Is the LA Times Doing Public Relations for the Teachers Union?

26Jul
by Leticia Chavez-Garcia

Reading through this recent article in the The LA Times left me feeling like Alex Caputo Pearl of UTLA wrote this garbage! Can The LA Times be less obvious? Is it just me, or does this article seem heavily slanted and divisive? Please click on the hyperlink to read the article and maybe post a comment about it here on La Comadre.  

I find it so inappropriate that The Los Angeles Times would want to stir the pot this way and give such a one sided perspective. As we all know by now, two new board members, Kelly Gonez and Nick Melvoin, were recently sworn in for their four year terms, and Dr. Ref Rodriguez is the new President at the LAUSD Board of Education. Yet, this paper and others have found it necessary to continue with an unproven narrative about these board members and their motives. They have had one meeting. Can we get past the negative labeling and give them a chance to serve before continuing the nasty attacks on them?  

This article perfectly distorts what could be a positive thing and vilifies what could be a productive partnership.  No, LA Times, Austin Beutner is not the devil. The headline reads, “Another Jolt for LA School as Civic Group Seeks a Role in Fixing School District.”  A jolt? What is everyone afraid of? Does the LAUSD not need community oversight? Why is this news not more welcoming? This should be seen as a good thing for the district and its students.  Anytime that anyone is willing to invest time and energy to help this failing giant, those people should be applauded!   

At issue is what I think is an impressive group of civic leaders who have formed a task group to work with Superintendent Michelle King to identify and help improve problems within the district.  Here’s what The Times had to say:

“The lack of representation from any district labor groups concerns Juan Flecha, head of the administrators union. The panel, he said, also seems ‘anemic’ in terms of strong educators and weighted with affluent Westsiders who might lack ‘knowledge of the mental health, social, and economic realities of the majority of the students the district serves.’”

In my opinion, the lack of district labor groups is a good thing! At some point, I am going to have a serious conversation with you about the true dark cloud over the LAUSD, the teachers union. For now, I simply want to share that the district and the Superintendent will be receiving reports from this panel of Los Angeles civic leaders, and we think that is a good thing. Let’s at least give the group an opportunity to provide their insight and report before making judgements and casting aspersions on the integrity of the group and its intentions.

What do you think?

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Leticia Chavez-Garcia

Leticia Chavez-Garcia is a Mother, Grandmother, former Middle School Teacher, former Member of a School Board of Education and an Education Advocate for hundreds of parents and students in the Inland Empire. Having become a mother at 15, Leticia knows what it’s like to be a single mother trying to navigate the education system. Leticia received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Political Science and Public Administration from California Baptist University and a Masters’ Degree in Education Technology from Cal State Fullerton in her 30’s. Leticia has used her knowledge and experience to help hundreds of families as an Education Advocate in the Inland Empire and currently works as an Education Specialist.

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