- Los Angeles Times Editorial Board
Why does the Times Editorial Board continue to pretend that the teachers’ union and education reform are mutually exclusive? Have they read the full text of the “Schools L.A. Students Deserve?” These demands include “Teachers who are allowed to teach children so that they learn, not just be good test-takers...healthy food served in a clean environment…[and] a welcoming environment for parents so that they can be involved in their children’s education.” As the candidate in District 3 representing the interests of parents, I can tell you through personal experience that these conditions do not currently exist in the LAUSD. A call for change is, by definition, “reform”. As a Board member, I will treat teachers like team members not adversaries.
In endorsing Monica Garcia in 2013, The times wrote “We'll be upfront about this: We consider Garcia a poor choice for the school board, and we always have...Garcia is a divisive and sometimes careless force on the board who lacks grace and thoughtfulness as its leader. Her positions seem less considered than reactive...Likewise, her retort about a serious conflict of interest involving former Supt. Ramon C. Cortines...reflects a dismissiveness and lack of basic understanding that is truly disturbing.” This is what they wrote in endorsing her! Their reasoning for not backing her four opponents was that three were “UTLA-backed” and “spout typical anti-reform rhetoric.” The fourth “would not vote to extend Deasy’s contract once it expires.” Hopefully, the Time’s endorsements this year will reflect the role that they played in a “disastrous year for the” LAUSD that included the $ 111.5 million MiSiS crisis, $139 million in Miramonte settlements and a FBI investigation of the $1.3 billion iPad program.