRO, the District will review and ensure to comply with all Individualized Education Plans for any student at Jefferson High School as written. 5. Defendants shall ask the Superintendent to identify the resources that are needed to implement the foregoing plan and to determine whether LAUSD possesses such resources or requires

Board of Education Report No. 159-14/15 For 10/14/14 Board Meeting

Attachment A LAUSD Proposed Plan re Cruz v. State of California

Page 4 of 4

assistance (financial or otherwise) from Defendants; Defendants shall also determine the types of assistance they can quickly and lawfully provide to LAUSD. District Response: The District estimates the following costs:

Estimated total budget: $1,100,000.

• Approximately $340,000 to extend school day by .5 hours for 124 school days. • Approximately $300,000 for 15 additional sections to expand curriculum offerings. • Approximately $460,000 for additional support & services (e.g. support services personnel,

transportation, and expenses).

At the meeting with the State representatives, the District requested financial assistance from the State Defendants in order to implement the proposed plan as there is not a budget for these expenditures. The State Defendants indicated that they are not able to provide financial assistance.

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Board of Education Report No. 159- 14/15 For 10/14/14 Board Meeting

INTEROFFICE CORRESPONDENCE

Los Angeles Unified School District Intensive Support and Innovation Center

INFORMATIVE TO: Members, Board of Education DATE: October 14, 2014 Dr. John E. Deasy, Superintendent FROM: Tommy Chang, Ed.D. Instructional Area Superintendent SUBJECT: INQUIRIES REGARDING JEFFERSON HIGH SCHOOL (CRUZ VS. CA – TRO) – UPDATE OCTOBER 12, 2014

The following information is relevant to the inquiries made regarding ongoing issues at Jefferson High School: What did the ESC know about the scheduling challenges at Jefferson prior to the TRO? Jefferson HS, currently serving approximately 1,000 students, has seen many changes in a relatively short period of time. The school was identified during the 2013-14 school year as a CORE Waiver Priority School and at the end of the school year, was also identified as an Investment School under the Reed Settlement. As a result of the Priority School designation, and in accordance with CORE Waiver mandates, a capacity review was held to determine the fitness of the school leader to engage in a productive turnaround of the school. As a reminder, interventions under the CORE Waiver are designed to help stakeholders rethink components of the school structure, communications, professional development, instructional practices, and family engagement that are not currently achieving desired outcomes and substitute them with proven strategies. A Title I school identified as a Priority School under the CORE Waiver has ELA and Math proficiency rates for “all” student groups in the lowest 5% for 2011, 2012, and has a graduation rate less than 60% for each of the last three years. Through this process, which was facilitated by Instructional Directors and members of Talent Management, it was determined that a change in leadership was necessary given the new demands of the CORE Waiver. As such, the Principal was reassigned to a position in the Division of Intensive Support and Intervention effective July 1, 2014.

 

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Because the school was also designated as an Investment School in the Reed settlement, the Principal was to begin working July 1, 2014, however, it was not possible to have a permanent replacement that soon due to the requirements of the CORE Waiver and the extensive interview process that needed to take place to ensure the new leader had the capacity to lead the school turnaround effort. As such, there were two interim administrators assigned to the school. The first interim worked from July 7, 2014 – July 16, 2014. The second interim administrator worked from July 17, 2014 – August 18, 2014. In addition, a new Instructional Director was assigned on July 1, 2014 to work with the school. Throughout the transition of interim leaders, the Instructional Director worked closely with school staff members to prepare for the first day of school.

A new Assistant Principal Student Counseling Services (APSCS) was placed at Jefferson HS on July 17, 2014. The previous APSCS did not have the seniority to remain. The new APSCS assumed the duties of handling the master schedule. The APSCS expressed concern about completing the master schedule due to MiSiS issues and the Instructional Director provided support via the ISIC Counseling Coordinators in late July through the beginning of the school year. In an effort to provide additional support to the APSCS, he was informed of help sessions being held at Beaudry throughout the summer. When he was reluctant to attend the sessions, he was directed to do so. Unfortunately, he was unable to address the issues with the master schedule in a timely manner. In our support of Jefferson HS, ISIC Counseling Coordinators had regular status checks with Jefferson staff. ISIC Counseling Coordinators informed the ESC leadership about schools with high conflict percentages and low percentages of students scheduled so that help could be deployed to appropriate sites. The primary reason for the scheduling conflicts was a result of course requests not being inputted, which in turn, caused a high percentage of students with “holes” in their program. Though efforts were made to correct this issue, the first day of school was quickly approaching and the school committed their master the Friday prior to school starting with only 50% of students scheduled.

In order to better support the school, an Instructional Specialist was assigned on Monday, August 18, 2014 with extensive background in master schedule building. The existing APSCS was reassigned to Horace Mann Middle School. Dr. Jack Foote assumed the Principalship on August 19, 2014. Dr. Foote, with 18 years of experience within LAUSD, and a former principal at Le Conte Middle School and Field Director in the Staff Relations Unit, met the requirements for a transformation leader of a Priority School as outlined by the CORE Waiver, which include:

• Has a track record of increasing student growth on standardized test scores as well as overall student growth, as well as in subgroups in the school

• Exhibits competencies in the areas of driving for results, problem-solving, and showing confidence to lead

• Has a minimum of 3 years’ experience as a principal

 

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• Has experience supervising implementation of multiple programs at the school level, including but not limited to special education, Title I, and ELL

Because the ESC and Instructional Director were aware of the issues surrounding the schedule, a team was deployed to support the school. As you are aware, during the first days of school many students did not have complete programs. Others had challenges as all Advanced Placement courses, as well as courses for English Learners, were scheduled during the same period which limited the access to those courses. Therefore, over the course of several days, a team of individuals, including the newly assigned Instructional Specialist, the ISIC Counseling Coordinators, IT support staff, and other ISIC staff members, re-did the master schedule and met with every returning Jefferson student to place them in appropriate courses. This work took place beginning August 18, 2014 and continued through August 22, 2014. By August 23, all students were scheduled into their new classes.

What was done after issuance of TRO? The ISIC team immediately responded upon receipt of the TRO. On the morning of October 9, District personnel from ISIC, Office of General Counsel, and Office of the Superintendent, met with the principal to prepare a proposed plan as a response to the TRO. A separate meeting was held with the chapter chair to receive input in creating the proposed plan. The chapter chair met with staff during lunch to provide an update and elicit feedback. The meeting was attended by the UTLA president. I received the feedback from the staff via email later on in the afternoon from the UTLA president. The staff’s feedback was incorporated in the draft of the proposed plan shared with State officials. In addition, over the course of the last several days, including this past weekend, ISIC staff supported school personnel to analyze current enrollment data as requested by TRO. We discovered that 48 students are currently enrolled in two or more periods of Home or Service. No student is listed as being enrolled in a College, Library or Adult classes on the master schedule. Of the students enrolled in two or more periods of Home or Service, 7 students are not on track for graduation. Support will be provided to all those students to ensure they are back on track for graduation. Also, we discovered that out of the 204 juniors and seniors retaking a course for a second time that they already passed, the vast majority of those students are either retaking a course they received a D or F, making the course UC/CSU ineligible, or retaking an elective such as Computer, Design, PE, Band, Leadership, and other mandatory courses such as CAHSEE prep. Such courses are intended to be retaken and the TRO suggests the same. To break this data down a bit more, out of the 118 seniors repeating courses, 10 seniors were discovered retaking a UC/CSU eligible course that they passed with a C or better. And out of the 86 juniors repeating courses, 10 juniors were discovered retaking a UC/CSU eligible course that they passed with a C or better. We are currently investing

 

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every 10th grader. Of the students who are scheduled for “HOME” classes, how many have parent permission? The school has acquired permission slips for each of the students who has been assigned a “HOME” period.

What is the history of the 8-period schedule at Jefferson High School? The change to the schedule from a 6-period day to the current configuration of 8-period day was agreed upon during the 2005-06 school year. The main reason that the school moved to this schedule was to provide a double block of ELA and math for students in grades 9 – 12 and to improve opportunities for credit recovery because the graduation rate for sub-groups was so incredibly low. Teachers at Jefferson teach six classes and utilize two conference periods. Have there been any Williams Complaints filed at Jefferson High School? Yes. We have received one Williams Complaint dated October 2, 2014 regarding a noxious odor in a restroom. The Board of Education accepted the certification for textbooks and materials on September 30, 2014. Why did the campus lose Quality Education Investment Act (QEIA) funds last year? The school lost their QEIA funding during the 2012-13 school year due to a lack of progress in meeting Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) goals. How have staff and parents been informed about TRO? A staff meeting will be held on Monday, October 13, 2014 at 2:30 p.m. District personnel will attend this meeting in order to explain the TRO, answer questions, and to hear any feedback and any concerns. A parent meeting is scheduled for Monday, October 13, 2014 at 5:30 p.m. District personnel will also attend this meeting to explain the TRO, answer parent questions, and address any concerns. Why was the principal during the 2013-14 school year removed before a suitably qualified replacement had been identified? In accordance with standard procedures for informing site based administrators of assignment changes prior to the end of the basis for the current school year, the former Jefferson HS principal was notified of his change of assignment prior to June 30, 2014 and the position for the Jefferson HS Principal was advertised as soon as we informed him of the change. The Jefferson HS position took longer to fill than a normal vacancy

 

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due to the extra requirement of the capacity review of all suitable candidates as required by the Core Waiver.

Did the September 30, 2014 Williams certification regarding textbook materials include desks? Were the certifiers aware of the actual number of students enrolled in each class? It has been reported that students were assigned to classes with an insufficient number of desks to accommodate them – was this not true? The certification accepted by the Board of Education at the September 30, 2014 board meeting was only a certification of textbooks and instructional materials. We were never made aware that there were classes with an insufficient number of desks.

Will we be able to comply with the judge’s order within the allotted time? We are taking every step to ensure that we will be able to comply and implement the proposed plan by the deadline of November 3, 2014. With the Board’s approval of the plan, we will continue toward implementation, including negotiating any components with our labor partners that are subject to bargaining.

If you have any questions, please contact me at 213-241-0100. c: Michelle King David Holmquist

Alexander Molina Ruth Perez Jefferson Crain Donna Muncey