Parent activists are still in a state of shock in Los Angeles in reaction to the board’s selection of the totally unqualified banker Austin Beutner as Superintendent.
Reportedly a billionaire like his pal Eli Broad, although possibly only a multimillionaire, he will be paid $350,000 for his inexperience.
The first order of business will be downsizing the district, which has lost students to charter schools. Instead of fighting to regain students, Beutner will encourage the growth of privatization.
He is the quintessential corporate reformer who can be counted on to bring the mindset of a corporate raider: cut costs, cut staff, reorganize, downsize.
Beutner is everything that Broad loves in a Superintendent: a reformer dedicated to swing the axe, close schools, and fire educators.
Howard Blume writes:
””Beutner and members of the board majority seem unlikely to continue targeting charter schools as part of the problem. On the contrary, they are widely expected to take steps to encourage their growth in a range of schooling options for families, especially with academic performance lagging at many traditional campuses.
”That means the district has to look to other ways to increase revenue — a goal held in common with the prior board — and may try to reduce district spending by shrinking the traditional school system. Savings could come through employee layoffs, closing campuses and freezing or reducing salaries and benefits.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Can’t someone sue him?
Jessica Josephson
On Wed, May 2, 2018 at 2:01 PM, Diane Ravitch’s blog wrote:
> dianeravitch posted: “Parent activists are still in a state of shock in > Los Angeles inreactuon to the board’s selection of the totally unqualified > banker Austin Beutner assuperintendent. Reportedly a billionaire like his > pal Eli Broad, Beitnereill be paid $350,000 for his ” >
Certainly does not look good. The large cities are all targets for chartering with the Fordham harping about “charter school deserts.” The metaphor will soon apply to public schools unless there is more and more effective work in electing officials who support public education and exposing the obscenities in the charter industry.
That “Deserts” report is really pathetic, especially the call for more philanthropists to put in money to alleviate the situation. There is a reason for these “deserts.” Enrollment is not high enough for the operators to rake in huge bucks. Because you know, it’s all about the kids.
Why would Beutner accept anything more than $1 for salary?
If these folks were really doing it ” for the kids”, as they claim, they would be willing to work for free. They certainly don’t need the money.
“Years of trying to solve seemingly intractable problems require some new, out-of-the-box thinking,” said board Vice President Nick Melvoin, who took office in July. “I’m confident Mr. Beutner, along with the board, can bring some innovative thinking to this. We have to disenthrall ourselves from the idea that the status quo is good enough for kids.”
When Melvoin ran he hardly mentioned charters.
Now that he’s safely ensconced it’s all charters all the time. It’s a very common political tactic in ed reform.
I want to gag when I here these businessmen expounding about innovative thinking in education, or for that matter, in any field they are unqualified to run.The only “innovation” billionaire boys bring to the education table is financial restructuring.
hear (no here)
After they eradicate all the public schools and fire all the teachers and abolish labor unions what if the test scores don’t go up?
Then what? They’ll never reestablish publicly-owned and run schools, so what do we get then? An endless series of cage busting business people overturning public education over and over again?
Once the public option is off the table you’ll never get it back again. You’ll get a revolving cast of private contractors because once they capture this sector they will never, ever return it to the public.
Germany turned their electric grid back over to the public sector after a disastrous experiment with privatization, but that’s the only example I’ve ever seen.
Privatization is permanent. It doesn’t matter if it works- it just matters if they capture enough politicians to keep it in place. And they have ours. They purchased 90% of them. The dissenting 10% will surrender shortly, because they don’t have any choice.
Billionaires bought our public education system. Now all we’re doing is haggling over the price.
You’ll get online education, cheap, doesn’t require high taxes and good enough for “those other” kids.
It’s amusing because the elected board just voted to make themselves irrelevant.
They’ll have no say or power over anything now. The millions and millions of dollars these people spent to get on this board and the first chance they get they abandon their duty and turn it all over to a contractor.
Dissolve the board. They have no role and they shouldn’t be compensated for rubber stamping directives from a CEO. Don’t allow them to pretend there’s some role for democratically elected governance in these scheme. This is a straight-money purchase. Broad bought the schools. He’ll be running them from now on.
I love Diane Ravitch, and Austin Beutner is definitely a supporter of charter schools. But these kind of articles do no good. First, he is not a billionaire, just a multi-millionaire – probably a distinction without a difference. But more importantly, I think since he sold his investment firm, he has evidenced nothing but a desire to be in public service. He worked as Deputy Mayor, ran for Mayor and then was the publisher of the LA Times for a brief period. I think he was a good steward of the paper, and he even communicated to me during the 2016 primary that he thought we needed an “honest conversation not a coronation.” He didn’t go as far as to say he supported Bernie. But who knows. In any case, he is the Superintendent now. We who oppose charter schools need to work with him not alienate him. I for one would like to meet with him to give him information about charters that I am sure he is not getting from his friend Eli Broad. I have invited him to lunch and will let you know what transpires.
Should someone who has never taught run a school district? How can he judge education? I’ve taught for 11 years. Everyone thinks they know best, few actually do.
Lauren, I don’t know Austin Beutner’s net worth. Maybe as you say he is but a multi millionaire. The question is, what are his qualifications to be superintendent of the second largest school district in the nation? What relevance experience does he have?
Hi, remotely related, but I need help. Stockton Unified School District (in California) is about to inherit John Deasy (former LAUSD sup) as its new superintendent next Tuesday. I want to do whatever I can to stop this. Who has a list of talking points against him?
I want to write a letter to my newspaper, I am going to call Board members, and I want to make a 3 min speech at the upcoming board meeting on May 8. I already emailed NPE. Please contact me if you can assist! Thanks!
Make sure Deasy doesn’t commit to $1 Billion in obsolete iPads loaded with Pearson curriculum.
As in “Fiddler on the Roof”, the papa exclaims, “When you’re rich, they think you know everything!”
Who has a list of talking points against him? (Deasy)
That would be the FBI, but they are not talking.
The FBI carted boxes of materials and files out of Deasy’s Office. Nothing was reported about the FBI investigation.
2 + 2 = 4 boxes of talking points
Martha–
There is plenty on john deasy’s disastrous tenure that an internet search will easily provide.
Here is a start: https://www.laprogressive.com/john-deasy-ta-nehisi-coates-letter/
Good luck.
The Stockton selection was even more secretive as LAUSD’s selection. The names of the finalists for the position weren’t even revealed. Deasy’s selection was announced and no one–not teachers, students, the greater community had no input to his worthiness as a candidate, let alone the ultimate choice.
I would hope you can rally others in the education community to come out for that May 8th voicing of opinions. The Stockton Board needs to hear about the world of pain you all are in for.
If public service is his goal, why is he taking a salary of $350,000?
Nonsense! You can never be too rich and too thin.
Don’t you know that the Overclass is not a bunch of people who want or need money.
It’s more like they are addicts and money is their drug. They will “money” themselves to death no matter what because their brains are hardwired for irreversible addiction.
An addict is an addict. Only they can change themselves. Don’t count on these addicts going through any 12 step programs.
Let’s think deeply about how we can take advantage of their addiction to fight our causes. We must use the vulnerabilities of some very damaged people to win our case.
He. Runs. Charter. Chains.
He. Wanted. To publish. VAM ratings.
A good way to think about the difference between a million and a billion is to turn it into time. A million seconds is about 11and a half days. A billion seconds is about 31 years and 8 months.
And how much time is several hundred million seconds? I think it’s likely that Mr. Beutner is closer to 31 years than he is to 11 days.
“Antonio Villaraigosa
I started my career as a union organizer, fighting for fair wages & benefits. I’ve never forgotten the power of collective action to make change. I’ll bring those values with me into the Governor’s office, & open the doors of opportunity to every Californian.”
Is there a person in the country who believes this nonsense from ed reformers anymore?
They all “started as union organizers” or “started as school teachers”
No one imagined they emerged fully formed as lobbyists the moment they graduated college. We all understood they probably had jobs prior to their mid-career gigs as over-paid privatization lobbyists.
Come up with news slogans. These are stale.
SICK! Where’s the puke can?
I spoke today with parent activists, teachers, and administrators, and now I am wrapped in a warm blanket of collective anger and impetus. Board members are in fact getting an earful right now. I’ve never seen Angelenos care about public education so much as today. Keep it coming, Westside! Los Angeles is usually the home of the “sunshine fan”. Not today. Maybe, although don’t get those hopes up too high, just maybe Broad, Beutner, Hastings, Bloomberg, and Fisher have awoken the sleeping giant this time. They have the money; we have the numbers.
(By the way, vacuous Board Member/Charter Cheerleader Monica Garcia, for the love of God, stop sending emails to all us teachers you hate! Tired of it. “Seamless transition” my foot. You pulled your stunt. Now be quiet.)
May the pictures and videos from teacher marches in so many states be spread widely: they are SO inspiring.
A $350,000 salary is just the beginning. We know what’s coming next because former Superintendent Deasy showed us the playbook, the Broad modus operandi. Beutner will hire leagues of overpaid administrators and consultants. He will spend millions on websites, millions on tech hardware to support Common Core testing and on Data-Driven Drivel. “Choice” websites. Test score websites. Investment websites. He will throw money out the window. He will burn taxpayers’ hundred dollar bills to light cigars. Their goal is to bankrupt the schools. $350,000 a year is the tip of the iceberg and LAUSD is the Titanic.
Like Antwan Wilson did to Oakland before he left. There must be a class on this topic at the Broad Academy for Superintendents.
There is a class at the Broad Academy on this topic. http://parentsacrossamerica.org/a-guide-to-the-broad-foundations-training-programs-and-policies/
YES.
One more thing, love the word play, Diane. Superintendebt. Good one!
That’s what happens sometimes when I write a post on my cellphone. I can’t see the last words in the headline. I fixed it.
It was apropos, though. Broad and Beutner super-intend-debt for public schools. A Freudian typo, perhaps.
A Broadian slip?
another great poem title
I can’t help but find it curious that there are deep concerns here about the qualifications of someone who was named to run an $8 billion school system but a disregard for the total lack of relevant experience of someone who is running to be the chief executive of a $170 billion state budget.
Tim,
It requires education knowledge and experience to lead a school district, just as it requires medical training to be a doctor and legal training to be a lawyer.
In a democracy, anyone can run for office. There is no professional training to be an elected official. What was Reagan’s training before he became governor of California?
Cuomo has experience but he is a very bad governor. I know, as customary, you are taking a pot shot on behalf of the charter industry, which helped him amass a $31 million campaign fund. His last fundraiser cost $25,000 a plate. He had one in LA for $50,000 a plate. Last night, Cynthia had a very successful fundraiser and taised $17,000, not enough to buy a seat at one of Gov. Cuomo’s dinners. Governor 1%.
Here here!
^^Correction: “hear hear” (since the many teachers who read this blog probably winced at my ignorance!)
How is the teachers’ union reacting to this? Crickets?
Most state level and national teachers unions are in business for themselves. Don’t count on them; those in WV did not. Don’t count on the AFT, the UFT, or NYSUT to say anything about LAUSD.
And don’t count on the big unions to endorse any real progressive candidates, such as Cynthia Nixon and former contender Zephyr Teachout. It’s not happening.
This is not about union power at this point, which it’s supposed to be. . . . But it’s not. This is about PEOPLE power, and those in WV, OK, AZ, CO are proving it.
One day, the people power shall reinvent the union power, and then you will see more social justice happen. Right now, it’s just people, and perhaps, that’s just fine. I say use whatever works.
The union opposed him, but not forcefully. Fact is, his appointment might galvanize more teachers to pay dues after Janus, and probably to go on strike soon.
While I am not on his side, $350,000 is not out of hand for a superintendent of such a large district – NY offered carvalho about the same.
Is it in poor taste for a billionaire to accept it? Absolutely. Is he ill qualified? Absolutely.
The amount isn’t the issue though.
Many very wealthy people work in public service for $1 a year.
But you are right. The issue is not what he is paid but his total lack of qualifications for the position as Superintendent of Schools.
a total lack of educator experience and living far from the kids/schools/neighborhoods he is now set to top-down hands-off “govern”
Let’s just say it’s a lot to pay someone who doesn’t know anything at all about running a school district and has no experience working as a superintendent, as a principal, as a teacher or in any other capacity in the field of education.
It’s like paying someone $175 an hour who does not know the first thing about plumbing to replace all the water pipes in a house. The plumbing is virtually guaranteed to leak like a sieve, the house is bound to get flooded and mold infested and the money is certain to go right down a rat hole.
Other than that, it’s a great idea.
The question is how much we will pay his chauffeur to drive his limousine, and for his first class airfare. I remember paying for Deasy’s trips around the world to places like Seoul, promoting VAM and charters. We had to take away his credit card before he left the district.
But if we get the rest of the world to adopt all the deformy ideas about education, we wont have to worry about their schools outperforming ours.
People like Deasy level the playing field (and everything else they touch)
Deasys Junkets
Deasy flying
Round the earth
Keeps em vying
For the worst
VAM and charter
For the rest
Makes it harder
To be best
If people are so unhappy with this election, then why not to recall the board?
Ref: https://ballotpedia.org/School_board_recalls & https://ballotpedia.org/Laws_governing_recall_in_California
Yes, I’d like to see this happen in LA.
Even it is not successful, it is good to put politicians on notice that their damaging and deceitful actions are not invisible and the public will hear about them.
I wonder if that charity Beutner owns is actually a front for philanthrocapitalism. It gives free glasses to students if they submit to a vision test. Might the vision test include a retinal scan, salable data? He doesn’t seem like the charitable type. One really can’t be the charitable type and the privatization supporting, former investment banker type at the same time.
And by the way, I just saw an SBAC reading selection about a friendly robot teacher.
Boy, you are paranoid.
That makes two of us.
And no one is ever a former investment banker.
Once an investment banker, always an investment banker. It’s in the genes. Green gene$.
I’ll give you a free search engine or social network if you just let me sell your innermost thoughts, friendships, political beliefs, and secrets.
And here in Chicago–Paul Vallas (running for mayor of Chicago) on the front page (&, since the beginning of the week, front-&-center) calling Rahm a bully.
Can’t these people (including Deasy) get out of public life & leave.us.alone.
Please make like “Bobby” Jindal & Chris Christie (hopefully…now that Jared’s been semi-silenced, perhaps Trump will fire Jeff Sessions & appoint pal Chris {you may not know, but Christie was rather banished from the WH as per Jared; Christie was the N.J. A.G. who prosecuted Jared’s dad & put him in jail}) Deasy & Vallas & just.go.away.