A Candidate Speaks

“I support sponsoring and improving Special Ed policy to help students and families.” - Tracey Schroeder

As noted in my endorsement of “Anyone But Nick Melvoin,” little is known about the incumbent’s two competitors in LAUSD Board District 4. Despite this mystery, I still felt that either of them was a better choice than the incumbent. In a worst-case scenario, their votes could just substitute for Melvoin’s stances on charter school accountability and Special Education. If the competitors held any radical stances on social issues, they would be alone on the board. This would help ensure that they could not inflict significant damage.

With mail-in ballots already mailed out, May is the last chance for candidates to participate in my monthly series on issues facing the LAUSD. Past subjects have included PROP-39 and overallocation fees, forced mainstreaming for children with severe special education needs, community engagement, and ethical issues. Last month all three candidates in Board District 4 were invited to participate in a lightning round consisting of 20 questions about a variety of issues. While these were designed to be “yes” or “no” questions, the candidates were invited to go into more detail if they felt the need to do so. They were also given the opportunity to provide a closing pitch to the voters. This was limited to one paragraph.

In Tracey Schroeder’s answers, I found that there was some alignment with my priorities, particularly for the questions based on the issues of charter school accountability, special education, and community engagement. However, as the husband of a wife who is immunocompromised, I was concerned about her views on mandates. Personal belief exemptions to vaccine mandates are incompatible with ending the public health crisis that we all face. Children deserve school facilities where risks have been mitigated to the greatest extent possible.

It is a great disservice to the voters in LAUSD Board District 4 that Melvoin refused to answer the questions put before them. His lack of respect for his constituents means that a full comparison cannot be made between the candidates.

• 1. Do you have children who are enrolled in LAUSD district schools?

No answer

• 2. Do you commit to ensuring that your staff includes parents with children enrolled in district schools?

Kids come first. Voices of parents, elementary, secondary, special ed. teachers, community members, and stakeholders should be heard, respected, and supported. I hope to find some great parents who are ready to help!

• 3. Is lowering the student-to-staff ratio essential for increasing outcomes?

I support spending that directly impacts student learning. This may impact the student-to-staff ratio.

• 4. Do you support having a nurse assigned full-time to every school?

Mostly, yes... I stand for having nurses or nursing assistants to support quick treatment of injuries and medical emergencies, and to support kids in getting care and quickly getting back to class; however, there should be an allowance for conditions when parents and staff have an alternative creative solution.

• 5. Do you support having either a librarian or a library aid assigned full-time to every school?

Yes - Students should have access to library books.

• 6. Did you support UTLA in 2019 when they went on strike to force the district to provide fundamental improvements for our students?

Hindsight is 2020...The strike was meant to help make schools better for kids... QUICKLY. We have not yet seen the fruit of the deal. The district is in the beginning stages of bargaining again. I hope both sides come to quick resolutions considering our current academic crisis and employee needs. Many teachers are ready to leave. Schools should stay open. Kids need consistency. Kids need qualified teachers in the classroom.

• 7. Do you agree that every charter school should have similar demographics to the LAUSD public schools in the neighborhood where they are authorized to operate?

Charter Schools need to be held to the same academic standards and fiscal responsibilities as public schools.

• 8. Do you agree that the job of an LAUSD School Board Member is to represent children who are enrolled in schools run by the district?

Yes

• 9. Do you agree that no LAUSD should be closed without first engaging in a meaningful dialogue with the school community so that alternatives can be found?

Yes

• 10. Do you support allowing LAUSD teachers to take sabbaticals as a way of combating teacher burnout?

Yes- however; we are in a crisis where most teachers are burned out and want a break. This can be done in a manner that is fiscally responsible and minimally disruptive to the classroom. Most importantly, we need to offer incentives to encourage teachers to STAY longer. Way too many teachers are talking about leaving within 2 years.

• 11. Do you support enforcing the COVID-19 vaccine mandate that is scheduled to take effect in August?

I support maintaining a safe and healthy environment on LAUSD campuses. Also important is keeping kids in school with highly qualified teachers. Our students have suffered significant emotional strain and substantial learning loss. Last year's school closures and the vaccine mandates are significant contributors to our current academic crisis. As such, I do not support LAUSD's Covid 19 vaccine mandate for employees or students as currently applied. These have contributed to extreme staffing shortages, staff burn-out, and enrollment decline. The policy, as implemented, should be re-examined. Specifically, I support religious, medical, and personal belief exemptions that allow individuals with such exemptions to work at and attend LA schools.

• 12. Will you work to ensure that every parent understands that they have a right to opt-out of standardized testing?

Yes- typically the school sends a notice home to inform parents of this right.

• 13. Do you agree that using standardized tests before the third grade is counterproductive to providing meaningful education?

Yes. Younger students need monitoring primarily for literacy needs and basic skill support.

• 14. Do you agree that the LAUSD should not be subject to mayoral control and that the LAUSD School Board should remain an independent, elected body?

Yes

• 15. Will you work to eliminate the confidentiality agreements that parents must sign when agreeing to negotiated settlements with the LAUSD over special education services?

I am not sure that confidentiality agreements are necessary. I would like to learn more and make a plan that helps kids get the special needs support that would help them.

• 16. Do you commit to supporting policies that prohibit the District from punishing employees who inform parents of all of the options available to their students during the IEP process?

Employees should not be punished for informing parents of options available during the IEP process.

• 17. Will you sponsor and support the proposed “Improving Special Education within the LAUSD” resolution?

I support sponsoring and improving Special Ed policy to help students and families. I have witnessed and stood with many families to help kids get the appropriate support and placements to meet their needs. I am willing to work with the author of this motion, and a team of parents and teachers to make sure students are well supported. I am aware of the need to better support our students with dyslexia, as one example. It sounds like a confidentiality clause has made it difficult for parents to get support for their kids. I am an advocate for special education students and want them to get a truly fair and appropriate placement and to increase the availability of options.

• 18. Will you sponsor and support the proposed “Community Representation on Charter School Governing Boards” resolution?

I don't see a reason not to support this proposal.

• 19. Will you sponsor and support the proposed “Improving LAUSD Performance As A Regulatory Agency for Charters” resolution?”

Charter schools need to be held to the same academic standards and fiscal responsibility as public schools. I support transparency and accountability. Schools should not be closed to students after the start of the new school year.

• 20. Will you sponsor and support the proposed “Promoting Transparency By The LAUSD” resolution?

I am in support of the urgently needed transparency in our district and the needs set forth in this motion. In addition, the timing of the school board meetings needs to be more inclusive to allow participation from teachers, parents, and community members. (editor’s note: Issues surrounding school board meetings are addressed in the proposed resolution: Board Meeting Accessibility to the Public)

Closing Message To The Voters

I AM THE 24-YEAR EXPERIENCED TEACHER CANDIDATE THAT LAUSD NEEDS to guide our district through the greatest Literacy Crisis/Academic Crisis that this district has ever seen. I am a boots-on-the-ground front-line eyes on the issues educator coming out. I am a UCLA Communication Studies graduate with a masters degree in psychology. I am a BRAVO AWARD FINALIST for integrating the arts in my subject areas, and I've been an ambitious student in gifted education. I've taught every grade K-3 and am an expert at teaching reading. I've helped students with special needs get just the right support and I know what LAUSD needs to do to get LAUSD kids reading again. First, we need to financially incentivize our highly-qualified teachers to stay with LAUSD a little longer. Second, we support our brand new teachers to get through the year and want to come back again... better! Third, we need all hands on deck to bring back our teachers, staff, and students. Academically, we need to prioritize LITERACY and offer strong support to make sure that EVERY STUDENT IS A READER. We did it successfully in 1999 with the California Reading and Literature Project to ensure that all students were reading by age 9. We can do it again and do it even better. LAUSD has students who have never set foot in a classroom. This is a LEARNING EMERGENCY....We need a SKILLED TEACHER who cares enough to help guide our district back on track.

I have seen a lot of good over the years as well as an amazing amount of waste. I am pro-student, pro-teacher, pro-family, pro-community, and pro-fiscal responsibility. Parents deserve a voice in their child’s education. The current school board tried their best to guide our course through the pandemic... but they have not been listening to parents or teachers. Now we need a no-nonsense SEASONED TEACHER to guide us back. We need immediate supports in place before the next school year begins to rescue our non-readers. My website is Traceyschoolboard.com Join me!

The other challenger, Gentille Barkhordarian’s responses can be found in this article.

Carl Petersen is a parent advocate for students with special education needs and public education. He is an elected member of the Northridge East Neighborhood Council and serves as the Education Chair. As a Green Party candidate in LAUSD’s District 2 School Board race, he was endorsed by Network for Public Education (NPE) Action. Dr. Diane Ravitch has called him “a valiant fighter for public schools in Los Angeles.” For links to his blogs, please visit www.ChangeTheLAUSD.com. Opinions are his own.