A commission by a group called Los Angeles 2020 called for mayoral control of the public schools, blaming low test scores on the elected school board. The commission seems to think that getting rid of democracy will solve the children’s academic problems. In z curious contradiction, the commission commended Superintendent John Deasy, the official most responsible for policies that affect test scores.
Of course, the commission might have pointed to Chicago and Cleveland as less than stellar examples of the glories of mayoral control.
When Mayor Villaraigosa tried to take control of Los Angeles’ schools a few years ago, he was stopped by a lawsuit. He did manage to gain control of a number of low-performing schools to show what he could do, but apparently those schools have not seen a miraculous transformation despite mayoral control.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Here is the info on LA Commission 2020…from their own site. LA Chamber of Commerce is prominent…and politicos…but where are the educators? Prime insider Mickey Kantor chooses his buddies for this group.
Suggest bloggers go to the site and read the report…much more of the same, and I bet that Eli Broad is with this group. One more group of power vendors telling us how to run public education. See if you can find the names of the “volunteers” who are supposed to be diverse.
Ellen
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Los Angeles 2020 Commission
A Time for Truth – Click here to view this report A Time for Truth – Click here to view this report
Reports
•April 2014 – A Time For Action
◦Joint statement of Maria Elena Durazo, Executive Secretary-Treasurer Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, and Gary Toebben, President & CEO of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce.
•December 2013 – A Time For Truth
About the Commission
Early in 2013 Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson asked Mickey Kantor to establish an independent, private commission to study and report on fiscal stability and job growth in Los Angeles. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa also endorsed the establishment of the Commission.
Mr. Kantor invited leaders in the Los Angeles community to serve on the Commission as volunteers. They represent the broad diversity of our community – members hail from the left and the right, from labor, business, government, academia and the nonprofit world. They reside in all parts of our community and have been active for many years in Los Angeles. Most importantly, each member of this Commission cares deeply about our city and shares the desire to see Los Angeles become one of the great cities of the 21st century.
The Commission first met in April 2013, and has held numerous meetings and hearings with individuals and representatives of institutions representing much of our city. The Commission also conducted independent research.
The Commission published its first report, A Time for Truth, in January 2014. A Time for Truth is a candid assessment of the challenges and opportunities Los Angeles faces. A Time for Action is the second and final report the LA 2020 Commission will publish. This report contains a series of concrete measures which, if adopted, will enhance transparency and accountability in City Hall, put Los Angeles on a path toward fiscal stability and renew job creation in the region.
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Interesting nomiker: There’s a program called Destination 2020 in Dallas ISD which is run by Broadie and former Col Springs Superintendent Mike Miles–where, incidentally, there is a new mayoral campaign for a “home-rule charter district.” Perhaps 2020 is the year the Broads, Waltons and Gateses have agreed will be the end of public education.
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Addendum…must say I agree with this business report re transparency.
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This is the same approach which led to the travesty of public school destruction in Philadelphia, only there the elected school,board was replaced by a STATE (ie, governor) appointed one (SRC: School Reform Commission). Perhaps the Los Angeles “reformers” want to duplicate Philly’s results so far: destruction of the social fabric of public schools; charterization of much of the city’s schools; the current SRC lawsuit vs. the teachers union to get rid of basic contractual provisions; etc. etc.
Our movement should be fighting for the reinstatement of elected school boards everywhere they’ve been eliminated, along with protecting those which still exist from the kind of madness being sought in Loa Angeles.
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As you saw in NY when the mayor appears to have control the gov. can pull a tyrannical move and seize all power. It doesn’t seem to matter, they always seem to keep working to destroy the power of the citizens.
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No rest for the wicked.
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Nor the good fighting against the wicked!
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