Months before the Los Angeles school board approved a $6.2 million contract with AllHere, an AI chatbot maker that is now being investigated by the FBI, top district leaders were invited to a meeting with its CEO and a consultant, who is a close friend and associate of schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.

The Jan. 18, 2023, calendar invite for the gathering at the district鈥檚 downtown headquarters, billed as 鈥淎llHere Meeting,鈥� was shared with 社区黑料 by a former central office staffer, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution. 

The AllHere contract in question is widely believed to be connected to the high-profile raids on Carvalho鈥檚 home and district office in late February. 

社区黑料 has not received confirmation on whether the meeting took place or what specifically may have been discussed, but the invite suggests district administrators were consulting with AllHere principals five months before the contract was voted on.

It also calls into question public statements by Carvalho, who was placed on paid leave Feb. 27, that he . He said the education technology venture represented by his longtime friend and business associate Debra Kerr won the job based on legally mandated bidding. Kerr called the Jan. 18 meeting.

AllHere filed for bankruptcy in September 2024 and its founder and CEO, Joanna Smith-Griffin, was later arrested on charges of identity theft and defrauding investors. 

社区黑料 filed extensive public record requests with Los Angeles Unified School District in September 2024 for documents related to the AI chatbot contract, including all proposals, bids or submissions made by AllHere and any other companies vying for the work. The request also asked for documents detailing how the district evaluated AllHere鈥檚 qualifications and determined that the small Boston-based firm with little to no artificial intelligence experience was capable of carrying out the contract.

On Feb. 11, 17 months after those requests were filed and two weeks before the FBI raids, a senior paralegal in sent 社区黑料 an email asking if we still wanted the documents.

Through his attorneys and a spokesperson, Carvalho since the FBI probe exploded into public view. The Los Angeles Times reported that he denied any wrongdoing, pointed out that “no evidence has been presented by prosecutors supporting any allegation that (he) violated federal law” and pressed to return to his job.

鈥淢r. Carvalho remains confident that the evidence will ultimately demonstrate that he acted appropriately and in the best interests of students,鈥� said the statement that was issued through the spokesperson and the law firm of Holland & Knight, according to the Times. 鈥淲e hope the school board reinstates him promptly to his position as superintendent.鈥�

Kate Brody, the vice president of communications for , a 2,000-member LAUSD parent and educator advocacy group, sees the moment differently. Her group has called for an audit of all the education technology contracts entered into under Carvalho, saying they lack independent research into their efficacy and now is “the time to peel this whole thing back and take a look, not just at what鈥檚 going on with AllHere, but the inappropriate amount of access that all these companies have.”

“The evidence is increasingly clear that this technology is not really for the benefit of the students,” she told 社区黑料. “Our big question has been for a long time 鈥� whose benefit is it for?”

Carvalho has not been accused of any wrongdoing and authorities have not provided details about the investigation. The warrants underlying the . 

In  after the Board of Education placed Carvalho on paid leave and named an acting superintendent, the district said that while it understood 鈥渢he need for information, we cannot discuss the specifics of this matter pending investigation.鈥�

Kerr could not be reached for comment and attorneys for  Smith-Griffin did not respond to requests for comment. District spokesperson, Britt Vaughan, could not be reached for comment.

Kerr and Carvalho

Federal agents also . Her ties to Carvalho go back to his days leading the Miami-Dade County Public Schools, a period of time in his prominent career that is also now reportedly under investigation. According to , grand jury subpoenas have been issued seeking records from the district鈥檚 inspector general and a fundraising foundation overseen by Carvalho while he was the Miami schools chief.

Kerr was a key player in executing the failed contract between AllHere and the nation鈥檚 second-largest school district. In addition to her being in a position to call senior staff to a meeting at district headquarters, according to the calendar invite, Kerr鈥檚 son Richard, a former AllHere account manager who began working for the company in 2022, told 社区黑料 in September 2024 he pitched AllHere to LAUSD school leaders.

Among 社区黑料鈥檚 long-unanswered public records requests were any conflict of interest disclosure forms filed by AllHere, its employees, third parties involved in the contract or LAUSD personnel.

The location listed on Kerr鈥檚 hourlong invite to discuss AllHere was the office of LAUSD鈥檚 longtime chief spokesperson Shannon Haber, who has since retired. Other invitees included senior advisor of communication B铆ch Ng峄峜 Cao, senior director of engagement and partnerships Antonio Plascencia Jr.. and director of development and civic engagement Sara Mooney. 

Mooney is also the former executive director of the , the district鈥檚 separate fundraising arm includes Carvalho. Attempts to reach Haber and the other meeting invitees, which also included Vaughan, the district spokesperson, and marketing director Lourdes Valentine, were unsuccessful.

Earlier calendar entries shared with 社区黑料 show Carvalho had an hourlong meeting scheduled with Kerr and someone identified only as 鈥淪N鈥� on Oct. 21, 2022, about eight months after he took the $440,000-a-year job in Los Angeles. The meeting was scheduled for 12:30 p.m. at a place 鈥渢o be determined.鈥�

In 2022, Kerr was busy consulting for and promoting AllHere in multiple Florida cities, according to . She also did consulting work for Rethink Ed, a New York-based company that provides social-emotional and wellness resources. In May 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and the national school shutdowns, to support students with autism and other related disabilities during remote learning. 

“We appreciate partners like Rethink Ed which assist us in empowering these very deserving students with a variety of innovative and helpful tools to successfully engage in distance learning,鈥� Carvalho said in a statement when the Miami-Dade contract was announced.

Roughly two years later, when Carvalho was leading LAUSD, the firm

Other calendar entries shared with 社区黑料 show that right before the scheduled meeting with Kerr that October Friday, Carvalho had back-to-back interviews lined up with reporters from The Wall Street Journal and Politico. Later that day, he was scheduled to attend a retirement dinner for Michael Hinojosa, the former Dallas schools superintendent, at the Ravello restaurant at the Four Seasons in Buena Vista Lake, Florida, near Orlando.

Two days before Carvalho was due back in Florida for that celebration, the a $1.89 million contract to provide text-messaging support to students struggling with attendance, academics and social-emotional issues. The SMS tool was a precursor to its AI-powered chatbot. 

Carvalho told the Los Angeles Times he had getting the three-year deal in Miami although the newspaper reported that the bidding process began while he was still in charge. 

Two years later, in November 2024, the district would move with Miami-Dade schools for a period of three years after the ed tech company abandoned its contract.

社区黑料 filed public records requests on Sept. 13, 2024, asking for copies for all of Carvalho鈥檚 daily calendars going back to his first date of employment at LAUSD. The district has yet to produce them.  

AllHere then gone

Also invited to the Jan. 18, 2023, meeting set up by Kerr was AllHere鈥檚 Smith-Griffin, who six months after landing the L.A. schools deal was charged with defrauding investors of nearly $10 million.

Her case, which involves allegations of securities and wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, is being heard in U.S. District Court in Manhattan. The Harvard graduate and former middle school math teacher  pleaded not guilty in December 2024. Conferences on her case were postponed three separate times in 2025 to allow the parties time to work on a possible disposition. The last was a 60-day adjournment on Sept. 25, 2025, and there鈥檚 been no activity in the file since then.

By the time Smith-Griffin was arrested at her home in Raleigh, North Carolina, in November 2024, the company she founded in 2016 had been forced into bankruptcy, unable to pay its debts, including a disputed $630,000 commission claimed by its largest creditor: Kerr.

Carvalho and Smith-Griffin spent considerable time together in the spring of 2024, appearing at multiple ed tech conferences touting 鈥淓d,鈥� their sunny chatbot that was seen as catapulting LAUSD into the K-12 AI vanguard. They said communicating with Ed would provide an unprecedented level of support, accelerating learning and strengthening well-being for students and families, many of whom were still struggling from the pandemic. 

鈥淗e鈥檚 going to talk to you in 100 different languages, he鈥檚 going to connect with you, he鈥檚 going to fall in love with you,鈥� Carvalho raved at the April 2024 ASU+GSV conference in San Diego. 鈥淗opefully you鈥檒l love it, and in the process we are transforming a school system of 540,000 students into 540,000 鈥榮chools of one鈥� through absolute personalization and individualization.鈥�

None of that materialized for the district, whose enrollment has since and which is now and

After AllHere shuttered and a former company manager-turned-whistleblower told 社区黑料 that students鈥� private data  was not properly protected in the push to launch Ed, Carvalho vowed to investigate. He promised a task force of outside experts who would dig into what went wrong with the AllHere contract and determine how the district could strengthen its bidding process to avoid future debacles.

Carvalho told the Los Angeles Times in July 2024, he expected. Some 19 months later, there鈥檚 been no further news or shared task force findings. The district鈥檚 independent inspector general鈥檚 office launched its own investigation around the same time. 

However, the office鈥檚 and reports to the Board of Education make no mention of AllHere. In 2024, the IG opened a total of 62 cases, closed 54 and identified nearly $2.5 million in waste. In 2025, it opened 38 cases and closed 43, including some from previous years, though none appear to have involved AllHere. No financial waste was identified in 2025. 

Inspector General Sue Stengel at the end of 2025 after three years. The office did not respond to a request for comment. 

Equally elusive is what happened to Ed or the underlying tech tool for which LAUSD paid AllHere $3 million out of its $6.2 million contract. Although it鈥檚 been reported that school officials said the district was not financially harmed in the contractual fallout, and it received the services and products it spent several million dollars to acquire, it鈥檚 difficult to substantiate that.

When Carvalho unveiled Ed at a major March 20, 2024, celebration attended by Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, he said the chatbot would be in 101 elementary, middle and high schools as part of a pilot program. By the fall, Ed was supposed to go districtwide. 

Much later, that reported group of Ed testers had been 鈥渢o a small number of schools (that) tried it out, each with a sample of students and parents.鈥� In July 2024 after the district 鈥渦nplugged鈥� Ed in the wake of AllHere鈥檚 demise, that it was 鈥渉ard to find students, teachers or other staff who have used any part of the system since its official launch.鈥� 

Absent human interactions with Ed, the district has been slow to produce documentation from AllHere of services rendered. Among the public records sought by 社区黑料 in September 2024, which LAUSD now appears ready to provide, are 鈥減urchase orders, invoices, and payments records related to any and all goods and/or services provided by AllHere.鈥� 

Staff reporter Amanda Geduld contributed to this report

The Los Angeles Unified School District board has voted to place Superintendent Alberto Carvalho on paid administrative leave, two days after the FBI raided his San Pedro home and district headquarters and searched a residence in Florida. 

While on leave, Carvalho will continue to receive pay, with a  of $440,000. And Andres Chait, who has served as LAUSD鈥檚 chief of school operations, will step in as acting superintendent, effective immediately. The length of Carvalho鈥檚 leave, which is pending investigation, has not been disclosed. 

The board鈥檚 nearly 8-hour-long  began Thursday evening, and the closed session meeting was recessed until 12:30 Friday. The final vote, which came in at about 3:45 p.m., was unanimous.

鈥淭his is a very challenging time,鈥� Board President Scott Schmerelson said at the board meeting following Friday鈥檚 announcement. 鈥淎nd I want you to know that the board believes in you, supports you, and knows that you will all continue to do your very best to support the students and families of the district.鈥�

Carvalho hasn鈥檛 made any public comments since the FBI raids. The agency has also not released further information on the investigation, and the search warrant affidavits remain sealed. Carvalho has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

So far,  have connected the raids to the company AllHere Education, with which both LAUSD and Miami-Dade County Public Schools had entered into agreements.

Three months after Los Angeles Unified rolled out Ed, an AI chatbot developed by AllHere, the company鈥檚 founder and CEO, Joanna Smith-Griffin, left. She was later arrested and charged with securities fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

Meanwhile, the property searched in Southwest Ranches, Florida, in Broward County, reportedly belongs to Debra Kerr, whose records show is an AllHere contractor and maintained ties with Carvalho. According to 社区黑料, her son, Richard Kerr, pitched the now-defunct AI company to LAUSD.   

鈥淲e must strive for stability and continuity so that every school can stay focused on teaching and learning and on building on the meaningful gains the district has made in recent years,鈥� said Yoli Flores, the president and CEO of Families in Schools. 

鈥淎t the same time, we acknowledge that public discourse around our schools is inevitably shaped by broader political dynamics. It is essential that investigations and public actions be grounded in evidence and fairness.鈥�

Chait has worked in the district since 1998, starting out as a teacher at Queen Anne Place Elementary School. He has since worked as an assistant principal and principal. He went on to serve as a field director, the administrator of operations for LAUSD鈥檚 Local District Northeast from 2015 to 2019, encompassing roughly 120 schools, and eventually the local district superintendent and chief of school operations. 

鈥淐hait is a highly regarded leader and educator, and we are lucky to have him step in seamlessly to oversee our schools,鈥� Schmerelson said in a written statement. 鈥淥ver the past several years, our educators and students have made enormous strides, and we expect that progress to continue unimpeded.鈥�

He holds a bachelor鈥檚 degree in sociology from UC Berkeley and a master鈥檚 in education administration from Cal State Los Angeles.

鈥淚 am humbled by the Board鈥檚 confidence in appointing me to serve as Acting Superintendent during this critical time,鈥� Acting Superintendent Andres Chait said. 鈥淥ur focus remains clear: to ensure stability, continuity, and strong leadership for our students, families, and employees.鈥�

This was originally published on .

After a four-hour closed session on Thursday, the Los Angeles Unified School District board recessed without announcing a decision on whether Superintendent Alberto Carvalho may be placed on leave a day after the FBI raided his residence and the district鈥檚 downtown Los Angeles headquarters.

The session will continue on Friday at 12:30 p.m.

Carvalho鈥檚 employment was the single item addressed during the closed-door special board meeting. Only a few members of the community spoke during public comment, and the room remained largely empty and quiet.

Board members were not available for interviews, and Carvalho wasn鈥檛 seen.

鈥淭he District continues normal operations across all schools and offices. We are grateful to our dedicated employees, families, and students for their steady focus and commitment to our school communities,鈥� the district board wrote in a  released shortly after Thursday鈥檚 closed session ended.

The federal investigation involves financial matters related to Carvalho himself, rather than the district, the Los Angeles Times reported.

If the board decides to place Carvalho on leave, it remains unclear who the board might appoint as interim superintendent.

Several districts have picked associate superintendents to serve as interim after placing their superintendents on leave amid active investigations.

As of 8 p.m. Thursday, Carvalho has not made any public comment. Further information on Wednesday鈥檚 raids has not been released.

鈥淲e expect LAUSD to provide full transparency and clear communication to educators, school staff, and the public,鈥� United Teachers Los Angeles, the district teachers union, said in a statement to EdSource.

鈥淯TLA educators and our school communities have long raised concerns about LAUSD rapidly increasing spending on education tech and outside contractors, while investment in classrooms and educators has declined.鈥�

A critical time for the district

LAUSD鈥檚 leadership shakeup comes at a critical time, as the district navigates budget challenges, potential strikes and the impacts of federal actions.

鈥淲e feel that this moment really calls for clear, strong leadership,鈥� said Nicolle Fefferman, a longtime LAUSD educator and cofounder of the Facebook advocacy group Parents Supporting Teachers. 鈥淎nd we want our elected school board members to make certain that that is what they are prioritizing.鈥�

Fall out with AllHere

Media reports so far have connected Wednesday鈥檚 raids with the company AllHere Education, which LAUSD entered into a $6.2 million professional services contract on July 1, 2023. Miami-Dade County Public Schools, where Carvalho previously served as superintendent, had also  with the company in the fall of 2022.

Los Angeles Unified initiated the  of its chatbot Ed, which was developed by AllHere, in March 2024. It was  to serve as a 鈥減ersonal assistant鈥� for students 鈥� capable of reminding them about assignments and exams, and informing them about cafeteria menus and bus schedules.

But three months later, the company鈥檚 founder and CEO Joanna Smith-Griffin left the company. Most employees were furloughed, and Smith-Griffin was arrested in November 2024 and charged with securities fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

In July 2024, Carvalho announced a  to conduct a review of what went wrong with the rollout. But its progress and outcomes don鈥檛 appear to have been publicly disclosed.

The home searched by the FBI in Southwest Ranches, Florida, in Broward County, is reportedly the residence of Debra Kerr, who is listed as an AllHere contractor in records related to the company鈥檚 bankruptcy case and who has ties with Carvalho from his time as superintendent in Florida. Her son, Richard Kerr, is a former employee of the now-defunct AI company who told 社区黑料 in 2024 that he pitched LAUSD on AllHere.

Parents Supporting Teachers is calling for the district to place Carvalho on administrative leave.

鈥淚t鈥檚 always been this lingering worry and this example of a theme of the lack of transparency and accountability that we recognize in the district,鈥� Fefferman said.

A storied past

In January 2025, the same parent group called for Carvalho鈥檚 removal following a 鈥渃haotic and dangerous scramble for families and staff鈥� in the wake of the Palisades Fire.

Carvalho鈥檚 contract was  in October, maintaining a salary of $440,000.

After serving as superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools for 14 years, Carvalho took over as LAUSD鈥檚 leader in 2022. His start at the district began as students returned to physical classrooms from virtual learning due to Covid-19. As a result of the pandemic, he has focused on reducing chronic absenteeism and curbing pandemic learning losses.

But despite LAUSD鈥檚  in standardized test scores and efforts to improve student attendance, his time as the district鈥檚 leader has been riddled with controversies 鈥� from alleged  of arts funding to a  of cyberattacks and data breaches.

More recently, he has also received praise and backlash for  the Trump administration鈥檚 immigration crackdown. And last month, the district was  for allegedly discriminating against white students, which the U.S. Department of Justice recently sought to join.

鈥淚t is our hope that the investigation resolves quickly so that the school district can focus on its core mission of educating our children. While we understand the importance of full cooperation with any investigation, we also cannot overlook or undermine the work that Superintendent Carvalho has led to support our students, educators, and the district as a whole,鈥� said Evelyn Aleman, the organizer of the parent group Our Voice/Nuestra Voz.

鈥淓ducation is the foundation that builds stability and lifts families out of poverty鈥� we must stay focused on that mission and our students鈥� success.鈥�

The FBI raided the office and home of Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho on Wednesday morning, a move that shocked the Los Angeles and state education communities.

U.S. Justice Department officials said judicially approved search warrants were executed at the district headquarters in downtown Los Angeles and Carvalho鈥檚 San Pedro residence, according to published reports. A residence in Southwest Ranches, Florida, was also searched.

Federal officials said nothing Wednesday about a possible investigation. Carvalho was the superintendent of the Miami-Dade County Public Schools in Florida for 14 years before taking the job in Los Angeles in 2022.

Carvalho has not made any public statements as of 6 p.m. Wednesday.

In a , Los Angeles Unified officials said, 鈥淲e have been informed of law enforcement activity at Los Angeles Unified School District headquarters and at the home of the Superintendent. The District is cooperating with the investigation and we do not have further information at this time.鈥�

A source familiar with the school district, who spoke to EdSource on the condition of anonymity, said the raids involved a failed artificial intelligence company, AllHere, that the district contracted with for聽a chatbot called Ed聽meant to aid students.

 have also reported that the raids and possible investigation centered on the district鈥檚 relationship with AllHere.

LAUSD entered into a $6.2 million professional services contract with AllHere to begin on July 1, 2023, for an initial two-year term. The contract had three one-year renewal options, according to district documents. District investigators began a probe a year later after learning the chatbot put students鈥� personal information at risk, 社区黑料 reported at the time.

The company has also contracted with Miami-Dade County Public Schools, but Carvalho has denied involvement in that contract, the Los Angeles Times reported.

LAUSD began its rollout of Ed, the chatbot, in March 2024, with initial implementation set to begin with  that the district had identified as being its lowest-performing. District board members, Gov. Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass were in attendance at the inauguration of Ed, along with partners from various universities and businesses.

Three months later, Joanna Smith-Griffin, AllHere鈥檚 founder and CEO, left the company, and most employees were furloughed. In Nov. 2024, Smith-Griffin was  in North Carolina and  in New York with securities fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Her case remains open.

Carvalho was hailed as a rising leader ushering in a new era for Los Angeles Unified when he took over the district. He was reappointed last year and is paid more than $440,000 in salary, with his contract set to expire in 2030.

Carvalho 鈥渋s the leading urban superintendent in the nation,鈥� Dean Pedro A. Noguera of USC鈥檚 Rossier School of Education said on Wednesday. 鈥淗e is a proven leader. If Carvalho鈥檚 career is over, 鈥渢he timing for the district is terrible鈥� as it goes through layoffs and a fiscal crisis, Noguera said.

Los Angeles Unified and Carvalho have been repeatedly in the crosshairs of the federal administration during Trump鈥檚 second term.

The U.S. Department of Justice recently sought to join  filed by the 1776 Project Foundation, which sued the district in January, claiming discrimination against its white students.

 singles out LAUSD鈥檚 Predominantly Hispanic, Black, Asian, or other Non-Anglo program, which was established to curtail the effects of school segregation.

鈥淪tudents attending non-PHBAO schools are denied and directly blocked from these benefits because of the racial composition of their school attendance zone, which detrimentally impacts the quality of the educational experience and directly damages these students,鈥� the lawsuit alleges.

Carvalho has also maintained outspoken support of immigrant students and families, including those who are undocumented. He has  that he migrated from Portugal to the United States as an undocumented teenager. LAUSD passed a resolution in the 2016-17 school year declaring itself a sanctuary district, and the board reaffirmed that status in a resolution passed late 2024.

EdSource reporter Emma Gallegos and data journalist Daniel J. Willis contributed to this report.

The Los Angeles Unified School District is weighing layoffs that could reshape classrooms across the nation鈥檚 second-largest school district. 

The district鈥檚 board at next week鈥檚 meeting is expected to decide whether to cut jobs, as it faces a projected $191 million deficit in the 2027-28 school year if it keeps spending at its current pace. The deficits in LAUSD and other districts are driven largely by the loss of Covid relief funds, declining enrollment and rising costs.

Meanwhile, labor unions throughout the state are pushing many districts for pay raises and other changes, such as increased health care contributions in their next contracts.

鈥淲here you need to cut then is the classroom,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ecause you need fewer classrooms, you need fewer teachers, fewer aides, fewer of folks that are at the sites directly serving kids.鈥�

Los Angeles Unified is not alone among California鈥檚 school districts facing financial pressures. The  must close a deficit or face state receivership.  plans to implement job cuts to address its budget shortfall. 

鈥淟arge and small districts, urban, suburban and rural alike, are experiencing similar constraints,鈥� reads an open  from superintendents of eight California districts, demanding the state restructure the way it funds schools. 鈥淲hen nearly every school system in California is facing the same challenges, it is clear that the issue is not isolated decision-making, but the sustainability of the funding model itself.鈥� 

The superintendents who sent the letter, including LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, cited ongoing challenges, such as enrollment declines.

LAUSD鈥檚 enrollment declined more than 3% to 389,000, down from roughly 402,500 between the 2024-25 and 2025-26 academic years. That outpaced both the state and country, according to a at January鈥檚 Committee of the Whole meeting. 

About 90% of LAUSD鈥檚 budget is spent on personnel. Fine said that with so much of the money being spent on staffing, it would be nearly impossible to balance the budget on the remaining funds. 

鈥淥ur priority will be to protect students, protect programs, protect schools, and, to the extent possible, protect workforce,鈥� Carvalho said at a Roundtable discussion with reporters in late January. 鈥淎nd within that priority, the protection of workforce begins with school sites. That is the balance that we want to establish, leading to the necessary fiscal solvency that we must continue to observe.鈥� 

If LAUSD moves forward with job cuts, laid-off employees would be notified by March 15, per state law.

Weighing in the potential cuts, LAUSD is expecting a $191 million deficit for the 2027-28 academic year, though several factors are at play, including the final governor鈥檚 budget. The district also said it plans to move forward with roughly $150 million in reductions to its central office. 

The current fiscal challenges come after two years of diminishing reserves to help replenish a multi-billion-dollar deficit. While the district teacher鈥檚 union has pointed to $5 billion in reserves as of July, LAUSD is expecting to burn through it in three years. 

鈥淭he danger in just trimming 5% here, 10% there is it leaves you sometimes with incomplete programs,鈥� Fine said. 鈥淚t may leave you with the inability to actually turn things into practice.鈥� 

The school board was originally expected to vote on the layoffs Tuesday, but postponed its regular meeting to Feb. 17 to allow for better preparation and engagement. The meeting鈥檚 comes after LAUSD unions issued a  asking that the vote be delayed and presented instead at a stand-alone meeting. 

Ongoing labor actions 

The discussion of layoffs comes as United Teachers Los Angeles, or UTLA, the union representing roughly 35,000 teachers,  a strike if a labor agreement isn鈥檛 reached. Meanwhile, SEIU Local 99, which represents roughly 30,000 workers, including special education assistants, cafeteria workers and custodians, is in the midst of a strike authorization vote. 

Before mediation began with UTLA in January, LAUSD said its bargaining proposals would cost $4 billion over a three-year contract, while SEIU Local 99鈥檚 would cost $3 billion through 2027-2028. 

LAUSD鈥檚 most recent  to SEIU Local 99 would increase wages by 13% over the next three years 鈥� starting with a 10% increase this year. Before mediation, the district offered UTLA a 4.5% raise and 1% bonus over two years. 

UTLA says that isn鈥檛 enough. With Los Angeles鈥� high cost of living, teachers are struggling financially, the union says. A showed that money is particularly important for Gen Z Black and Latino teachers in the district; a quarter of whom said they would leave their careers in education in search of a higher-paying job.

鈥淚鈥檓 a third-year teacher. I have a master鈥檚 degree from UCLA, which is the premier education school in the country, and I鈥檓 still living paycheck to paycheck. And I鈥檓 still unable to even think about one day owning a home,鈥� said Jon Paul Arciniega, a 29-year-old social studies teacher at Edward R. Roybal Learning Center in the Westlake area.  

鈥淚 still live at home,鈥� Arciniega said. 鈥淎nd if I want to think about things like getting my own place, starting a family, buying a home, right now, all of that seems untenable.鈥� 

Uncertainty ahead 

Sandy Meredith, a psychiatric social worker covering 42 district schools, said she hopes a strike won鈥檛 be necessary, both because of the financial strain it would place on colleagues like Arciniega and because schools play a critical role in students鈥� daily safety. 

But at the same time, she said they鈥檙e struggling to support students 鈥� 20% of whom require mental health services 鈥� without the district providing the support and wages they see as critical to their success. She expressed frustration with the size of the district鈥檚 reserves, particularly when teachers and staff like her pay out of pocket to provide basic resources, such as toilet paper, for students. 

鈥淚 feel like I鈥檓 on an airplane,鈥� she said, 鈥渁nd I鈥檝e been told 鈥業鈥檓 sorry, but we can鈥檛 give you a mask to put on first. But go ahead and take care of the child.鈥� 鈥� 

Strikes are nothing new in Los Angeles Unified. UTLA last went on strike in 2019, leading to a historic  with 6% pay raises, smaller class sizes and investments in community schools. Four years later, in 2023, SEIU Local 99 went on strike, which resulted in a 30% wage increase. 

But teachers and staff say this year comes with much higher stakes. 

Members of UTLA鈥檚 leadership say educators and school staff play a bigger role beyond the school walls.  

鈥淲e鈥檙e dealing with families鈥� anxieties. Are they not being able to come to school because of their housing insecurity? Is there trauma with this addition of the ICE raids? There鈥檚 concerns about safety,鈥� said Margaret Wirth, a pupil services and attendance counselor who supports all of LAUSD鈥檚 Region South. 鈥淚s my child safe? For the child, is my parent safe? There鈥檚 a lot of different factors that make everything more heightened.鈥�

Pupil service and attendance counselors like Wirth help reduce chronic absenteeism. She said layoffs will mean her caseloads will increase. 

But at the same time, Fine said if a district is going to move forward with layoffs, the earlier, the better.  

鈥淭he earlier you cut, the better off you are, and you鈥檙e also not dangling this black cloud over your staff and the community,鈥� Fine said. 鈥淵ou get the discussion done, you forecast your gap right, and you make a decision on how to close that gap all at once, and everybody knows what the plan is.鈥� 

This was originally published on .

Wielding chainsaws, they helped the 97-year-old former Colorado governor clear out fallen timber this year to make a path for some four wheelers. 

鈥淭hey just enjoyed the working relationship back then, and they enjoy the friendship now,鈥� Romer said in a recent interview. 

But when they finish the day鈥檚 projects, it鈥檚 not unusual for the group to relax over wine and cheese and trade war stories about Romer鈥檚 tenure. Under his leadership, the district saw several years of steady gains in reading on both and . Fighting bureaucracy and a powerful teachers union, he required elementary schools to use Open Court, a phonics-based program that embraced what is known today as the science of reading. The district trained teachers to use it and hired reading specialists to make sure they stuck to the curriculum. 

鈥淔or six years, we concentrated on that. It was the most important thing we did,鈥� Romer said. But the teacher鈥檚 union chafed against the program鈥檚 rigid design and eventually demanded over the curriculum. 鈥淭hey didn’t want us to be screwing around in classrooms. They wanted the door shut. We forced those doors open.鈥�

Nearly 20 years later, those stories have a new relevance as reading scores are once again on the rise. The current superintendent, Alberto Carvalho, has taken a similar, top-down approach to literacy with a program from curriculum provider Amplify. District leaders say they鈥檝e learned from the past about the dangers of a lockstep approach to teaching reading, but some wonder whether teachers are getting the support they need. 

Tackling a new curriculum is 鈥渘ot an easy shift, and the ongoing support is needed,鈥� said Francisco Villegas, chief academic officer at the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, a nonprofit that manages 20 high-need schools in the district. 鈥淭here are fewer dollars, and that likely will have implications for what the district is able to provide.鈥� 

The Partnership schools adopted the Amplify program in 2018-19 and began to see in English language arts on the state test. Since 2022, seven of the Partnership鈥檚 11 elementary schools have seen double-digit increases in the percentage of students meeting or exceeding state standards. At a in September, Carvalho called the Partnership a 鈥渢errific incubator鈥� that influenced the district鈥檚 curriculum choices. 

But systemwide, leaders are to balance the budget and layoffs are expected. Compared to the Open Court years, training on the reading curriculum districtwide is more 鈥渉it or miss,鈥� said Maria Nichols, president of the district鈥檚 principals union. LAUSD offers opportunities, both online and in-person, for professional development. School leaders, however, often don鈥檛 know which courses teachers have taken or whether they鈥檙e using what they鈥檝e learned, she said. 鈥淲e are PD rich and implementation poor.鈥�

鈥極n the same page鈥�

Romer鈥檚 team implemented Open Court at a time when was pouring millions into training to teach reading. A $133 million from the U.S. Department of Education provided even more. Nearly all of the district鈥檚 12,000 elementary school teachers participated in and many completed follow-up sessions throughout the year.

鈥淚t was phenomenal,鈥� Nichols said. 鈥淲e were treated as professionals. There was a lot of money back then.鈥�

Former board members, among Romer鈥檚 annual visitors, said Open Court was a way to ensure all students, in an urban district where kids often change schools, would receive strong instruction. Marlene Canter, who served on the board from 2002 through 2008, said that regardless of teachers鈥� level of experience or the college they attended, 鈥渆verybody would be on the same page.鈥�

For some teachers, that played out literally. Many found Open Court . There was a specific set of cards with letter sounds to post on the wall and a recommended U-shaped classroom layout that, according to a teacher guide, left 鈥渁 large open space on the floor for whole-group and individual activities鈥� and provided 鈥渁n easy 鈥榳alk-around鈥� for the teacher.鈥� Critics viewed the , deployed to ensure teachers followed the curriculum, as 鈥淥pen Court police鈥� ready to catch them veering off script. 

鈥淭hey took my fun and creativity away,鈥� former teacher Stuart Goldurs complained in a . 鈥淚 became an instructional robot.鈥� 

Ronni Ephraim, who served as Romer鈥檚 chief instructional officer, said the change upset some teachers. The district asked them to replace storybooks that had been favorites in their classrooms for years with Open Court phonics-based 鈥渞eaders,鈥� workbooks and classroom libraries. Despite the objections, the district saw struggling schools improve and outpace the state. 

鈥淚 don’t think top-down is bad,鈥� Ephraim, now a consultant, said about curriculum choices. 鈥淚 think the board and the superintendent have to believe in it, and then they have to make sure that everybody is prepared to teach it as designed.鈥�

鈥楤ig disconnect鈥�

Critics said the program was ineffective with English learners. Over time, performance flatlined, and the district replaced Open Court with a program. 

Rob Rucker is among the LAUSD teachers who worked for the district during the Open Court years and is now adjusting to Core Knowledge Language Arts. A third grade teacher at 135th Elementary School in Gardena, one of several small cities within the district鈥檚 boundaries, he said some novice teachers valued Open Court鈥檚 structure. They didn鈥檛 yet have enough experience to write lesson plans of their own.

鈥淚 actually liked Open Court,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t was very straightforward and easy for teachers to understand.鈥�

The Amplify program still covers the basic skills students need to decode words and recognize parts of speech. It鈥檚 also what reading experts describe as a knowledge-building curriculum. The units introduce students to early civilizations, like the Vikings in Scandinavia, and science content, such as the solar system and animal habitats.

That鈥檚 where Open Court fell short, said Nichols, with the principals鈥� union.

鈥淲hen we tested kids, they could read beautifully,鈥� she said, 鈥渂ut they couldn’t understand what they were reading.鈥�

For a student population like LAUSD鈥檚, with 86% living in poverty and one in five still learning English, strengthening kids鈥� knowledge of the world is 鈥済oing to be the real game changer,鈥� said Barbara Davidson, president of StandardsWork, a think tank, and executive director of the Knowledge Matters Campaign. Since 2015, the campaign has been a leading voice for integrating history, science and the arts into reading curriculum. 

Rucker said his students were already familiar with stories like 鈥淎lice in Wonderland鈥� and 鈥淎laddin,鈥� so it wasn鈥檛 hard to keep them interested in a lesson on classic fairy tales. Getting them to relate to lessons on ancient Rome has been more challenging.

According to a district spokesperson, 鈥渢he goal is to ensure that every school has access to the literacy expertise and coaching capacity it needs.鈥� But other than a two-day training from Amplify, Rucker said he hasn鈥檛 had any additional support on how to implement the program, he said. He thinks his school would benefit from an English language arts coordinator teachers could lean on when they need someone with more experience, but because of enrollment loss, many schools have lost administrative positions. 

Some teachers feel Amplify is out of reach for struggling students, leading them to patch in other materials to make the material more relevant. 

During a recent lesson on early American irrigation systems, Kareli Rodriguez, who teaches at Stoner Ave. Elementary School on the west side of town, used pictures and videos to help her fifth graders grasp the idea. Excitement over the Dodgers鈥� successful World Series run helped her pique kids鈥� interest in a passage on Yankees鈥� relief pitcher Mariano Rivera.

But it鈥檚 鈥渘ot realistic,鈥� she said, for teachers to get through a lesson in the recommended 90-minute time slot with so many students working below grade level. A district coach modeled a lesson for the teachers last school year, Rodriguez said, but she couldn鈥檛 finish it in time either.

鈥淚 think that’s a big disconnect that the district needs to understand,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely rigorous, but most of the students are always playing catch up.鈥�

Still, like most other schools in the district, Stoner Avenue saw improvements in reading. Fifty-two percent of fifth graders met or exceeded expectations, compared to 41% last year. 

Literacy advocates hope those gains will convince leaders 鈥� as Romer did with Open Court 鈥� to stick with Amplify. 鈥淥ur push is going to be to say, 鈥榊ou got to stay the course,鈥� 鈥� said Yolie Flores, president and CEO of Families in Schools, a nonprofit that for research-backed teaching materials. Her group breaks down the science of reading for parents so they鈥檒l know how to talk to teachers about the curriculum and help their kids at home.

District leaders gathered in October to celebrate the district鈥檚 recent improvement. Outside the auditorium at Maywood Elementary School, as students rushed back to class after lunch, Deputy Superintendent Karla Estrada took a moment to talk about lessons learned since the Open Court years, like taking feedback from teachers.

The district, she said, wants them to follow the Amplify curriculum 鈥渨ith integrity鈥� while recognizing they often have to make decisions in the moment, depending on their students. 

鈥淭hey let me know where something is not quite what they want,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut no curriculum is going to do everything for you.鈥�

The schools have mostly reopened after prolonged closures, using temporary classrooms. But the fires, which killed dozens and left thousands homeless, have chopped enrollment by half at some of the affected schools.

鈥淔amilies went with schools that weren’t impacted by the fires,鈥� said Bonnie Brimecombe, principal of Odyssey Charter-South, which was destroyed in the Eaton blaze. 鈥淎nd then we have other people that are just nervous about coming back [because] it’s a lot to see and be a part of.鈥�

Odyssey South, located in the Altadena area of Los Angeles, reopened on three temporary campuses from January to June of last year including a Boys and Girls Club, an office in Old Town Pasadena, and classrooms at the nearby ArtCenter College of Design.

By fall, the main campus reopened in a school building that was formerly used by another charter, but many families chose other schools or left the area, with enrollment falling to 183 from 375. 

Despite the trauma, students were resilient, improving test scores and good classroom behavior, said Brimecombe.聽

鈥淚t’s just a complete surprise at how well the kids have gone through this process,鈥� she  said. 鈥淭he kids are happy, the kids are smiling, they are learning, they are fine. The kids are happy, happy to be back together.鈥�

Still, enrollment challenges persist, and the school has had to let go of a handful of teachers and teaching assistants. The school鈥檚 original building felt more like home, Brimecombe said, but kids who have stayed at the school are thriving.

Odyssey South has put new supports in place for students鈥� including an on-site counseling team that was expanded this year to increase access for students.

The school also brought in art therapists to run a series of sessions with different grade levels, and a counseling team that visits classrooms for structured sessions on topics that surface for specific age groups.

Teachers have also increased the number of field trips at the school to give students 鈥渉appy situations鈥� and positive experiences away from the fire-affected environment, Brimecombe said.

Odyssey South was able to maintain its previous levels of programming this year but may have to make cuts next year if current funding levels don鈥檛 persist, Brimecombe said.

That鈥檚 largely a matter of enrollment, since Odyssey South, like other public schools in LA., receives its funding on a per-pupil basis. With half of the school鈥檚 students gone, the future is uncertain.

Still, the principal is hopeful.

鈥淔amilies are coming back,鈥� Brimecombe said. 鈥淭hey’re just not back yet.鈥滶nrollment problems also persist in the Palisades, where three schools were burned, said LAUSD school board member Nick Melvoin, who represents the area.

Palisades Charter High is holding up the best, with about 2,500 students, down from about 2,900 pre-fire. Marquez Elementary has about 130 students, a little less than half of pre-fire enrollment. Palisades Elementary has about 300 students, down by about 100 from pre-fire levels.

Students returned to Marquez Elementary into portable, temporary buildings in the fall. Palisades High students are returning to their school building on Jan. 27, and Palisades Elementary students continue to attend school at their co-location site at Brentwood Science Magnet.

New, rebuilt facilities for all three schools should be completed by fall 2028, 鈥渂ut all three schools are kind of a slightly different journey from now until then,鈥� said Melvoin.

鈥淭he families that have been displaced, that are in other parts of L.A. and the country, are either coming back eventually or not,鈥� he said of enrollment drops. 鈥淪ome families who were not satisfied with the co-located option or didn’t want to be back in the Palisades just yet because of environmental concerns, are still in other schools.鈥�

The district is giving flexibility in where families choose to enroll, said Melvoin, who expects enrollment in the displaced schools to improve.

鈥淲e’re going to have some new enrollment for the coming months, as people realize like, 鈥極h, I’m moving back to my house,鈥� or 鈥榤y insurance money ran out, and so now I’m back in the Palisades,鈥� and there’s only a few schools that are open,鈥� said Melvoin.

Besides environmental concerns, Melvoin said, families that are staying away due to a lack of infrastructure in the fire-scorched area, and because of trauma.

鈥淭he burn scar is still there,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou’re still driving past a number of destroyed buildings and houses. There are just some families who aren’t ready to put their kids back there yet.鈥�

Many families are hopeful because schools are returning, construction is visible, and some businesses are coming back, said Allison Holdorff Polhill, a district director who works in Melvoin鈥檚 office and longtime Palisades resident who lost her home in the fires.

Virtually all residents were under鈥慽nsured, and there is still a strong need for federal money, grants and loans to cover rebuilding gaps, said Holdorff Polhill, and people are frustrated by slow government planning and being scattered in rentals or forced into assisted living.

鈥淓very single friend’s home burned to the ground,鈥� said Holdorff Polhill. 鈥淧eople are still traumatized by what happened.鈥�

LAUSD has set aside $604 million for the full rebuilding of the impacted areas in the Palisades, including the three burned schools, LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said.

The money will provide for the full rebuilding of Marquez Elementary, which was destroyed, plus new buildings and improvements to existing ones at Palisades Elementary, where about 60% of the campus was burned.

At Palisades High, about 30% of classrooms were destroyed and the remainder are being rebuilt. 

The school is famous for being a popular filming location for Hollywood movies such as Carrie, Freaky Friday, and Teen Wolf, and for notable alumni including J.J. Abrams and will.i.am.

Pali High students have been attending classes in a former Sears department store building while construction is underway to repair fire damage. 

The school鈥檚 campus is scheduled for reopening when work is completed later this month. 

Carvalho said the district is still working to recover about $500 million of the expected construction costs from insurance companies.

鈥淭he rest we will seek FEMA reimbursements, which we believe we are absolutely legally entitled to,鈥� Carvalho said. 鈥淲e hope that the federal government will not play games, political games as we seek these reimbursements.鈥�

In addition to these investments, the district will spend in excess of a billion dollars, all funded through Measure US, a $9 billion bond referendum approved by voters in 2024, to build higher levels of fire resilience at schools across the district.

鈥淭hat means anything from replacement of filtration systems, the acquisition of air purifiers, new filtration systems for schools, HVAC systems, and replacement of roofing structures and windows with materials that withstand fires,鈥� Carvalho said.  

LAUSD has installed more than 230 air quality sensors on school buildings, covering every campus in the district, Carvalho said.

The sensors detect nauseous fumes, particulate matter in the air, and also measure temperature and wind speed, enabling school officials to make emergency decisions in case of fires, he said.

鈥淧revention is the best solution for fires,鈥� said Carvalho. 

The district recently reignited its dormant nonprofit, the , hiring a new executive director to court dollars from corporations and foundations. The effort has brought in some $26 million so far, including from well-known players in L.A. entertainment and business, on its way to a $100 million goal for the foundation鈥檚 first five years. 

A renewed focus on raising private money for school districts across the country comes as student needs are growing and leaders worry about shifting federal policy, education philanthropy officials said. 

鈥淲hat’s occurring right now is that those that don鈥檛 have them are forming foundations, or reforming them if they鈥檝e gone dormant,鈥� said Mike Taylor, head of the National Association of Education Foundations, who said he鈥檚 been fielding calls since the summer from school districts looking to navigate the uncertainty around federal funding and leverage community resources.

In Los Angeles, the initial fundraising push has helped families impacted by last year鈥檚 wildfires and supported the district鈥檚 neediest schools.

鈥淚 want to level the playing field,鈥� said Sadie Stockdale Jefferson, who came in to lead the LAUSD foundation this summer after serving in a similar role for Chicago Public Schools and running a University of Chicago think tank focused on public education. 鈥淲e鈥檙e taking the best of what we know works to improve education and ensuring those initiatives reach the schools and classrooms that need them the most.鈥�

A major initial focus of the foundation will be on what LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho calls 鈥減riority schools,鈥� with lagging academic performance and the highest student needs in a district that educates everyone from the wealthy elite to families experiencing homelessness or poverty.

Jefferson recently saw a breakdown of private support to district schools by region and said she realized: 鈥淭he disparity is shocking,鈥� adding she wants foundation money to primarily support campuses without their own parent-run fundraising efforts. 

The philanthropic money is still a drop in the bucket in the district’s more than . But it represents a potential new revenue stream at a time when LAUSD continues to shed students and run a deficit. 

Carvalho is looking to the foundation to support students in ways the district can鈥檛, like sending homeless students off to college with a new laptop, or providing emergency cash to families impacted by the wildfires. 鈥淪ometimes the need is acute,鈥� Carvalho said, with foundation money typically being deployed quickly and with less bureaucracy. 

Many of the needs Carvalho ticked off as foundation priorities are those students face outside the classroom. But he said he鈥檚 also open to private money supporting the district academically, particularly in the priority schools. District support for priority schools involves teacher coaching, strengthening curriculum and providing tutoring. 

鈥�Government dollars will only go so far, and there are unmet needs that often foundations can address and support,鈥� Carvalho said.  

The foundation has also taken on music education, riding off the popularity of 鈥淭he Last Repair Shop,鈥� an Oscar-winning short film about the highly skilled team that keeps scores of district-owned instruments working for LAUSD students. Jefferson said she鈥檚 hoping to replicate a sponsor-a-school program she ran in Chicago, offering businesses a way to directly help local schools. 

Using private money for public education can be controversial, particularly when funders are seen as exerting too much pressure or pushing for school reforms like charter schools.

Carvalho and others involved in Los Angeles鈥檚 fundraising say they鈥檙e aiming to avoid that tension as they address critical needs in the district of 400,000 students. 

Of the nation鈥檚 13,000 school districts, around 6,000 have foundations, the majority volunteer-run, Taylor said. The focus of district foundations has evolved, he said, from being thought of as a vehicle to buy extra books or classroom materials. The needs and challenges have deepened since the pandemic. Philanthropic money now goes toward building partnerships for workforce development, supporting teacher retention and addressing student mental-health challenges, Taylor said.

LAUSD鈥檚 foundation has recruited board members from local business, education and philanthropic organizations.

Board Chairman Michael Fleming, the president of the David Bohnett Foundation, said he was drawn to the role after hearing Carvalho鈥檚 vision for an organization that could move fast and target specific goals, including investing in the priority schools. 

He鈥檚 also committed to bridging the divide between public and private funding. 鈥淭here is this innate distrust sometimes between a government entity and philanthropy, and vice versa,鈥� Fleming said. 鈥淭hey each see the world very differently and say: 鈥榊ou don鈥檛 understand the way we operate.鈥� I think that鈥檚 false.鈥�

Enthusiasm for private investment in public school districts has fallen in and out of favor over the decades. Initial waves of corporate and foundation money aimed to revolutionize education.  

鈥淲hen things don鈥檛 dramatically get better, the energy and resources and attention ebb,鈥� said Jeffrey Henig, a professor emeritus at Columbia鈥檚 Teachers College who has followed education philanthropy. Many private foundations doubled down on charter schools, which then made school districts wary of partnerships. In Los Angeles, a nonprofit launched by LAUSD leaders in the 2010s later merged with an entity that backed charters, putting it at odds with the district it initially set out to help. 

Henig sees today鈥檚 philanthropists more focused on supporting strong school leaders, rather than looking to fundamentally disrupt the way education is delivered. 

That shift makes sense to Erica Lim, a senior program officer at the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation. Broad, along with the foundations of “Two and a Half Men” co-creator Chuck Lorre and L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer, to the LAUSD foundation to support its priority schools.

Lim said she was encouraged by the stability Carvalho has brought to LAUSD since he joined in 2022 after a string of short-tenured leaders. The former Miami-Dade Public Schools superintendent now has a contract to keep him in the L.A. job until at least 2030.

鈥淲e鈥檙e not looking to backfill or solve really systemic budget issues,鈥� Lim said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 for district leaders to solve.鈥� Instead, Broad wants its investments to help kick-start new initiatives or scale programs that show promise. 

Carvalho said the district won鈥檛 be turning to philanthropy to fund core areas of the budget. That said, he could see the foundation being used as a stopgap if, for instance, the federal government cut off longstanding funding to support English language learners. 鈥淭hat would be a legitimate support from the foundation,鈥� Carvalho said, 鈥淲hich could be a likely scenario in the months to come.鈥�

In reviving the foundation, Carvalho changed the bylaws to give himself less power over its board, a move he saw as helping ensure its independence. Jefferson works with the LAUSD Education Foundation board to direct funds, with district input. 

Fleming, the board chair, said he鈥檚 looking for the foundation to outlast the many prior attempts and avoid drama. 鈥淲e simply want to get resources for the schools and for students,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 it.鈥� 

Duque, who has taught at the award-winning, urban planning-themed LAUSD in West Hollywood for 18 years, was one of four teachers named as finalists by the state education department for the 2026 California Teachers of the Year in October. She was the only LAUSD teacher to receive the honor.

Duque works hard to create a free-flowing vibe in her first-grade classroom to promote the creativity of her students, describing the scene as the 鈥渂est kind鈥� of messy.  

鈥淚t’s a place where my students are able to wonder, to be curious, to take risks, to be able to make things with their hands and minds,鈥� said Duque, who has been a teacher in Los Angeles Unified since 2000.聽

鈥淚t鈥檚 a place where you can tell learning is happening,鈥� she said of her classroom. 

The veteran teacher鈥檚 freewheeling approach is apparent in her classroom but there鈥檚 a method to the mayhem. Everything her students do is somehow tied back to the school鈥檚 theme of urban planning and urban design, topics Duque admits could be heady for her 6-year-old students, were it not for her approach to the subjects, which links them to kids鈥� everyday lives. 

On a recent school day, students in Duque鈥檚 class were drawing pictures of designs for a new community space in Griffith Park after she noticed a news report about the city鈥檚 struggle to repurpose the area .听听听

Students drew pictures of their ideas for the space, coloring construction paper using markers and drawing their visions for forests and lazy rivers that could be installed in L.A.鈥檚 historic park.  

In subsequent parts of the project, Duque said, students will create three-dimensional models of their ideas for the part using recycled materials such as cardboard and paper.  

鈥淲e’re making an arcade that’s called Fun Time, and then we put a petting zoo next to it called Pig Pig,鈥� said Ben, a student in Duque鈥檚 class, who was working on a drawing with a few classmates. 鈥淚 wonder if it will really happen.鈥�

Duque often pulls ideas for lessons from real-life events in L.A., finding the sprawling and diverse city offers no shortage of inspiration for classroom activities tied to urban planning.聽

鈥淚 just keep my eyes and ears to the news, and I just see what’s happening in our community, and I just get ideas from there,鈥� she said. 

A favorite lesson from a few years ago was based on an experience the teacher had while walking her dog in Griffith Park, when a coyote approached the two and nearly attacked Duque鈥檚 pet. 

are common in L.A. and such experiences aren鈥檛 unusual, but this event inspired Duque to create a lesson for students to create outfits for pets to repel predatory coyote attacks.

Students created costumes for pets that featured things known to deter coyotes, such as flashing lights. One student liked the project so much she created a picture book about the lesson with her parents, a copy of which Duque keeps displayed on the wall in her class.聽

鈥淚t’s another example of how I really look at what’s in our city, what’s in the news, and what’s relevant to kids and our lives,鈥� the teacher said. 

Duque鈥檚 relentless curiosity and enthusiasm make her a natural leader among her colleagues at Rosewood, said the school鈥檚 principal, Linda Crowder.

鈥淪he is a lifelong learner,鈥� Crowder said. 鈥淪he gets something and she runs with it.鈥�

LAUSD鈥檚 chief financial officer in an interview last week said declining enrollments and the end of pandemic relief funds have forced the district to take cost-cutting measures.  

Schools have already been notified of how much they will have to cut from their budgets. The cuts will go into effect starting in August. 

LAUSD officials in June had predicted a $1.6 billion deficit for the 2027-28 school year. But an updated version of the budget  last week eliminates the deficit by using reserve funds plus cost-cutting measures over the next two years. 

The planned cuts to school budgets will begin in the 2026-27 school year, with school consolidations and staffing reductions planned for the following school year, said LAUSD Chief Financial Officer Saman Bravo-Karimi. 

鈥淲e have fewer students each year, and in LAUSD that鈥檚 been the case for over two decades,鈥� Bravo-Karimi said. 鈥淭hat has a profound impact on our funding levels. Also, we had the expiration of those one-time COVID relief funds that were very substantial.鈥�  

The district recently contracted with the consulting firm Ernst and Young to create models for closing and consolidating schools. While school officials wouldn鈥檛 say which schools or how many would be closed, the district has clearly been shrinking. 

Enrollment last year fell to 408,083, from a peak of 746,831 in 2002. Nearly half of the district鈥檚 zoned elementary schools are half-full or less, and 56 have seen rosters fall by 70% or more. 

Bravo-Karimi said in the current school year the district will spend about $2 billion more than it took in from state, local and federal funding. The trend of overspending is expected to continue next year and the year after that, he said.

The district鈥檚 board in June approved a three-year budget plan that included a $18.8-billion budget for the current school year. The plan delayed layoffs until next year, and funded higher spending in part by reducing a fund for retirees鈥� health benefits. 

According to , the district will save:  

• $425 million by clawing back funds that went unused by schools each year聽
• $300 million by reducing staffing and budgets at central offices聽
• $299 million by cutting special funding for schools with high-needs students
• $120 million by cutting unfilled school staffing positions
• $30 million by consolidating schools聽聽
• $16 million by cutting student transportation聽

Bravo-Karimi said the district gets virtually all of its money through per-pupil funding from the state. Since enrollment in the district has fallen steadily for decades, and then sharply since the pandemic, funding is down significantly, he said.

Most zoned L.A. elementary schools are almost half empty, and many are operating at less than 25% capacity.聽Thirty-four schools have fewer than 200 students enrolled; a dozen of those schools once had enrollment over 400.听听听聽聽

The drops have prompted LAUSD leaders to talk about closing or combining schools, a controversial step that other big U.S. cities  or considering. 

Bravo-Karimi said the district would assess the needs of communities and the conditions at local schools before it makes any decisions about school closings or consolidations. 

鈥淭hat process needs to play out before any decisions are made about potential consolidation of school facilities,鈥� he said.

Bravo-Karimi said other factors, including ongoing negotiations with labor unions, and changes to state funding, will further impact the district鈥檚 budget in the coming months. 

Marguerite Roza, director of the Edunomics Lab and Research Professor at Georgetown University鈥檚 McCourt School of Public Policy, said the cuts planned for LAUSD are 鈥渞elatively mild鈥� compared to overall size of the district鈥檚 budget and cuts being considered at other  and the rest of the country. 

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think the people in the schools are going to notice that there鈥檚 a shrinking of the central office or that they鈥檙e using reserves,鈥� said Roza. 鈥淯nless you鈥檙e one of the people who loses their transportation or if you鈥檙e in one of the schools that gets closed.鈥� 

But, Roza said, many of the cuts taken by LAUSD can only be made once, and the district still faces profound changes as enrollments continue to fall and downsizing becomes more and more necessary. 

鈥淭his really should be a signal to families,鈥� said Roza of the planned cuts in the district鈥檚 latest budget. 鈥淎fter several years of really being flush with cash, this is not the financial position that LA Unified is going to be in moving forward.鈥� 

LAUSD Board Member Tanya Ortiz-Franklin, who represents LAUSD鈥檚 District Seven, which includes neighborhoods such as South L.A., Watts and San Pedro, said the district will work to shield kids from the impact of budget cuts. 

But, Ortiz-Franklin said, the district hired permanent staffers with one-time COVID funding, and now some of those staffers will have to be let go. 

Still, LA Unified聽has made strong gains聽since the pandemic, she said, and the district must聽work hard to preserve its upward trajectory despite financial headwinds.聽

鈥淲e would love to share good news, especially this time of year,鈥� said Ortiz-Franklin. 鈥淏ut the reality is, it is really tough.鈥� 

School leaders across LAUSD received preliminary budgets for the next year over the last few weeks, said Ortiz-Franklin. Some schools in her district are facing cuts of up to 15%, forcing them to make tough decisions on which staffers to keep and who to let go. 

Several hundred additional layoffs will be announced in February, she said, when the district makes another assessment of staffing needs. 

鈥淲e don鈥檛 know the total number yet, and we don鈥檛 know which positions yet,鈥� said Ortiz-Franklin.

This school year, the Los Angeles school district has lost more than 13,000 immigrant students, mostly Hispanic, school officials said, with students fleeing in the months since U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement stepped up activity in Los Angeles in March.

The nation鈥檚 second-largest district now enrolls about 62,000 English learners, according to new figures obtained by 社区黑料, down from more than 75,000 immigrant students in the 2024-25 academic year.   

鈥淪ome children are just choosing not to go back to school, especially those who are immigrants,鈥� said Evelyn Aleman, founder of , a parents鈥� group which advocates for L.A.鈥檚 Spanish-speaking and low-income families. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 because they know that immigrant children have been arrested or detained by ICE.鈥�

In the 2018-19 academic year, the district enrolled more than 157,000 English learners.  The downward trend of these students represents a stunning turnaround for a district that in 2003 was nearly half immigrant kids. It comes amid a districtwide decline in enrollment.  

L.A. is not the only city seeing declines in immigrant enrollment since ICE cracked down. Denver, Miami and San Diego have also . 

Since January, school officials, municipal leaders and state lawmakers have sought to present a brave face against the immigration crackdowns promised by President Donald Trump. Even before the ICE raids began, they issued guidance and rolled out tools and policies, and proposed legislation to limit federal immigration enforcement.

But the fear of ICE became real for many families, Aleman said, after federal agents in April showed up at two LAUSD schools seeking 鈥榓ccess鈥� to young students. 

The federal agents鈥� school visits 鈥� with as many as four appearing at one time looking for information on children in grades one through six 鈥� were considered the first reported cases of Homeland Security authorities attempting to enter a U.S. school. 

School staffers turned the agents away in both cases, but outside of school grounds at least two LAUSD students have been arrested and held by ICE, Aleman said.  

鈥淚t isn’t because they don’t want to be in school,鈥� said Aleman. 鈥淎 big concern for families is that they’re going to be separated [by ICE]. Rather than see that, many are choosing to self-deport, or children who are high schoolers are choosing not to return.鈥�

Instead, Aleman said, kids are staying home where they feel safe, or in some cases going to work outside their homes.  

According to LAUSD figures, the drop in immigrant students this year means LAUSD now enrolls about half as many of those kids as it did before the pandemic. 

Besides the ICE raids, factors including rising housing prices, falling birth rates and a tight local economy have also contributed to the exodus of immigrant students, said LAUSD Board Member , who represents , which includes neighborhoods such as South L.A., Watts and San Pedro.  

鈥淧eople are having less children, and traditionally, in Latino families, there are more children. So that鈥檚 one area,鈥� said Ortiz-Franklin. 鈥淎nd, obviously, the in Los Angeles is ridiculous.鈥�

Recent fears around immigration enforcement and the future of public assistance, such as SNAP benefits, are also likely driving down immigrant populations, Ortiz-Franklin said. 

shows the immigrant students in 2003 accounted for about 45% of enrollment, with more than 325,000 English learners enrolled there. Since then, the number of immigrant students has fallen sharply.

But the ICE raids that began in L.A. this year have given immigrant families more reason to be concerned about sending their kids to school 鈥� or leave the city entirely. 

To bolster immigrant students鈥� sense of safety, LAUSD officials have established 鈥榩erimeters of safety鈥� around campuses and instructed school staffers to refuse ICE agents entry, unless warrants are displayed.

The district has created its safe zones around schools by warning families to stay away when volunteer sentries spot ICE agents nearby. A free legal defense fund has been created for families facing enforcement.

Other measures include free busing to class, legal clinics for families, and remote lessons for when all else fails.

In a statement, a district spokesperson said LAUSD鈥檚 overall enrollment 鈥渃ontinues to reflect a long-term downward trend observed across large urban districts in California and nationwide.鈥� 

鈥淢ultiple factors contribute to these shifts, including declining birth rates, changes in housing affordability, and family migration patterns,鈥� the spokesperson said. 鈥淚n addition, increased federal immigration enforcement efforts have had a chilling effect in many communities.鈥�

LAUSD officials and researchers said it鈥檚 difficult  to pinpoint where immigrant families are going when they leave. During the pandemic, L.A. superintendent Alberto Carvalho said some of these families had left the state for Texas and Florida for economic reasons.

Dean of the USC Rossier School of Education Pedro Noguera said LAUSD will face challenges in attracting more immigrant families, even with the measures to protect students from ICE raids.

鈥淭hey’re taking a lot of extra steps to try to reassure the population, but it’s limited as to what they can do,鈥� Noguera said.  鈥淚t’s a combination of several trends, all heavy at once, that is producing this significant decline,鈥� adding LAUSD may soon have to make tough choices due to its shrinking class sizes.

Smaller class sizes have already prompted district leaders to consider measures such as closing schools or converting unused campus buildings for housing. 

Overall enrollment in LAUSD鈥檚 massive, 1,500-school system has cratered since its peak in 2002, when 746,831 students attended classes. This school year the district  enrolled 392,654 students, a drop of roughly 4% from last year鈥檚 count of 409,108, school officials said.

Enrollment this term has also failed to hit targets set during the budget process earlier in the year, indicating the losses are steeper than officials expected.

Julien Lafortune, a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, said such declines are impacting districts around the state, of immigrant students.

鈥淭he growth of Los Angeles and other districts was driven by a lot of immigrants coming in, and then, on average, having more kids than the average native-born person,鈥� he said. 鈥淣ow, we’re seeing kind of the inverse of that. Kind of a bust after the boom.鈥�

At 6:50 a.m, the parent on carpool duty would set out westward toward the San Fernando Valley, often cutting the workday short to reverse the commute eight hours later. One dad even rented space at a coworking location to minimize the drive.

The destination: Portola Middle School in Tarzana, one of the Los Angeles Unified School District鈥檚 few magnet schools with a program specifically for highly gifted students. 

鈥淲e were going with traffic both ways,鈥� said Tira Franco, a mom of three who feels lucky that her now-seventh grader landed a spot in the school. But while the boys in her eight-seat minivan spent the trips quizzing each other in math, she quickly grew exhausted. 鈥淚n L.A., just five miles could take you like an hour.鈥�

Enduring gridlock on 鈥渢he 405鈥� and other major thoroughfares is part of life in the nation鈥檚 second-largest city, and it鈥檚 a price that many families are willing to pay to get their children in a preferred school. This year, the kids ride a bus as part of the district鈥檚 efforts to services. Students who attend magnets and other schools of choice in the sprawling, 700-square-mile district are among those who get priority for a ride. That means the boys get up even earlier to meet the bus. 

District leaders in recent years have tried to take some of the pain out of the process by offering choice fairs, a centralized application website and more busing options. But many still find the experience stressful, time-intensive and stacked against low-income families.

鈥淭he kids who get a better quality education in the district are the children of parents who are resourceful, who are able to navigate this very complicated formula,鈥� said Elmer Roldan, executive director of Communities in Schools Los Angeles, a dropout prevention program that serves students in 15 schools across the metro area. Children whose parents can manage that system are going to get 鈥渢he best teachers, best equipment and best experience. Unfortunately, that is not always close.鈥�

Over a third of LAUSD students participate in district choice, officials said. During this year鈥檚 , which closes Nov. 14, parents can pick from a wide range of options that include not just magnets, but dual-language programs and district charter schools. Families can also request permits to attend a school outside their zone. But that process is time-consuming, and lower-income families often lack the luxury of weeks to research school performance and plot potential routes.

found that Latino students, English learners and kids from low-income families were underrepresented in magnet programs, which were designed to create more integrated schools. White and Asian students were also overrepresented in affiliated charters 鈥� some of the highest-achieving schools in the district.聽

鈥淭here are parent groups in West L.A. that organize information sessions [on choice], but West L.A. is a relatively advantaged area,鈥� said Christopher Campos, an assistant professor of economics at the University of Chicago who has in LAUSD. The single application portal, where parents can request transportation, has made the process 鈥渁 bit easier. 鈥 still think it’s a pretty daunting task.鈥� 

鈥榁alley parents鈥�

For some parents, the process began on a clear Thursday evening in October as they searched for a parking space near a middle school in the San Fernando Valley. Inside the gates, families strolled from booth to booth on the lawn to learn about the district鈥檚 array of magnet schools. 

There鈥檚 Northridge Middle with a special lab for exploring careers in medicine, Robert Frost Middle with a gifted music conservatory and Mulholland Middle, where students in the junior police academy can study crime scene investigation, or law and government. Inside the auditorium, the Louis Armstrong Middle jazz band performed their version of the Edgar Winter Group鈥檚 鈥淔rankenstein,鈥� an instrumental rock hit from the early 1970s.

鈥淰alley parents want to stay in the valley,鈥� LAUSD Board President Scott Schmerelson said as he greeted principals and magnet school coordinators, who were busy handing out fliers, buttons and other promotional items. He paused at the display table for Nobel Charter Middle in Northridge, which features a magnet program combining STEM with the arts. 

鈥淗ere鈥檚 Nobel. Always overenrolled. Very popular.鈥�

One parent grabbed his attention to suggest organizers set up booths by regions in the valley 鈥� east, west and north. 鈥淭he valley is huge,鈥� she said.

She makes a good point, Schmerelson said.

shows that providing transportation increases the likelihood that families will take advantage of school choice, a district spokeswoman said. Officials use social media, websites and other communication channels to inform families that bus service is available. The district is 鈥渃lustering stops where demand is highest,鈥� the spokeswoman said, but leaders also 鈥渃ontinually review ridership data and feedback to explore ways we can improve access.鈥澛�

Choice options have increased in recent years as the district seeks to leaving for independent charters or private schools. There are over 330 magnet programs, compared to 217 a decade ago. Enrollment decline, which is hurting the district in many ways, has had the effect of opening up more space in many sought-after schools. Students who end up on a waiting list for their first choice are now coming off the list sooner, said Song Lee, LAUSD鈥檚 coordinator of student integration services.

But word of events like the fair don鈥檛 always reach the parents they were designed for.

鈥淚f I would have known about the fair, that would have been helpful,鈥� said Dulce Valencia, a mom of three whose twin daughters are currently part of the Spanish-English dual-language program at San Fernando Elementary School. She has to decide on a middle school for her girls and is considering charters.

Multiple options can confuse parents, Campos found when he held some information sessions regarding another district program called 鈥渮ones of choice.鈥� Instead of attending their neighborhood middle or high school, students living within one of 17 zones can choose from a menu of specialized schools with themes like global studies, performing arts or social justice.

鈥淎 lot of families thought they were showing up to a session about magnet programs,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey actually were not interested in any of the zones of choice schools, but they were just getting overwhelmed with information.鈥� 

鈥楬ave your phone ready鈥�

Once parents secure their child a seat, they still have to figure out how to get there.

鈥淚 tell parents, 鈥楬ave your phone ready so you can map out where the school is and you can see if it’s feasible for you,鈥� 鈥� said Grace Lee, who has two young boys in the district. She also works in the office at Gault Street Elementary, her neighborhood school, and fields questions from parents about choice. 

For Lee, calculating the best routes to school in L.A. calls to mind , the uproarious 鈥淪aturday Night Live鈥� sketch where characters in exaggerated 鈥淰alley girl鈥� accents rattle off shortcuts to circumvent the ubiquitous L.A. traffic.

鈥淚f you live in L.A. you get it,鈥� Lee said. 

When her oldest son got into Oliver Wendell Holmes Middle, north of her Lake Balboa neighborhood, she applied for transportation. But the bus stop was almost as far west as the school was north. She decided it was just easier for her husband to drive him on his way to the office.

Working at a Title I school in the majority Latino district, Lee worries that many families don鈥檛 even complete the choice application. 

鈥淭he people who are in the know, their kids are already fine,鈥� she said. 鈥淭heir test scores are generally fine.鈥�

Twenty years ago, Lois Andr茅-Bechely, a professor emerita at California State University, Los Angeles, wrote in that parents with flexible schedules stood a better chance of taking advantage of public school choice in L.A. She identified transportation as one of the obstacles. 

鈥淧arents who have cars and can arrange time to drive their children to and from school will have more choice options than parents who do not have such advantages,鈥� she wrote. 

The city鈥檚 offers free bus and train passes, but some students on public buses and L.A.鈥檚 routes don鈥檛 always reach the areas they live in. A recent showed that it can take four times longer to reach a destination by train than by car.

Now retired, Andr茅-Bechely no longer conducts research. But as a grandmother, she still hears about parent鈥檚 experiences at soccer games and birthday parties. 

鈥淧arents still have to be strategic when applying to school choice programs,鈥� she said in an email. 鈥淪ome school choice issues I identified have not gone away.鈥�

For several years, philanthropies like the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation that guided parents, especially low-income families, through the school choice maze. Their efforts emphasized independent charters, but groups like Speak UP and Parent Revolution, which later folded into other nonprofits, helped LAUSD families as well.

鈥淟os Angeles used to have a robust ecosystem of nonprofits empowering parents and challenging the status quo,鈥� said Ben Austin, a former state education board member who founded Parent Revolution. During the pandemic, he pulled his children out of LAUSD and enrolled them in a charter school. When Eli Broad passed away in 2021, other funders didn鈥檛 fill the vacuum, he said. 鈥淓li was such a magnetic leader that when he died, much of the local and national education donor engagement in L.A. died along with him.鈥�

Many families researching options still rely on Facebook and other informal networks, but experience with the process doesn鈥檛 necessarily make it easier. With a fifth grader preparing for middle school, Franco, the school choice commuting veteran, is once again weighing school options.

鈥淚鈥檓 trying to get her into a great program for next year, and I still have a million questions,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hy do I have a million questions if I’ve already been through this before?鈥�

A painter prepped the side of a classroom building at the school for a new mural 鈥� smiling dragons in caps and gowns, and the district slogan: 鈥淩eady for the World.鈥� On a patch of pavement sat a mini outdoor library featuring a small seating area, an umbrella for shade and a cart full of books.

She hopes the features prompt visitors to ask, 鈥淲ho鈥檚 the principal here?鈥� But the progress at 135th, part of the Los Angeles Unified School District, goes much deeper. Chronic absenteeism is down to 13%, from 17% in 2024. Over the past two years, the percentage of students meeting state standards in English language arts has climbed from 25% to 37%. In math, it grew from 26% to 34%.

The changes, along with the formation of a STEM lab and the addition of afterschool Boys and Girls Clubs, were enough to convince Daveyeon Shallowhorn, the school鈥檚 plant manager, to pull his two kids out of a nearby Catholic school and enroll them in 135th.

鈥淚 just see different things being offered that I don’t usually see,鈥� he said.  

Districtwide, leaders are celebrating the highest-ever performance on California鈥檚 state test. But the strong gains in math, reading and science, at every grade level, weren鈥檛 limited to wealthier, or high-performing magnets. They were evenly distributed across some of the district鈥檚 most challenging, high-poverty schools, like 135th.

Some say Superintendent Alberto Carvalho鈥檚 centralized approach to steering the nation鈥檚 second-largest district is lifting performance at schools that languished near the bottom for years. The seven-member school board, which hired him in 2021, reaffirmed their confidence in his leadership last month, to renew his contract for another four years. But others say there are likely multiple explanations for the boost. The question is whether the positive trends will continue in a city where the powerful has a history of resisting top-down programs.

鈥淚f Carvalho is seeing gains, that means our students are gaining,鈥� said Jose Luis Navarro, a former principal in the district who now coaches school leaders. For now, United Teachers Los Angeles is unhappy that a recently adopted budget didn鈥檛 include raises. Nevertheless, Navarro urged the union to embrace Carvalho鈥檚 agenda. 鈥淵ou鈥檝e already tried fighting every superintendent for the last 40 years. Just try working with one and see what happens.鈥�

The improvements came in spite of wildfires that wiped out part of the city, a crackdown on undocumented students and a federal government trying to on blue California. 

鈥淥ur kids, our students persevered,鈥� Carvalho, who declined to be interviewed, said at his back-to-school address in late July. 鈥淭hey, in fact, soared.鈥�

But while students from all racial groups improved, significant gaps remain. At least two-thirds of white and 74% of Asian third-graders met or exceeded expectations in reading, compared to 37% of Latino students and 31% of Black students. 

鈥淲e will redouble our efforts. We will redouble our commitment,鈥� he pledged at an Oct. 10 press conference at Maywood Elementary. 

鈥楽maller numbers鈥�

Experts say the recent achievement growth among the district鈥檚 neediest students is likely a cumulative effect of several initiatives, including a more uniform approach to instruction, extra help for kids who are the furthest behind and a concentrated focus on the most troubled schools. 

But Carvalho has 鈥済enerally good instincts about what works,鈥� said Morgan Polikoff, an education professor at the University of Southern California. The district adopted a research-based literacy curriculum, has over 10,000 teachers in the science of reading and has spread some of those to math instruction. 鈥淚t seems the district is investing in quality curriculum and supporting teachers to use it.鈥�

As scores go up, however, enrollment continues to dwindle. Over the past five years. LAUSD has lost .

But that factor could be working in the district鈥檚 favor. That鈥檚 because for now, LAUSD, unlike , has , leaving some schools with more staff per student.

鈥淵ou already have built-in small group instruction with smaller numbers,鈥� said Nery Paiz, principal of Glen Alta Elementary School, east of downtown. With an enrollment of about 100, his average class size is about 19 students, he said. 

shows that such 鈥減ronounced鈥� declines can sometimes lead to increases in test scores. found that enrollment loss doesn鈥檛 immediately translate into funding cuts, freeing up more resources for schools in the short term. LAUSD鈥檚 $18.8 billion budget, adopted in June, increases spending for majority-Black schools, arts programs and support for LGBTQ students.

鈥楴o secret sauce鈥�

Some in the district say the uptick in scores would have happened without Carvalho, whom they dismiss as a slick media personality.

鈥淲e’re far enough away from the lockdowns that teachers have been able to recover, and students have been able to recover,鈥� said Nicolle Fefferman, a veteran high school social studies teacher in the district. 鈥淭here is no secret sauce to teaching.鈥�

She helps lead an advocacy group, Parents Supporting Teachers, whose members are far less enamored with Carvalho than when he arrived in early 2022. The district鈥檚 failed experiment with a $6 million AI chatbot has drawn accusations of misspending. Officials discontinued use of the tool when the company went under. Others argue he to close schools during the fires, relying on guidelines that failed to account for multiple fires burning across the region and filling the air with . 

Some parents say students have in school and are unhappy with Carvalho鈥檚 move to roll out an online program called . To Fefferman, the digital lessons and assessments represent 鈥渙vertesting,鈥� which the teachers union has traditionally opposed. UTLA didn鈥檛 respond to requests for comment, but Maria Nichols, president of Associated Administrators of Los Angeles, the principals union, said i-Ready has created 鈥渇riction鈥� between school leaders and teachers who object to the program.

The increase in scores is worth celebrating, she said, but said it came 鈥渙n the backs of the [principals] who are working 60 hour weeks.鈥� Her union joined with UTLA and SEIU Local 99, which represents non-teaching employees, outside schools Sept. 16. All three are currently in negotiations with the district over salaries and working conditions. 

Board President Scott Schmerelson, who has the union鈥檚 support, said such concerns are to be expected. It鈥檚 a 鈥済eneral rule鈥� to complain about the superintendent 鈥渘o matter what he says, no matter what he does,鈥� he said. But he called the 鈥済rumbling鈥� minimal. 

He鈥檚 particularly enthusiastic about the district鈥檚 Black Student Achievement Plan, a $175 million initiative that provides schools serving Black students additional counselors, cultural activities and field trips. Former Superintendent Austin Beutner proposed the program in early 2021 to reduce achievement gaps. Under Carvalho, it continues to expand, in spite of challenges from who say it discriminates against students of other races. 

Since last year, students in Black Student Achievement Plan schools have seen slightly more growth in reading and math than the district as a whole. 

The additional resources have 鈥渉elped [Black students] a lot, not only academically but emotionally,鈥� Schmerelson said. 鈥淚 think they feel important. I think they feel respected.鈥�

鈥楴othing short of remarkable鈥�

With high expectations, the board voted unanimously to hire Carvalho in late 2021. At the time, Pedro Noguera, dean of education at the University of Southern California, likened the award-winning superintendent鈥檚 arrival to鈥淟eBron coming to the Lakers.鈥� The board trusted that Carvalho鈥檚 success leading the Miami-Dade schools for 14 years would follow him to the West Coast. 

But efforts to overcome COVID learning loss and rise above pre-pandemic performance began a year earlier, with schools still locked down. Most students wouldn鈥檛 set foot in classrooms for another year. 

Beutner used COVID relief funds to launch Primary Promise, a highly popular effort to target extra instruction to struggling readers, including English learners, students in foster care and others most likely to fall further behind because of school closures. 

In 2021, a Boston-based consulting group that designed the model 鈥渘othing short of remarkable.鈥� On average, students began the year reading five words correctly per minute. Some couldn鈥檛 read at all. After 10 weeks, they were close to reaching the goal of 21 words per minute.

Julie Navarro, who is married to Jose, worked on the program as a reading specialist at Panorama City Elementary in the San Fernando Valley, where she said teachers were eager to share materials and ideas with each other. 

鈥淚t was seriously the most positive collaboration I’ve ever been a part of,鈥� she said. Primary Promise teachers attended monthly training that she described as 鈥渨ell-planned, thorough and research-based.鈥� 

Then Carvalho , arguing that with relief funds drying up, it was unsustainable to keep paying instructional aides to staff the program. The renamed Literacy and Numeracy Intervention expanded services into higher grades, drawing criticism from who said the emphasis on the early grades was what made it effective. Beutner and Ray Cortines, also a former superintendent in the district, called the move .

鈥淚 had never seen teachers who were willing to die on the hill of an LAUSD program,鈥� Fefferman said. 鈥淎s a high school teacher, I was like 鈥榊es, please make sure they can read by third grade.鈥� 鈥� 

In Julie Navarro鈥檚 view, educators who lead the intervention work are sometimes 鈥減ulled in multiple directions鈥� and the program has 鈥渓ess integrity鈥� than the original. But Panorama, she said, is an example of staying true to the model of giving students small group instruction and consistently tracking their progress.

The school has seen double digit increases in reading and math since 2022 and was on this year鈥檚 list of . With many families facing financial hardship and newcomers navigating language and cultural barriers, Julie described the population as 鈥渢he most-challenged families I鈥檝e ever seen all at one school. In spite of their situation, they were growing.鈥�

鈥楰ids know their data鈥�

Close attention to student data was a hallmark of the Primary Promise program. Carvalho expects the same level of monitoring districtwide with i-Ready. The platform, Schmerelson said, helps teachers know whether to 鈥渟low down鈥� the pace of learning for students who are struggling or move kids ahead.  

On a bulletin board in a second grade classroom at 135th Elementary, students鈥� initials are clustered into four color-coded groups 鈥� from blue for exceeding standards in i-Ready down to red for being two grade levels behind. Some argue that 鈥渄ata walls鈥� if they鈥檙e not among the high-achievers. But Tanya Ortiz-Franklin, the school board member whose district includes the school, believes the practice motivates students to work hard. 

鈥淜ids know their data and teachers know their data,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey are using it to move instruction. That鈥檚 exactly what we’ve been trying to do for years.鈥� 

Her region encompasses 175 schools that stretch from the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro 鈥� the busiest container terminal in the U.S. 鈥� to the historic Black neighborhoods south of downtown. They include Maya Angelou Community High School, one of Carvalho鈥檚 121 鈥減riority schools,鈥� where he takes a more hands-on approach to tracking data and staffing schools with extra counselors and academic coaches. 

鈥淚 spend 90% of my time dealing with 10% of the schools,鈥� Carvalho said at a conference at  Harvard University in September. 鈥淭hey are accountable directly to me.鈥� 

The schools have some of the poorest achievement and attendance rates in the district, and in Maya Angelou鈥檚 case, a high rate of community violence. In 2019, the listed the high school among those with at least 50 homicides within a one-mile radius over a five-year period. In 2023, a stray bullet during a football game at the school.

鈥淏eing an inner-city school, it’s very easy to focus on the negative aspects that happen here. That’s the low hanging fruit,鈥� said Principal Jose Meza. That鈥檚 why he encourages staff and students to 鈥渇lood鈥� social media platforms with positive news, like a poetry night for newcomers, and the 13 students admitted to Berkeley and the University of California Los Angeles this year.

鈥淓mbracing our roots and honoring our heritage,鈥� the school posted on Instagram for Hispanic Heritage Month, with a reel of students dancing, sampling food and displaying artwork.

But in trying to make students feel welcome and safe inside the fence that surrounds the school, Meza has also tightened up the academic program. He reassigned counselors to students by grade level, rather than grouping them alphabetically. The change allows ninth graders to get extra support as they adjust to the demands of high school.

He gives students a double dose of Algebra I each day if they need it, and moved credit recovery courses to the regular school day instead of afterschool or on Saturdays when they鈥檙e less likely to come. His students have posted gains in state scores the past two years, but two-thirds of 11th graders still don鈥檛 meet expectations in language arts and over 80% are failing math.

鈥淗alf of our students are coming in below grade level,鈥� he said 鈥淭hat doesn’t mean we’re going to treat them as such. We’re going to have expectations that are aligned to the standards.鈥�

Carvalho aims to create more consistency in teaching across the district, but he鈥檚 choosing math and reading programs based on the experience of schools that tested programs and found them to be effective with high-need students, said Rick Miller, CEO of CORE Districts, a network of nine large systems in the state, including LAUSD.

Illustrative Math, now being phased in districtwide, is one example. Teachers at Jordan High School, in a densely populated neighborhood of housing projects and small homes, were among the first to use the program. 

On a Monday morning earlier this month, 10th graders in Luis Lopez鈥檚 geometry class opened their workbooks to a new lesson on congruent shapes. They chatted with classmates about the set of rectangles on the page before Lopez stepped in to remind them of vocabulary words like 鈥渧ertices鈥� and 鈥渃orresponding.鈥� The curriculum is structured so that students grapple with new concepts and work together on problems before teachers deliver a full lesson. 

鈥淲hen we were going to school, especially in math, it was 鈥業 will model. I’m the teacher and now 鈥� you’ll just do 100 problems,鈥� 鈥� said Principal Alex Kim. This curriculum, he said, flips that process while also ensuring the tasks focus on grade-level material.

The program has gained popularity in other districts. The New York City Public Schools saw a decline in scores after implementing the curriculum in hundreds of schools. But two , one in Missouri and one in Maryland, found that students using Illustrative Math outperformed those who didn鈥檛. At Jordan, a quarter of 11th graders met expectations in math, compared to less than 4% two years ago.

鈥楬istoric generational implications鈥�

To some former LAUSD parents, the improvements are too little, too late.

They are cynical about any post-pandemic rebound, saying that the district contributed to learning loss by staying closed almost until the end of the 2020鈥�21 school year. 

鈥淚 don’t think LAUSD should get credit for putting out a fire that it was responsible for lighting,鈥� said Ben Austin, a longtime Democratic political adviser and former member of the state school board. 鈥淢y daughters didn’t go to school for 18 months, along with all the other kids in LAUSD. That obviously had historic generational implications.鈥�

California鈥檚 sluggish reopening affected students statewide, but what angered some LAUSD parents the most was the teachers union鈥檚 influence over remote instructional time during school closures. In March 2021, 社区黑料 reported that the union negotiated a reduced, six-hour school day despite district officials saying they didn鈥檛 want to 鈥渟hortchange the students.鈥� The revelation came during a lawsuit, against the district and the union.

The agreement promises 45 hours per year of high-dosage tutoring to 100,000 students who are the furthest behind as well as summer school for up to 250,000 students in the district who were affected by the extended closures.

During the 2020-21 school year, Judith Larson said her daughter鈥檚 remote classes often 鈥渆nded well before they were supposed to鈥� or that teachers used the sessions to collect homework assignments rather than provide live instruction. Her daughter lost so much ground in math that last year, as a junior in high school, she scored at a sixth grade level. In English, she was two years behind and losing hope that she would be able to attend the University of California Los Angeles, her dream school. Now a senior, she鈥檚 made progress, but still struggles in math. 

鈥淪he is working hard to bridge the gap,鈥� her mother said. 鈥淚 am hoping that the high-dose tutoring 鈥� will help her get there.鈥�

As with schools nationwide, the pandemic worsened longstanding achievement gaps in LAUSD. There鈥檚 still a 30 percentage point difference between poor students and those from wealthier families in reading and math. 

鈥淭here鈥檚 a long way to go,鈥� and 鈥渨ith each year, progress gets harder,鈥� Miller said. But as a former state education official, he never expected LAUSD to outperform the state. 鈥淭hey were too big.鈥�

This year, LAUSD鈥檚 growth exceeded the state鈥檚 and California鈥檚 other large school districts. During the press event at Maywood Elementary, state Superintendent Tony Thurmond was on hand to mark the achievement. He organized a webinar so other districts in the state could 鈥渉ear some of the stories about what has created that success.鈥�

Speaker after speaker stepped to the podium to share in what one board member called a 鈥渨atershed moment鈥� for LAUSD. Drawing a few chuckles, Carvalho paused to note that Thurmond had to slip out early and 鈥済ive some love to other lower-performing districts.鈥� 

L.A. Unified surpassed pre-pandemic math, reading and science levels on 2024-25 state test scores released Thursday and closed the gap with the rest of California, even as the state鈥檚 test scores rose overall.

District officials attributed the increases to tactics such as targeted funding for struggling schools, small group instruction, tutoring and using the phonics-based science of reading.

But disparities remain. 

While LAUSD students narrowed achievement gaps between Black, Hispanic; and white and Asian students, inequities persist, with 68.9 percent of white students meeting reading standards compared to 41 percent of Latino students, who make up most of the district鈥檚 enrollment. Overall, 53.3 percent of the district鈥檚 540,000 students are still not reading at grade level, compared to 51.2 percent of the entire state. 

The district also continues to face challenges including falling enrollment, financial troubles and threats from the federal government.  

Still, officials celebrated the increases across the state and in L.A. Unified in particular.

鈥淭his is a proud moment,鈥� said Governor Gavin Newsom at a press conference with LAUSD superintendent Alberto Carvalho held inside the Alexander Science Center School in Exhibition Park, a neighborhood in the south region of L.A., where many students are low income. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not only moving in the right direction; we鈥檙e leading in that respect.鈥�  

L.A. Unified students made big gains in reading on the exams, outpacing those made by the state as a whole, and achieving a 46.5% reading proficiency level on 2024-25 Smarter Balanced assessments, up from 43.1% the previous year and 44.1% in 2018-19.

Likewise, 36.8% of LAUSD students achieved math proficiency on the 2024-25 state exams, up from 32.8% the previous year and 33.5% in 2018-19.

Statewide, reading proficiency rose to 48.8% and math proficiency rose to 37.3%. LAUSD, a huge and diverse urban school district, historically underperforms the state overall and serves a higher percentage of higher-needs students. 

鈥淟os Angeles Unified is having a very special moment in history, one without precedent,鈥� said Carvalho. 鈥淭oday, we celebrate the fact that we can proudly say that as Los Angeles goes in terms of education, so goes the state of California.鈥�  

Carvalho said the district鈥檚 early adoption of approaches aligned with the science of reading helped boost students鈥� test scores. Newsom cited  he signed Thursday to promote the use of phonics-based techniques for teaching reading in all California schools.

As the largest school district in California, LAUSD鈥檚 new test scores helped lift those of the state overall and capped a string of positive metrics for the district. Carvalho, who boasted of L.A. Unified鈥檚 progress in his opening of schools address, just reupped his contract with the district to remain superintendent for another four years.

In an interview with reporters on Wednesday, Carvalho explained that the district鈥檚 improvement was not only due to using the science of reading, but also to tactics that targeted increased funding at underperforming schools, providing needier students with extra tutoring and supplemental training for teachers.

鈥淲e outperformed last year鈥檚 already improved performance,鈥� said Carvalho, 鈥渨ith Black, Latino, low income, poor kids, students with disabilities, performing better than pre-pandemic levels.鈥�

Black students showed the strongest gains overall on the Smarter Balanced assessments, and Latino students also made larger gains compared to both white and Asian kids in reading and math on the exams.

LAUSD Deputy Superintendent of Instruction Karla Estrada said LAUSD鈥檚 improvements were also the result of the district鈥檚 deployment of small group instruction, wraparound social services, and efforts to boost attendance.

Carvalho said the district is already looking to redouble those efforts.

鈥淲e are already examining and analyzing and detailing over the practices that we believe produce these results, and refining the approach to actually accelerate the rate of improvement that we鈥檝e seen,鈥� Carvalho said. 鈥淭his is strategic. It is deliberate. I believe it settles a number of contentious unknowns of the past.鈥�

Former LAUSD board member David Tokofsky, who consults with districts and labor groups on policy and operations, said LA Unified鈥檚 latest test scores are impressive, but the district and the state can still do better to achieve stronger results.

鈥淭he gap between Black and brown kids and white and Asian kids continues to be expansive,鈥� said Tokofsky of the new scores. 鈥淭he good news is the gap between the state scores and the district scores has been reduced to near nothing.鈥�

This year the giveaways were held in classrooms, amid fears that crowds of Hispanic families out in public would prompt an ICE raid.

鈥淲e鈥檝e had to modify how we do things,鈥� said Omar Torres, senior director of civic engagement for the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles. 鈥淲e’re not just getting fear from folks that may be undocumented. Folks that are documented are also scared.鈥�

The fear of being caught up in an ICE dragnet and separated from family and home is palpable in this city, where one in three residents were born outside the U.S. and three-quarters of students identify as Hispanic.

But along with the worry and anxiety is the determination to stay and succeed.

It鈥檚 a drama unfolding in the schools of Los Angeles, where educators have taken unprecedented steps to shield kids from federal seizure or deportation by using every legal method at their disposal.

Working with community groups and unions, L.A. Unified has created safe zones around schools by warning families to stay away from campus when volunteer sentries spot ICE agents nearby.

Two LAUSD schools have to agents who came asking for children without warrants. A free legal defense fund has been created for families facing enforcement.

Two weeks into the school year, LAUSD superintendent Alberto Carvalho said the new tactics, which also include free busing to schools, legal clinics for families, and remote lessons for when all else fails, are working so far.  

鈥淲e prepared for this,鈥� said Carvalho last month. 鈥淭he training that we went through with every single member of our workforce has paid off. We’ve been successful at protecting our kids.鈥�

It鈥檚 because of those supports, Carvalho said, that L.A. Unified has been able to achieve higher attendance rates this year than last so far.   

But the situation is still frightening and perilous in the nation鈥檚 second largest public school district, the superintendent said, at least for many of its families who are, as the superintendent was once, undocumented immigrants. 

And as a result, he said, enrollment is falling, almost certainly in part because some families have chosen to self-deport.  

L.A. Unified Board member Tanya Ortiz Franklin, who representsdiverse neighborhoods, such as South L.A., Watts and San Pedro, said families have taken up the various services offered by LAUSD to address immigration crackdowns.

And despite the tension over immigration, the new year is rolling out easily in many ways, Ortiz Franklin said. Start-of-year academic assessments and other typical school operations have gone smoothly, she said.

鈥淭here’s a lot of joy and celebration and excitement about the start of a new school year,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t sort of gets hidden in all of the concerns about immigration enforcement — which are absolutely valid and concerning and fearful for a lot of people.鈥�    

Many L.A. Unified families have attended the district鈥檚 weekly workshops offering instruction on how to handle encounters with immigration agents, said Ortiz Franklin. 

Busing programs offered by the district that are intended to help kids get to class without encountering ICE agents have also seen some pickup, she said, with at least 300 households so far taking advantage of the special door-to-door transport service.

It鈥檚 a drop in the bucket compared to the 85,000 kids who use LAUSD busing on the district鈥檚 typical routes. But Ortiz Franklin said the district鈥檚 supports have helped create a sense of safety, enabling more kids to attend class.

Online courses offered by the district saw a bump early in the year, she said, but since then, has fallen to roughly where it was last year, she said. 

Pushing those families to leave the United States is the goal of federal immigration authorities, who have offered money and plane tickets to encourage the departure of undocumented migrants in L.A. and around the country.

In response to questions about actions at and around LAUSD schools this year, a senior Department of Homeland Security official said agents do not target students at campuses.

鈥�ICE is not going to schools to make arrests of children,鈥� said the senior official. 鈥淥fficers would need secondary supervisor approval before any action can be taken in locations such as a church or a school. We expect these to be extremely rare.鈥�

Online reporting has put average daily attendance in the district at around 95%. Some officials said that鈥檚 a relatively strong figure this early in the year, but the district press office ignored a request for a breakdown of specific figures.

Dean of the USC Rossier School of Education Pedro Noguera said measures taken by LAUSD to protect students from immigration enforcement have helped create a sense of confidence among families. 

鈥淭he district is doing everything they can to keep the school safe, and I think that’s the reason why attendance has stayed high,鈥� he said.  

L.A. Unified鈥檚 tools to protect students from ICE are relatively robust, said Noguera, and other districts around the country, including Denver and New York, are considering or have already enacted similar measures. 

Despite those steps, Noguera said that the fears of many LAUSD families are well founded. Benjamin Guerrero Cruz, a rising senior at Reseda Charter High was detained by ICE in August while he was out walking his dog in this neighborhood away from school.

Lizzette Baccera, a former teacher of Guerrero Cruz, said last week that the teen was still being detained. 

In addition to pursuing his education at Reseda, Guerrero Cruz, 18, was active in soccer and helped take care of his younger family members, according to an created for the teen. 

DHS officials said Cruz emigrated from Chile and overstayed his visa by more than two years. He is now facing removal proceedings, according to DHS.  

In an emailed statement, a senior official at the Department of Homeland Security said investigators would continue to search for undocumented children in Los Angeles and around the country.

The official said 450,000 unaccompanied minors entered the U.S. illegally over the past four years. ICE Homeland Security investigations have located 13,000 of those children so far, according to the DHS official. 

“In many situations, the only last known address ICE has for a child is the last school they attended,鈥� the DHS official said. 鈥淚n cases where a special agent visits a school, it would be for a wellness check on the child, not to make an arrest.鈥� 

But when ICE agents have visited schools in Los Angeles, their actions have prompted public displays of opposition. Students pressured Carvalho to fight ICE harder at a recent board meeting. Demonstrators last month rallied at LAUSD headquarters.  

Three days before school began in August, federal agents detained a 15-year-old boy with disabilities at gunpoint at Arleta High School, in what they later said was a case of mistaken identity. The agents left live ammunition on the sidewalk outside the school, according to the superintendent.   

Evelyn Aleman, founder of Our Voice, a parents’ group which advocates for L.A. Unified’s low-income and Spanish-speaking families, said the immigrant students of Los Angeles and their families are resolved to stay in LAUSD schools regardless of ICE. 

鈥淭hey’re determined to have access to that American dream,鈥� said Aleman.

But this year is different. 

This year, the CEO of Camino Nuevo Charter Academy is worried immigration agents with guns are coming for her kids.

鈥淭here are so many threats to kids getting to school due to ICE raids,鈥� said Abich. 鈥淭he fear of going to school or being out on the street is definitely real.鈥�

But in charter schools like Camino Nuevo, and the Los Angeles Unified School District, the second largest in the nation; and where three quarters of kids are Latino or Hispanic, one thing is on the mind of nearly every educator and ahead of the first day of classes Thursday.

鈥淲e consistently get families calling us when they see ICE in the neighborhood,鈥� said Abich. 鈥淭hey call the school and say 鈥楥an you please warn people. There’s ICE in the neighborhood, they need to stay home.鈥� 鈥�

Federal immigration raids in Los Angeles that ramped up in the spring and accelerated again toward the end of June scared families away from school, depressing attendance in summer programs, school leaders and district officials said.

The immigration raids, and the fear they sow, are just another huge challenge for a district already struggling to recover from in January that burned entire neighborhoods and two LAUSD schools.

That鈥檚 all on top of other challenges facing the district, such as cratering enrollment, shrinking budgets, districtwide mental health problems and an from the pandemic.  

LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho offered a hopeful take on the challenging school year ahead in his opening address last week, where he highlighted the resilience of the district in the face of adversity.

But at a press conference near district headquarters with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Monday, Carvalho said federal agents with guns near a school in a case of mistaken identity 鈥� and pleaded with immigration authorities to halt enforcement around L.A. Unified schools.   

鈥淲e are appealing to the better senses of those who have the power to eliminate trauma from the streets of our community,鈥� he said.

From district headquarters to classrooms and school offices, L.A. Unified parents, teachers and kids have said they鈥檙e afraid for their safety amid the increasing immigration raids taking place across the city.

Leaders from city hall to the LAUSD school board have responded with pledges to keep schools safe.

Last week plainclothes immigration agents outside of Arlita High School drew their guns and detained the 15 year-old student with disabilities who was visiting the campus with his family. 

The boy, who attends another LAUSD school, was quickly released by the agents after they determined he was not who they sought, he said. 

The school鈥檚 principal said the agents left behind some bullets on the sidewalk, which school police recovered, according to LAUSD officials. 

In a statement, a spokesperson for the federal Customs and Border Protection said that the agents were conducting a 鈥渢argeted operation鈥� in search of a Salvadoran national and suspected MS-13 pledge with prior criminal convictions in the broader vicinity of Arleta.

鈥淎llegations that Border Patrol targeted Arleta High School are FALSE,鈥� the CBP statement said.  

Carvalho said the district would respond to the incident by creating more 鈥渟afe zones鈥� around campuses before and after school.

Carvalho will send central and regional office staff across the school system on the first day of school to patrol the streets around schools. The local teachers union and other groups are also participating.

With the effort, the district鈥檚 so-called 鈥渟afe passage zones鈥� will be expanded from about 40 schools to more than 100. The district has more than 1,500 schools and education centers scattered around L.A.

For Abich, the Camino Nuevo Charter Academy network of schools, has operated in L.A. ‘s heavily immigrant MacArthur Park neighborhood for more than two decades, the raids dominate the horizon.

The ICE raids are unprecedented, she said, and terrifying for families who are deathly afraid of tactics, such as the as a work vehicle, which happened in a Home Depot parking lot less than a half-mile from one of her schools.   

鈥淲hat’s top of mind for me now is daily attendance for students,鈥� said Abich. 鈥淎ll of us were sort of working towards getting students in their seats ready to learn.鈥�

But now, she said, immigration raids are threatening that goal in the new year. Attendance in Camino Nuevo鈥檚 summer school programs was down by half this summer, Abich said, due to families fear of ICE.

LAUSD officials also said district-run summer programs saw drops in attendance.

Carvalho said the new school safe passage zones and school police patrols will occur at campuses in neighborhoods targeted by immigration enforcement.

The district also has created a fund to provide general help for families, including legal assistance, said Carvalho.

Mayor Bass said the Los Angeles Police Department will help in the effort to protect schools and will not assist with immigration enforcement.

鈥淭he school police and the Los Angeles Police Department have a strong working relationship and will continue to share information as appropriate as needed,鈥� she said.

In interviews, school board members said that the district was doing everything it can to protect kids and families from immigration raids, but that they worry attendance could suffer in the new year.

鈥淲ith all the terrible things happening with ICE and parents fearing sending your kids to school, I think we are really preparing ourselves and our kids and their parents for this new school year,鈥� said LAUSD School Board President Scott Schmerelson.

Schmerelson said the district鈥檚 shrinking enrollment and attendance are chief concerns, and fear among families could worsen those problems.

But, he said, the fact that two L.A. Unified schools turned away immigration agents in April, shows that schools are in fact safe havens for students. 鈥淲e’re standing strong and standing tough, and protecting our kids,鈥� Schmerelson said.

Board member Tanya Ortiz Franklin, who represents , which includes neighborhoods such as South L.A., Watts and San Pedro, said the district created  a new on its web site with valuable information for families.

Ortiz Franklin said the district has made strong academic progress in recent years, as evidenced by recent test scores showing the some pre-pandemic benchmarks in literacy and math.

Now those gains are threatened by headwinds including the ICE raids, trauma from the fires of January and shrinking budgets, said Ortiz Franklin. But she hopes that L.A. Unified will get kids to school by providing free bus transportation to any student who requests it.

鈥淲e have every confidence that our schools are the safest place for kids to be and the best place for them to be to be prepared for their future, and we recognize that there’s real fear around getting to and from campus,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e are doing as much as we possibly can.鈥�

Evelyn Aleman, founder of , a parents鈥� group which advocates for L.A. Unified鈥檚 low-income and Spanish-speaking families, said families are scared of possible immigration raids but appreciate the steps taken by the district to protect students.

鈥淔amilies are afraid of two things. They continue to have fear and anxiety over the raids,鈥� said Aleman. 鈥淎nd the other concern is the children not wanting to go to school for not being able to find their parents when they come home.鈥�

But, Aleman said, L.A. Unified has helped to address those fears with transportation to school, safe zones in schools, and the offer of remote lessons for children who do not want to leave their homes.

鈥淟AUSD has really taken this on to provide a robust package of resources, information and support for the families,鈥� she said.

Los Angeles Unified superintendent Alberto Carvalho struck a defiant tone in his back-to-school address Tuesday, pitting the district against federal authorities while praising its resilience from recent wildfires and the pandemic.

Three weeks before half a million L.A. Unified students return to classes, Carvalho used the annual speech to preview new initiatives and set the tone for the coming school year threatened by political, operational and financial headwinds.

In the face of historic natural disaster and a 鈥渧olatile federal landscape,鈥� Carvalho said the district is 鈥渘ot defined by what comes at us,鈥� and highlighted some of the district鈥檚 . 

鈥淲e don’t fear pressure. We don’t shrink from scrutiny,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n fact, we’ve got more resilience than Taylor Swift has eras.鈥� 

Already facing budget cuts this year, LAUSD is also looking at the potential loss of more than $120 million in federal funding as part of a contested $6.8 billion education funding freeze that could impact some of the district鈥檚 most vulnerable students, including kids with disabilities and those living in poverty. 

Carvalho took shots at the Trump administration, accusing President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration of both being clueless and intentionally undermining U.S. democracy.  

鈥淚f Washington had a model for federal funding, it would be 鈥榠f I can’t spell it out, defund it,鈥� 鈥� quipped Carvalho. 鈥淎nd my friends, judging by their vocabulary, we should all be very, very afraid, for it is limited.鈥�

One of the nation鈥檚 most visible superintendents and on social media, Carvalho is entering his third year running the nation鈥檚 second largest school district, having already hit some important benchmarks, including academic goals set by the board.

But L.A. Unified faces some especially tough circumstances this coming year.

Federal immigration agents visited two schools in search of undocumented minors during a series of raids in L.A. around the close of the last school year, setting off fear and depressing school attendance in the majority Hispanic district.  

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids roiled a district already pulverized by the worst wildfires in Los Angeles history, which occurred in January and February and displaced thousands of students, many of whom still lack stable housing.  

LAUSD also faces headwinds such as budget cuts, falling enrollment and stubborn problems with school climate and achievement gaps, all serious challenges that could threaten its future.

Yet Carvalho on Tuesday emphasized the positive in at the glitzy Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown L.A. near the district鈥檚 headquarters, where he spoke before hundreds of LAUSD principals and administrators in a production worthy of Tinsel Town, complete with a from the rapper will.i.am, who bashed the recent immigration raids in L.A. 

A student mariachi band from James Garfield High School played a mariachi version of the national anthem. Costumed dancers from Fairfax High School performed selections from Wicked.

鈥淧ublic education stands at a crossroads. The challenges are real and so is the urgency,鈥� said Carvalho,who name-checked Beyonce and quoted Tupac in his 80-minute presentation.

鈥淏ut we will not lose our way,鈥� said Carvalho. 鈥淲e will continue to build better schools and a better future.鈥�  

In the face of the possibility of more ICE action, Carvalho said the district would continue to maintain 鈥渟afe zones鈥� at schools where students will be protected from immigration enforcement.

Additionally, Carvalho said, LAUSD will offer extra remote classes and bussing to families who ask for it.

Even with budget cuts this year and looming cuts to come, Carvalho announced more than 40 new programs underway in the district, including a new push to deliver mental health services to students, a new online enrollment system for incoming families, and a new effort to deploy air-quality monitoring stations at schools.

After posting gains on state exams earlier this year, Carvalho on Tuesday also revealed LAUSD鈥檚 latest Smarter Balanced Assessments, districtwide tests of English, math and science that rose across all tested grades for the second straight year, and surpassed results from before the pandemic.  

Calling a new high watermark, Carvalho said two years of incremental gains at every tested grade level should provide clear solid evidence of the strength of the district in the face of challenges like the pandemic, immigration raids and wildfires.

Districtwide, 46.5% of students met or exceeded grade level standards in English Language Arts in tests conducted in April and May. In math, the figure was 36.7%. For the first time ever, 11^th grade students exceeded literacy standards, and across all subjects and grade levels, students showed significant growth in scores.

LAUSD Board President Scott Schmerelson highlighted those results in his remarks at Carvalho鈥檚 opening speech.

“Despite the many challenges we have faced, we鈥檝e also seen significant progress,鈥� said Schmerelson. 鈥淥ur graduation rates continue to increase, as has our students鈥� achievement.鈥� 

As federal immigration officials carry out mass arrests in Los Angeles and President Donald Trump unilaterally calls in the military to confront protesters 鈥� prompting civil unrest across the country this week 鈥� the city鈥檚 school chief vowed to . 

• L.A. Superintendent Alberto Carvalho announced  around high school graduations, my colleague Ben Chapman reports. 
  
• 鈥淥ur schools are places of education and inspiration, not fear and intimidation,” Carvalho, once an undocumented immigrant himself, said while announcing an order for school police officers to 鈥渋ntervene鈥� against any Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents should they attempt to detain or arrest anyone at school functions. 鈥淢any of us here are immigrants or children of immigrants.鈥�   
  
• Some parents in the district 鈥� which enrolls an estimated 30,000 immigrant students 鈥� said they planned to  due to immigrant enforcement fears. 
  
• In April, Carvalho  who paid visits to two L.A. elementary schools to conduct 鈥渨ellness checks鈥� on unaccompanied minors who came to the country without their parents. 

For students graduating high school this spring, the anti-immigrant climate has raised , including worries about their ability to pursue college or job-training programs.

They鈥檙e coming for the youth: 社区黑料鈥檚 Jo Napolitano reported this week on the  in New York, Massachusetts and other states, and the pain that followed. 

• 鈥淔or other communities, this is a wake-up call,鈥� immigrant rights activist Adam Strom said. 鈥淭he unimaginable is happening in communities like their own, to students not so different from the kids in their own classrooms.鈥�
• Among them is 9-year-old M谩rtir Garc铆a Lara, an L.A. fourth grader who was deported to Honduras with his father. The father and son were detained by immigration officials when they showed up to a routine immigration hearing. | 
•  who arrived in the U.S. as unaccompanied  minors have been taken into federal custody following 鈥渨elfare checks鈥� like the ones at L.A. schools. 
• The Trump administration has said  they believe are now 鈥渟laves, sex slaves or dead.鈥� Immigrant rights advocates say  to deport the adults around them. 

In Colorado, Gov. Jared Polis ordered the state labor department to  after it received a subpoena from the Trump administration, a whistleblower lawsuit alleges.

In the news

A 鈥榤isconfiguration,鈥� kept under wraps: BoardDocs, a software tool used by thousands of school boards to publicize meetings and store confidential information, suffered a technical glitch that exposed the sensitive records of school districts nationally, I revealed this week. Multiple districts that are BoardDocs customers said they were unaware of the incident until I contacted them and, in several instances, received confirmation only after reaching out directly to parent company Diligent. | 

• Nineteen-year-old Matthew Lane pleaded guilty in Massachusetts federal court for his role in a recent cyberattack on education technology behemoth PowerSchool, which led to a data breach exposing the personal information of millions of students, parents and teachers globally. | 

David Hogg, an outspoken survivor of the Parkland, Florida, school shooting, said he will not run again for vice chair of the Democratic National Committee after he faced fierce pushback for funding the campaigns of candidates running against sitting lawmakers in primary races. | 

New Jersey schools place children with disabilities in separate educational settings away from their nondisabled peers at the highest rate in the country, potentially in violation of a federal law that affirms the children’s right to learn in general ed classrooms 鈥渢o the maximum extent possible.鈥� | 

Following outcry, the U.S. Naval Academy has reversed its decision to scrap from its library 381 books that mentioned diversity, equity and inclusion. |

My colleague Linda Jacobson reported in depth this week on a California mom whose three-year crusade against a school district that supported her child鈥檚 social transition from female to male is at the heart of the Trump administration鈥檚 forceful effort to clamp down on educators who withhold changes in students鈥� gender identity from their parents. | 

Aggressive enforcement despite layoffs: Trump鈥檚 pick to lead civil rights enforcement at the Education Department, Kimberly Richey, said at a Senate hearing last week she is 鈥渁lways going to advocate鈥� for the office even as the administration guts its staff. | 

• 鈥淚f I am confirmed, the department will not stand idly by while Jewish students are attacked and discriminated against,鈥� Richey said. 鈥淲e will stop forcing schools to let boys and men into female sports and spaces,鈥� she continued, referring to inclusive school policies that allow transgender students to participate in school athletics and use restrooms that align with their gender identities. | 

The Supreme Court announced it would not consider a case that challenged Maryland鈥檚 ban on semiautomatic rifles like the AR-15 and imposed 10-round limits on gun magazines, rules that were implemented in response to the 2012 mass elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. | 

Firearms deaths among children have surged since a 2010 Supreme Court decision gave states more control over gun laws, a new study finds. | 

ICYMI @The74

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What was supposed to be a day of celebration for students at Gratts Learning Academy for Young Scholars turned into one of chaos as immigration enforcement in and around Los Angeles 鈥� along with subsequent protests and attempts to quash them 鈥� reportedly left some of their relatives too fearful to attend the elementary school鈥檚 graduation.

Gratts is in the city鈥檚 Westlake District, where immigration raids Friday led to a showdown between demonstrators and law enforcement agencies that persisted throughout the weekend. Altogether,  were arrested in the L.A. area. In Downtown Los Angeles, near Westlake, the sight of blazes on several blocks 鈥� after riot police lobbed flashbang rounds at crowds, and protesters set off fireworks and torched cars 鈥� called to mind the wildfires that ravaged the region at the start of the year.

President Donald Trump on Sunday deployed the National Guard in this deeply blue city that opposes his mass deportations policy, a move that critics 鈥� including former Vice President Kamala Harris 鈥� argued intensified confrontations between protesters and the authorities. Commuters driving to work on Monday morning saw what remained of the clashes 鈥� self-driving Waymo cars burnt to crisps and graffiti tagged all over downtown businesses and buildings.

Schools are still reeling from the raids and the unrest, with commencement ceremonies set to continue this week.

Officials acknowledge that many families in the district 鈥� which includes an estimated immigrant students 鈥� plan to sit out commencement because of concerns about immigration enforcement. LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho described that decision as 鈥渁 heartbreak鈥� during a news conference Monday.

鈥淚’ve spoken with parents who’ve told me that their daughter will be the first in their family to graduate high school, and they’re not going to be there to witness it because they have a fear of the place of graduation being targeted,鈥� Carvalho said. 鈥淲hat nation are we? Who in their right mind would accept that reality?鈥�

Fears have been stoked by unfounded rumors such as the one that emerged on Friday that an immigration raid took place at Gratts鈥� graduation. 鈥淭he claims that immigration enforcement activity arrived at the school and during the event are false,鈥� an LAUSD spokesperson told The 19th.

The superintendent, an immigrant from Portugal who was formerly undocumented, said the district is taking steps to protect each graduation site, whether on or off campus. The school police will 鈥渆stablish perimeters of safety鈥� around graduation locations and intervene if any federal agency tries to disrupt the ceremonies, Carvalho said.

鈥淲e’ve instructed our principals to not create lines, to not restrict access,鈥� he said. 鈥淎s soon as [families] come, they will enter the venues where the graduations are taking place, reducing the risk for them while on the street waiting to get in. We also have authorized the principals to allow parents to remain at the venue for as long as it takes should there be any immigration enforcement action around the area where the graduations are taking place.鈥�

School police will also remain on site well after the ceremonies end to allow parents to exit safely. And, in limited capacities, the district will create opportunities for families to watch their children graduate via Zoom.

Carvalho said that the recent raids and unrest happened at the worst possible time, given that over 100 graduation ceremonies will be taking place throughout LAUSD Monday and Tuesday, the last day of school. Still, he said the district is prepared to protect students, staff and families.

鈥淓very child has a constitutional right to a public education,鈥� he said. 鈥淭herefore, every child and their parent has a right to celebrate the culmination of their educational success.鈥�

United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), the woman-led labor union representing Los Angeles Unified educators, has also spoken out against the immigration enforcement that took place in Los Angeles last week.

鈥淭he ruthless targeting of hard-working people by ICE and law enforcement agencies is not only unjust but cruel,鈥� the union said . 鈥淭hey are using violence and scare tactics to detain people who are simply trying to live and support their families. We will not stand for this.鈥�

On Monday, United Teachers Los Angeles organized a rally to stand up for immigrant communities and to protest the arrest of union leader David Huerta, president of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) – United Service Workers West and SEIU California. Huerta was arrested Friday while observing an immigration raid at a Los Angeles garment factory. He has been charged with felony conspiracy to impede officers and could face up to six years in federal prison if convicted.

鈥淲e need more people to continue to be loud about these attacks by ICE,鈥� the Los Angeles teachers鈥� union said. 鈥淗istory has taught us that we cannot afford to stand idly by while our community members are being ripped away from their schools, homes, neighborhoods and workplaces.鈥�

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, the nation鈥檚 second-largest teachers union, also expressed her outrage over Huerta鈥檚 arrest, the detainment of immigrant workers and Trump鈥檚 decision to mobilize the National Guard against protesters.

鈥淚t is no coincidence that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained David Huerta and raided the site of a known worker center 鈥� and we, alongside the entire labor movement, are demanding his and others鈥� immediate release,鈥� Weingarten said in a statement. 鈥淭he assault on Los Angeles contradicts all this country stands for. We are a nation made stronger by immigrant workers, stronger by the unions that represent them, and stronger by the rule of law.鈥� Huerta was released from custody Monday afternoon.

Kamala Harris criticized the violent repression of mostly peaceful protesters in Los Angeles, singling out Trump for his role in the unrest that ensued. Harris has lived in L.A.鈥檚 Brentwood neighborhood since marrying Doug Emhoff in 2014, though she was largely based in Washington, D.C., as vice president.

鈥淟os Angeles is my home, and like so many Americans, I am appalled at what we are witnessing on the streets of our city,鈥� . 鈥淒eploying the National Guard is a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos. In addition to recent ICE raids in Southern California and across our nation, it is part of the Trump administration’s cruel, calculated agenda to spread panic and division.鈥�

The White House, meanwhile, took aim at the protesters, as well as California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, both Democrats.

鈥淩adical left lunatics are taking to the streets of Los Angeles 鈥� law enforcement, at police cruisers, , and freeways 鈥� because the Trump administration is removing violent criminal illegal immigrants from their communities,鈥� the White House said in a statement Monday. 鈥淒emocrats like Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass should be thanking President Trump for stepping up and leading where they refused 鈥� and for ridding their streets of criminal illegal immigrant killers, rapists, and gangbangers.鈥�

Rob Bonta, California鈥檚 attorney general, sued the Trump administration Monday over , arguing that doing so infringed on the state鈥檚 sovereignty.

Los Angeles school leaders say they鈥檙e prepared for the Trump administration to escalate immigration enforcement, including on campuses. In January, Trump lifted restrictions on immigration enforcement in 鈥渟ensitive locations,鈥� including schools, churches and hospitals. The policy change has led parents across the country to pull children out of class. During Carvalho鈥檚 address on Monday, he said that two federal vans were parked near schools.

鈥淣o action has been taken, but we interpret those actions as actions of intimidation, instilling fear that may lead to self-deportation,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat is not the community we want to be, that is not the state or the nation that we ought to be.鈥�

LAUSD is urging parents or guardians who see immigration activity to contact their school or call the district鈥檚 Family Hotline: (213) 443-1300.

was originally reported by Nadra Nittle of . .

He said his parents were worried too, wondering 鈥渨hat is Marco going to do now?鈥�

The 16-year-old started to consider the school鈥檚 Esports program at the suggestion of a friend. With aspirations of becoming an electrical engineer, the pairing felt right. His parents agreed. 

鈥淭o be an electrical engineer, you need to know your way around technology,鈥� Sanchez said. 鈥淎nd the video game aspect has been a part of my life since I was young, so it鈥檚 a great course to take if you want to go to college.鈥�

Sanchez鈥檚 experience is one the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) wants to highlight as the district shifts toward integrating technology into the classroom. One way they鈥檝e done it is through last month鈥檚 .

That鈥檚 when, early on a recent Saturday morning at the SoLA Beehive in South Los Angeles, the district brought together about 700 students from across the city for the first-ever LAUSD Secondary Esports Championships for middle and high school Esports programs. 

The event began with remarks from LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who said, in an interview with LA School Report, the district must be innovators of technology in schools while still maintaining a balance of protecting students and keeping them engaged. 

鈥淲e do not want technology to rob time from something else, nor do we want technology to enslave the mind of the child,鈥� said Carvalho. 鈥淲e teach students the responsible use of technology and the important concept of digital citizenship.鈥�

The safe and responsible use of technology and social media has been at the forefront of Carvalho鈥檚 mind this year, with the deployment of  for students.

Carvalho said the responsible use of technology and digital citizenship is also taught in LAUSD鈥檚 first-of-its-kind curriculum built around ESports.

Debuting in the fall as a high school career and technical education class, the course ESports 1 鈥� later to be joined by ESports 2 鈥� will prepare students for careers in game development, streaming and content creation, among other skills. 

Carvalho said the course, which will be available at select LAUSD high schools, is meant for workforce development, as gaming has become a $6 billion industry.

The curriculum was built in cooperation with a math teacher and ESports coach at Chatsworth Charter High School and culminates with students learning how to build a computer.

Carvalho said ESports clubs and programs are engaging students in around 40 schools across the district, and nearly 400 students are engaged in these types of activities. 

The district鈥檚 program is the largest in the country, said Carvalho, who aims to expand it to include all schools in the coming years.

While the ESports curriculum has not come to all LAUSD campuses, its  have traveled to dozens of schools across the district to introduce topics like robotics, game design and sound design to students beyond regular instructional hours.

The district鈥檚 esports competition debut in March also included breakout sessions where students learned how to use 3D printers, fly drones, build computers and produce music. 

Learning sessions were also provided to educators on how to best integrate the curriculum into their classrooms and provide students with information on how Esports applies to higher education and potential careers.

Sanchez said the program at his school has taught him skills no other class has to this point, like the hierarchy of needs, technology development and computational systems.

He said these skills will help him reach his goal of becoming an engineer. He hopes other kids feel the same way.

鈥淚鈥檇 say give it a shot,鈥� Sanchez said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a really fun experience; you make new friends, meet new people, and there are a lot of opportunities that come with it.鈥�

Marco Sanchez Sr, Marco鈥檚 father, agreed.

鈥淗e鈥檚 right there, growing with [the program], so I鈥檓 totally on board,鈥� Sanchez Sr. said. 鈥淭his is the way of the future.鈥�

This article is part of a collaboration between 社区黑料 and the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

鈥淓veryone is very nice to me, and I feel like I belong here,鈥� said Alan, a third grader. 鈥淚 feel like I am a part of this family.鈥�

In a city with and a school district , this scrappy elementary school stands out. 

Nearly all the kids who attend Figueroa come from poor families and many have disabilities or are learning English. 

Often kids from such backgrounds struggle in school, but the students at Figueroa Street are making progress. 

In reading, the school saw a 14% increase in students in 2024 who met state standards from the previous year. In math, Figueroa saw a 12% jump from the year before. 

Teachers and students say that’s because everybody in the school is like family. The school achieved a 92% average attendance rate so far this academic year, up from 85% the last year. 

This, while the district itself is still crawling out from under sky-high chronic absenteeism rates. 

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 getting people to love their community,鈥� said Principal Shawn Peyatt, who has worked at Figueroa, previously as a teacher, for more than 30 years. 

鈥淎t the end of the day, school鈥檚 a way out,鈥� said Peyatt. 鈥淪chool is going to make a difference.鈥� 

Teachers at Figueroa Elementary say the rise in student test scores is linked to school culture.

鈥淧eople work together well here, and we look out for each other, and it’s nice 鈥� you feel supported here,鈥� said Julie Harrington, a third grade teacher, who has been working at the school for 23 years. 

鈥淢ost of our teachers have been here for many years,鈥� said assistant principal Frank Sanchez. 鈥淲e’ve all been waiting for the right leader to come on board and just take us there.鈥�

Prior to Peyatt鈥檚 leadership, a classroom designated for 鈥渆motionally disturbed鈥� students often saw fights that spread to other parts of the school.

鈥淚t was a dumping ground for behavior,鈥� said Peyatt. 鈥淩eally what you were seeing was it was all Black boys, but they weren’t emotionally disturbed. They just probably had some tough times.鈥� 

After much back and forth, Figueroa Street Elementary was eventually able to get the district to end the program. Things began to look up. 

While in training to become a principal, Peyatt made attendance her top priority, instituting one program after another to keep students in school. 

鈥淭hey say it takes three days to make up one day out, which means you never make-up,鈥� said Peyatt. 鈥淎ttendance is the first thing.鈥�

During the pandemic, the previous principal, Peyatt and Sanchez viewed themselves as 鈥渆ssential workers,鈥� going to students’ houses if they did not join online classes, delivering chargers, notebooks, pencils and holding fundraisers for families struggling to pay rent.

After an initial dip post-pandemic, the school received $38,000 in funding for attendance improvements and used the money to implement new programs in hopes of getting students back on track. 

Working with the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, an organization that partners with Los Angeles Unified to target high-need schools, Figueroa hired an English and math coach. 

Coaches work with teachers, providing feedback on lessons and serving as an extra teaching resource.

The Partnership was first introduced to the school 15 years ago. In addition to teacher training and curriculum development, it serves as a mediator between Figueroa and the school district. 

鈥淭hey gave us the control to be able to bring in our own people, our own teachers,鈥� said Sanchez. 鈥淭hat was a big turning point.鈥�

After the pandemic, the school also created an attendance award system, hosting a pizza party for classes that achieved full attendance and providing students with points towards the school gift shop for good behavior. 

If students are absent for two or more days, administrators will go to their house to check on them. 

鈥淭his year we decided to incentivize parents,鈥� Peyatt said. 鈥淲e’re doing raffles for parents that have kids of excellent attendance.鈥�

Instead of expecting students to ace every test, teachers look instead for their ability to improve. 

Leticia Hurtado, a third-grade teacher at Figueroa, said teachers do this by 鈥渁llowing [students] to struggle, allowing them to make mistakes.鈥� 

The kids know teachers at Figueroa will help them through.

This article is part of a collaboration between 社区黑料 and the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

With at least seven school buildings reduced to rubble, Los Angeles Unified School District is scrambling to relocate displaced students.

The work of photojournalists who braved the fires and their aftermath captures haunting images of what was left behind 鈥� the charred frame of a school bus, precious preschoolers’ artwork 鈥� and what has been lost forever. 

LAUSD officials the nation鈥檚 second-largest district will reopen all but seven schools that were destroyed, badly damaged or immediately threatened by flames.聽

Questions about the district鈥檚 reopening remain, including unresolved challenges about where displaced students will attend school, how they will get there, and whether remote learning will be offered.

Dozens of smaller districts within Los Angeles County also reopened, with the , where the Eaton fire has destroyed at least five campuses and remains mostly uncontained.聽

At a , LAUSD superintendent Alberto Carvalho said the schools slated to reopen are safe to resume instruction after the district last week closed all campuses amid the largest and most destructive fires in LA history.听听听

LAUSD schools will operate on modified schedules without extracurricular activities, he said, and special allowances will be made for students and staff who miss classes.

鈥淪tudents and our workforce will come back having witnessed and experienced a level of disruption not paralleled in the history of our community,鈥� said Carvalho. 鈥淲e will embrace our work with empathy, flexibility and patience.鈥澛犅�

The historic L.A. area fires that began last week have killed at least 25 people and destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 buildings. LAUSD began closing schools last Wednesday as fires in the city intensified, fueled by strong Santa Ana winds. At least 340 district staff have so far lost their homes in the blazes, Carvalho said.

As of Monday, the had burned nearly 24,000 acres, destroying many homes and businesses in iconic Los Angeles neighborhoods, including Pacific Palisades and Malibu. The , located on the city鈥檚 east side, had burned more than 14,000 acres in the neighborhoods of Pasadena and Altadena, and is only 33% contained.聽聽

on Monday, bringing the possibility of renewed growth of existing fires and the creation of new ones as local and out-of-town firefighters battle the deadly blazes.

Famed Palisades High School, which was also badly damaged in the fires, will not reopen this week, Carvalho said. Two additional schools in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood that have been completely burned, Palisades Charter Elementary and Marquez Charter Elementary, will be relocated to other campuses later this week.聽In all, more than 2,000 students enrolled at the three schools have been displaced, he said.聽

Carvalho said the district is still working out logistics, such as the possibility of providing transportation for displaced students.聽聽

Marquez Charter Elementary will be relocated to Nora Sterry Elementary, about nine miles away. Palisades Charter Elementary will be relocated to Brentwood Science Magnet, about five miles away.聽

Four other LAUSD schools located in areas that were under mandatory evacuation orders Monday remain closed. Those schools include Canyon Charter Elementary, Kenter Canyon Charter Elementary, Topanga Charter Elementary, Lanai Road Elementary and Paul Revere Middle School.聽

Carvalho said those schools would reopen as soon as fire conditions allowed. He did not say where or if those students will report to class in the meantime.听听听聽

Two additional LAUSD schools that were also threatened by fires could also be closed if conditions worsen, officials said. 

On Monday morning, blue skies overlooked Nora Sterry Elementary, which is preparing to welcome displaced students from Marquez Charter Elementary later this week, as teachers and staff scrambled to get ready for the first school day there.

As cars pulled up to drop off聽students, teachers and staff ran into the building to prepare for a busy week. A school nurse held onto her lunch as two district employees loudly backed up a truck to unload supplies.

One mom, walking with her hand tightly clenched to her son, expressed gratitude that the school was reopening. 鈥淲e live in the neighborhood. It helps that he has something to do,鈥� she said.

David Tokofsky, a former LAUSD educator and board member turned consultant, said the district鈥檚 response to the fires is a work in progress. He said district officials should have notified families sooner of last week’s school closures and of the plan to reopen Monday.聽

鈥淣ormally, the district is at its absolute best operationally in crisis,鈥� said Tokofsky, who counts fires, earthquakes, floods, the coronavirus and the AIDS epidemic among the disasters he鈥檚 experienced while working in the district.  

Still, the district鈥檚 performance in the face of the ongoing fires can鈥檛 really be assessed so soon, Tokofsky said. Challenges facing LAUSD, including trauma, lost instructional time and logistical matters such as student transportation are still ongoing, he said, and the fires that have already engulfed the city may flare up again and bring even more unprecedented destruction.听听听聽聽

鈥淣othing compares to this,鈥� said Tokofsky. 鈥淲e need teamwork and real, concrete action.”

All Los Angeles Unified School District campuses were closed Thursday after four historic blazes engulfed the city earlier in the week, killing at least five people and injuring many others. 

At least three LA Unified schools, including the famed in the Pacific Palisades, as well as Marquez Charter School and Palisades Charter Elementary School, which are all in the same area, were completely destroyed, said LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. 

Schools in other districts in LA county . 

At a visit to a school food pantry where workers and volunteers were providing meals to displaced children in Glassell Park, ashes blanketed the ground and smoke covered the sky, Carvalho said the nation鈥檚 second largest district would remain closed through the end of the week.

He did not say when schools would reopen.

鈥淭he entire community is still under red alert,鈥� Carvalho told reporters during the visit to Sonia Sotomayor Art & Sciences Magnet school. 鈥淪chools are shut down. There are absolutely no activities.鈥�

More than 600,000 students across Los Angeles were without classes due to the closure of LAUSD and at least two dozen other smaller districts in LA county because of the fires. 

Carvalho said LA Unified officials were working to provide and printed lessons to families but widespread power outages and poor air quality continued to hamper distribution efforts.聽聽

It was unclear if the district planned to offer remote classes such as those during the pandemic.  

LAUSD was for students who depended on school meals at eight campuses across the city on Thursday and officials planned to double the number of sites offering free food on Friday.  

The district was also offering access to mental health services for , families and students in need of support.  

As fires continued to burn across LA, many families were evacuated from their homes. Others faced hardships including dangerous levels of smoke that contributed to toxic air quality. Piles of ash and debris still covered many streets and buildings, while burnt and abandoned cars choked roads in some of the city鈥檚 hardest-hit areas.    

Residents who visited the food pantry at Sonia Sotomayor said they were grateful for the meals provided there by LAUSD. Parents there also expressed appreciation for online learning materials provided by the district. 

But Leni Lam, a mother of three from Atwater Village who visited the pantry Thursday, said the emotional fallout from the fires would be more difficult to overcome. 

As power outages continued and Lam worked to clean ash and debris from her home while caring for her children and her disabled husband, she hoped LAUSD would reopen schools as quickly as possible. 

Lam said her children were still recovering from the 鈥渘ightmare鈥� of online learning during the pandemic and that LAUSD should resume in-person instruction as soon as it鈥檚 safe.   

鈥淢y kids are pretty resilient, and they’re really strong,鈥� said Lam. 鈥淏ut emotionally and socially, like they’ve been set back.鈥� 

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who came to the U.S. as an undocumented immigrant from Portugal, said this week the nation鈥檚 second largest district is preparing for the incoming administration鈥檚 planned mass deportations.

The district has begun mandatory training for staff in how to respond if federal immigration officers appear at or nearby schools, Carvalho said, and has produced 鈥榢now your rights鈥� cards to be distributed to students, with directions on how to behave if approached by immigration agents.

But LAUSD can only do so much to combat the fear and anxiety felt by the district鈥檚 immigrant families, the superintendent said Monday at a press conference to discuss the measures.

鈥淣o child of any age should face that awful, disturbing condition,鈥� said Carvalho. 鈥淭hat is why we’ve created safe spaces in our schools for our students to come together.鈥�

Since 2017 LAUSD has had a policy to not voluntarily cooperate with immigration enforcement actions by federal agencies and in November school board members to reaffirm LA Unified鈥檚 status as a sanctuary district.

School officials do not collect or share information about the immigration status of students and their families, Carvalho said, and federal agents will be denied access to schools unless they possess proper judicial warrants.

President-elect Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, has promised to begin his second administration with widespread federal enforcement action to remove undocumented people from US cities, possibly with help from the military.

LAUSD officials do not keep records of students鈥� immigration status. About 15% of the district’s students are English language learners, and about 13% of students speak Spanish as their primary language.

According to the Migration Policy Institute, about students enrolled in California public schools are undocumented. Nearly in California have at least one undocumented parent, according to the National Center for Children in Poverty.

The Department of Homeland Security designates schools as where immigration enforcement should be avoided. Federal enforcement action at schools was limited in the first Trump administration.

But the president-elect has vowed to step up enforcement in his second term.

Evelyn Aleman, founder of Our Voice, a parents鈥� group which advocates for LA Unified鈥檚 low-income and Spanish-speaking families, said immigrant families in LA are living in fear of what may come when Trump takes office.

Even those here legally are concerned their immigration status could be rescinded, Aleman said.

鈥淩ight now, there’s a lot of anxiety and fear in our communities,鈥� said Aleman. 鈥淲e don’t really know what’s going to happen, and it’s that uncertainty that makes everyone so nervous.鈥�

Aleman said even the threat or presence of immigration enforcement near schools is enough to discourage students from attending classes.

When federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in 2017 after he dropped his daughter at school, Aleman said, immigrant families in the area stopped sending their kids to class.  

Immigrant families use text messaging and social media to warn each other of the presence of ICE agents in their neighborhoods, said Aleman.

For weeks, she said, immigrant families in Los Angeles have been meeting via Zoom, over the phone and in person to discuss what to do if enforcement ramps up when the president-elect takes office.

Meanwhile, state officials in California are also preparing protections for immigrant families.

State Attorney General Rob Bonta in December issued for how districts can comply with state law limiting state and local participation in federal immigration enforcement. he also published in case of contact with federal agents.

California lawmakers are also preparing new statutes. introduced in the state assembly last month would inhibit federal immigration agents鈥� access to schools. Another in the state senate would establish a 鈥渟afe zone鈥� of one mile around campuses.

Ana Mendoza, a senior staff attorney at American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California and director of the organization鈥檚 , said that such efforts can offer real protections to immigrant students.

鈥淓ven though immigration enforcement happens in California, the federal government can’t come in and ignore the guardrails, violate due process and do what it wants,鈥� said Mendoza. 鈥淭he state can protect its citizens from federal government abuse, and individuals can also protect their rights.鈥�