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Meanwhile, back in California: LAUSD takeover roundup

While we celebrated yesterday, Villaraigosa put the finishing touches on a deal with the unions and legislators for his takeover plan.  Here’s a rundown…

Very lengthy LA Times here:

After tough negotiations with two forceful teachers unions, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa struck an agreement Wednesday that would give him significant sway over Los Angeles’ troubled public schools but fall short of the total takeover he had sought.

Under a compromise expected to be drafted by Friday and considered by the Legislature next week, Villaraigosa would effectively gain veto power over the selection of the superintendent, and that official would assume most budget and contracting authority now handled by the elected Board of Education, the mayor’s aides said.

Teachers and principals, meanwhile, would have new authority to shape classroom instruction, loosening the district’s reins on how best to teach — a change the union has vociferously sought for years.

The current seven-member Los Angeles Unified School District board, which the mayor has accused of micro-management, would lose virtually all of its authority to oversee billions of dollars in contracts and make line-by-line changes in the district’s $7.4-billion operating budget.

District officials attacked the agreement as a late-night, back-room deal that would harm the district, and they discussed the possibility of litigation.

This whole thing has made the LA Times an interesting study in contrasts.  While Villaraigosa is given some op-ed page real estate to tout the compromise, the editorial board has soured on him–just two days after applauding the move.  In an "I told you so" moment, School Me! says that lots of people are going to fight this once the initial euphoria wears off.  Right on cue, the LA Daily News offers some rather qualified praise and goes a bit deeper in describing opposition to the deal:

Blindsided by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s announcement of proposed school-reform legislation, angry LAUSD board members, the superintendent and parents vowed to fight it and said too many questions are unanswered.

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Roy Romer said an outline of the proposed legislation makes it unclear whether his successor would report to the L.A. mayor, the school board or a council of mayors.

"Who’s going to be the person in control?" asked Romer, who plans to leave his post in the fall.

Board member Jon Lauritzen echoed Romer’s concern: "No one can serve two masters," he said.

School board members vowed to fight the legislation and seek a productive partnership with the mayor, union members, teachers and parents.

"I wouldn’t have expected anything less from a mayor who believes he’s the education guru, the mayor whose education was saved when he came to a public school, a mayor who sends his kids to private schools," said Julie Korenstein, who has served on the school board for 20 years.

"Mr. Mayor, what are your grandiose plans for curing the ills you profess? Are you going to play with the lives of 727,000 students so you can become the next governor?

"I will not go down without a massive fight." 

Even though the mayor fell short of his goal of full control of the LAUSD, a group of parents said they would fight to block the scaled-down version being proposed.

"What concerns us is that none of the parents were ever talked to," said Scott Folsom, president of the 10th District Parent, Teacher, Student Association. "… All we are asking for is a serious discussion between the mayor, the school district and parents to discuss what is in the best interests of the children of the district."

Also, check out this interesting nugget from the Sacramento Bee:

And Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who typically does not take positions on bills before they reach his desk, said he would sign this one — even before details have been worked out.

In a written statement, he praised Villaraigosa’s "bold leadership" and said the legislation "is exactly what needs to be done."

It seems like this thing has an awful lot of political momentum right now.  The question is whether it will retain that momentum in the face of what promises to be a pitched battle against the administration and parents.