Mayoral Candidate Wendy Greuel Outlines Ideas for School Reform and Expanding Local Control
Los Angeles - Today Wendy Greuel outlined her ideas to reform Los Angeles' schools, citing her personal experience as an LAUSD graduate and parent to discuss the critical importance of local control and an education policy focused on the best interests of children, not politics.
"I know firsthand how important it is to have flexibility and choice when determining your child’s future," said Greuel. "I will approach every decision as a parent, not a politician."
Greuel outlined several specific priorities for reforming Los Angeles' schools and improving the City's education system. Greuel said she would:
- Support Parent Trigger and other laws that give parents a choice. As an LAUSD mom herself, Greuel said she would be a strong advocate for programs and policies that give parents a voice in how their schools are run and in their children's education. "Parents shouldn’t have to settle for a one-size-fits-all approach," Greuel said. "That just doesn’t work for our children."
- Work with Superintendent Deasy to implement a comprehensive evaluation system for teachers and principals. "We know that the single most important factor to a child’s academic success is a quality teacher," said Greuel. She said she will advocate for rules that make it easier to dismiss underperforming teachers, and make sure that we can support effective teachers and principals.
- Create a leadership "pipeline" for teachers and principals. Greuel highlighted the importance of ensuring that the best teachers and principals are in the classroom, and said she believes the City could do more to work with the school district to create programs that will help train teachers and principals for leadership roles.
- Expand LA's BEST, a nationally recognized after school program Greuel helped start with Mayor Tom Bradley 25 years ago. Students who don’t participate in after school activities are nearly 50% more likely to use drugs, and 37% more likely to become teen parents than those who spend between 1 and 4 hours in after school activities.
- Push for a Controller's audit of the LAUSD bureaucracy and a plan to "slash non-school site administrative expenses and put those dollars where the kids are." Greuel said she will work with the district to complete an audit of LAUSD’s leadership to make sure that the district is focusing resources on children instead of downtown bureaucrats.
- Introduce a student Bill of Rights. Greuel said she will advocate for a bill of rights for students that guarantees each child's right to a physically and emotionally safe learning environment, a quality teacher, music and arts education, and an effective curriculum that prepares them for a successful entry into the workforce.
- Revitalize the Safe Passages to School program. Greuel pledged to ensure that every child has not only a safe learning environment, but is safe on their way to and from school each day.
"The truth is we can't have a world class city without a world class education system. The health of our great city – from our ability to create jobs and compete economically, to our success in fighting crime and poverty -- begins and ends with a quality education for our young people," said Greuel. "A quality education doesn't start downtown - it starts with strong neighborhood schools that empower parents, teachers and principals."
Added Greuel: "I am proud to say that transforming our public schools will be a centerpiece of my administration, and I commit to being an education reform mayor."
A text of the speech as prepared for delivery follows:
Good morning.
Thank you for joining me here today at Granada Hills Charter High School – the three time academic decathlon winner! -- to talk about one of the central issues of my campaign…
Transforming our city's public education system.
My concern over the state of our public schools runs much deeper than this campaign; it's personal.
I attended Los Angeles public schools my entire life and graduated from Kennedy High School in Granada Hills – your rival high school.
My husband and I are sending our son to public school. This issue is close to my heart both as a candidate and as a mom.
I will approach every decision as a parent, not a politician.
With every decision placed in front of me, I will think about how it would affect my child and my family.
Dean and I were lucky. When we were looking for a place to send our son Thomas to school, we discovered that our very own neighborhood school was being run by a visionary and inspirational principal, Joanie Freckman. When Joanie Freckman first took over as Principal, the API Score of our school was approximately 650; now it is 928.
This transformation did not happen over night – it took time, but it happened with sheer determination. Principal Freckman challenged the school community – parents, teachers and students -- to reach for the stars and held them accountable so that students would be able to achieve their potential.
Joanie and the school community knew that for success to continue, the principal, teachers and parents would need greater control over the decisions that affected our school. So, our school became an affiliated Charter, gaining more flexibility over decision-making and becoming freed from a number of the bureaucratic constraints that can hold back many schools from reaching their potential.
What's more, when Principal Freckman decided to retire, our school community had the power to choose a new principal. We had the power -- not the downtown bureaucrats. As a result, we were able to select a wonderful new principal, Suzana Gomez, who has taken Joanie's lead -- expanding parent involvement, further increasing student achievement and supporting a myriad of enrichment opportunities for our kids.
As a school community, we meet and interview prospective teachers to fill open teaching positions. We decide on the curriculum we want to use and we decide the kinds of enrichment we want our kids to experience, especially music, fine arts and theater.
We put our children first.
And when I'm mayor, putting our children first will be the basis for every decision I make for our schools.
I know firsthand how important it is to have flexibility and choice when determining your child's future. Our kids should have access to the best possible education, regardless of whether it's at an LAUSD school, an affiliated charter, a partnership school, or a great charter school like this school we're in today.
The truth is we can't have a world class city without a world class education system.
The health of our great city – from our ability to create jobs and compete economically, to our success in fighting crime and poverty -- begins and ends with a quality education system.
And a quality education doesn't start downtown, it starts with strong neighborhood schools that empower parents, teachers and principals.
As your mayor, I will continue to advocate for laws like parent trigger because parents shouldn't be stuck in schools that are failing their children.
Parents shouldn't have to settle for a one-size-fits-all approach. That just doesn't work for our children.
As mayor, I will fight for more choices for parents by supporting innovative approaches.
Transforming Los Angeles schools means giving parents more choices.
Unlike my opponent, I have always supported programs that allow parents to demand more accountability.
I'm also going to focus on student safety by revitalizing the Safe Passages program to ensure that every child can safely travel to and from school each day.
I'm going to work with Sacramento and LAUSD to enact legislation that requires strict background checks and detailed investigations of ALL sexual abuse reports.
I'll partner with LAUSD to create transparent, flexible and effective guidelines to prevent bullying. And I'll work with non-profits, businesses, and LAUSD to create an online safety program that helps parents and children understand the tactics and dangers of internet predators.
But keeping our students safe is also about taking responsibility for where our children are after school.
25 years ago this week, I joined with Mayor Tom Bradley to start a new after school program called LA's BEST.
We started it in just 10 schools, as a way to give students a safe, supervised environment after classes ended.
Today, LA's BEST has become a national model for after school programs. It is in 189 schools across the City serving 28,000 kids.
As mayor, I'll work to expand LA's BEST, so our kids can stay focused on their education and away from gangs, guns and drugs.
I'll also fight to break up the LAUSD bureaucracy that is so far removed from the real needs of our children. As your mayor, I'll push for a City Controller audit of the LAUSD bureaucracy that includes a plan to slash non-school site administrative expenses and put those dollars where the kids are.
That goes for Sacramento. California once was a leader in education funding. But now we rank at 49th in the nation in per pupil spending.
I'll fight to make sure any new dollars from Prop 30 are spent as they were promised and go to bringing back programs like music, art and P.E.
As mayor, I'll work to reduce the drop-out rate and prepare our young people for 21st Century careers by fighting for expanded vocational and career technical programs in our high schools.
And I'll push for public-private partnerships between LAUSD, local community colleges and the private sector focused on job training and mentorship.
I'll be a voice for students. They don't have a union, like teachers do. Students are counting on us to fight for them. So as Mayor, I'll listen to our students. I'll establish a council of student body presidents to consult with me directly. I will also visit classrooms regularly to discuss civics, the importance of good citizenship, honesty, respect and public service.
And I will give parents and PTA's a strong voice by engaging with them directly through teleconferences and online or in-person town halls.
We need to focus on how we can get the best teachers and principals into the classroom educating our kids. I'll work with LAUSD to create a leadership pipeline that supports outstanding teachers and administrators.
I know from firsthand experience that great schools start with great principals and teachers, and I will be a forceful advocate to make sure they have a voice in developing education policies that work for their individual schools, and not just the bureaucracy downtown.
I won't shy away from supporting any idea as long as it is good for our students.
Too often our conversations about improving schools have focused on the politics and the adults.
I will partner with Superintendent Deasy to turn the conversation into what is best for our kids in every class room.
I will advocate for rules that allow for the dismissal of teachers who engage in misconduct, and make sure that we can support effective teachers and principals.
I will support the teacher evaluation system he is implementing. It is needed.
Because we know that the single most important factor to a child's academic success is a quality teacher.
We need to make sure we're getting effective teachers in the classroom.
And with a meaningful evaluation system that is fair and uses multiple measurements – including students' test scores and in-class observations.
We can use evaluations to reward successful teachers and support teachers who are struggling to grow and improve.
But we must also evaluate our principals. It simply doesn't make sense that we would evaluate our teachers and not our principals.
Finally I will also use the mayor's bully pulpit to advocate for a student Bill of Rights.
This Bill of Rights should include:
1. The right to a safe learning environment free from gangs, guns, drugs, sexual assault and hazardous materials.
2. The right to a quality teacher in every classroom.
3. The right to a safe passage to and from school and access to after school programs.
4. The right to have nurses and health professionals on every campus to care for our kids.
5. The right to a curriculum that will prepare students to compete in the modern workplace.
6. The right to the latest technology on every campus.
7. The right to be free from harassment, assault, or bullying.
8. The right to have access to the most up-to-date learning materials needed for a 21st century education.
9. The right to have access to mental health counselors if necessary.
10. The right to music, arts and physical education classes to cultivate our children's creative spirit and physical well-being.
These are just some of the ideas I have to improve our schools. It's not about power--it's about empowerment.
Let me close by telling a story about how empowerment works.
I was inspired this week by parents at the 24th Street School.
Three years ago these parents were fed up and no longer willing to stand by as their children were trapped in a failing school.
They gathered signatures demanding the district to act and turned in their petition. No one at the district answered the petition and no one answered their call.
Three years later, things have changed.
With the passage of the Parent Trigger law that gives parents the authority to demand new leadership at their school if a simple majority of parents petition to do so…
And with the leadership of Superintendent John Deasy, just this past Tuesday, the parents of 24th Street voted for a new leadership team that will now run their children's school.
What is most inspiring about 24th Street's story…
It marks the first time the Parent Trigger action was supported by the school district.
And the new leadership team that the parents voted for is a partnership between the Los Angeles School District and Crown Preparatory Academy.
Not just following the parents' lead, but eventually joining the parents…
The school district is standing with parents in transforming 24th Street Elementary.
This is progress. This is putting our students first.
So, today I ask if you want a mayor who supports giving parents the power to transform their own children's school, then I ask for your vote.
If you want a mayor who will approach every decision as a parent and not as a politician, then I ask for your vote.
If you want a mayor who will challenge decades of failed education policies by putting our students first, then I ask for your vote.
If you want a mayor who will intervene to push the pace for reform, then I ask for your vote.
As your mayor, I will fight to free our principals, teachers and parents from the downtown bureaucracy and give them the local control and flexibility they need to educate our children.
And I will stand with parents to hold the Los Angeles Unified School District accountable for making decisions in the best interest of our children.
I am proud to say that transforming our public schools will be a centerpiece of my administration, and I commit to being an education reform mayor.
Thank you.