Los Angeles, CA – In a hotly debated Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) board meeting February 13, a motion to lessen the negative impact on public schools from charter school co-location passed 4 to 3.

Los Angeles, CA – In a hotly debated September 26 Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) board meeting, a motion to mitigate the negative impact of charter school co-location on public schools passed by 4 yes to 2 no with 1 abstention. 

Los Angeles, CA – Dr. Rocio Rivas was finally declared winner in the highly anticipated Los Angeles Unified School District board race for District 2. On December 13 she was sworn in at an LAUSD board meeting. Board member and longtime human rights activist Jackie Goldberg gave her the oath of office while surrounded by family.

St. Paul, MN – Hundreds of teachers, along with supporters assembled in the State Capitol building rotunda, May 20, for a “Invest in Success Rally for Public Education.” Republicans control the state legislature, and have passed spending bills that fail to adequately fund public education. Governor Mark Dayton vetoed these bills, and observers say it is likely that education finance bills will have to wait for a special secession of the legislature.

Saint Paul, MN – On Feb. 10 the Executive Board of the Saint Paul Federation of Teachers voted unanimously to call a strike vote for their members on Feb. 24. This comes after almost nine months of contract negotiations in which teachers have put forward bold proposals to defend and improve public education in Saint Paul, which have garnered the support of parents and community members but drawn negative responses from School District officials.

Chicago, IL – An anti-bargaining bill disguised as an education reform bill has passed through the Illinois Senate and moved on to the Illinois House of Representatives. This bill called SB7, includes many components that will take away the Chicago Teachers Union’s (CTU) bargaining rights and rights to strike.

Minneapolis, MN – Students for a Democratic Society at the U of M held a rally, March 2, in front of the student union to demand no tuition hikes, no staff layoffs and shared governance for all members of the university community. It was part of a day of action called by Students for a Democratic Society nationally. Despite extreme temperatures, 50 students, staff and faculty attended, chanting, “Fund education, not administration,” and “They say cut back? We say fight back!”

San José, CA – On Oct. 8, the Department of Labor reported that local public schools had cut 49,800 jobs in September. Included in the layoffs this fall was kindergarten teacher Amanda VanNess, who stood with President Obama when he signed a bill giving $26 billion to local schools in August of 2009. While this federal stimulus money did save Ms. VanNess’ job in the Toledo (Ohio) Public School District in 2009, she was laid off this fall as the district’s drop in students led to another round of cuts.