Eastern Group Publications (Los Angeles County, CA)
March 24, 2011
HEADLINE: Sweeping Reform Coming to Highland Park School

By Gloria Angelina Castillo

Middle school will be reconstituted; teachers must reapply for jobs.

Luther Burbank Middle School in Highland Park will be reconstituted under the No Child Left Behind Act, school and district officials announced last week during a town hall meeting attended by about 20 parents and stakeholders.

The news, which should have grabbed the attention of parents, seems to have been lost in the noise of lay off protests and the school board's much anticipated decision last week for other schools currently undergoing the Public School Choice reform.

Reconstitution is a dramatic, rarely used process aimed at reforming underachieving schools. Teachers must reapply for their jobs and if rehired, they must sign a contract that includes a number of performance-based provisions.

When asked about the changes to come to Burbank, Salvador Lima, at the school on Tuesday to pick up his son, said he didn't agree that all the teachers should be asked to reapply for their jobs. "It's wrong. They just want to save money and make class sizes larger. Is there something we can do?" he asked.

Lima, whose son is a magnet student at the Police Academy, chose to move him to Burbank because his school of residency in Gardena didn't give his son enough homework, he said. Lima is satisfied with the academic rigor his son receives currently.

Highland Park resident Eunice Reyes said she wasn't aware that the school's staff would be asked to reapply for their jobs. She has not noticed any flyers sent home regarding the reconstitution of the school and wasn't sure if she had received a phone call informing her about the March 16 meeting.

Burbank used to have a bad reputation-which revolved around campus and gang violence, not instruction-but the school improved when John Samaniego became principal, Reyes said.

While students were dismissed early on Tuesday, teachers stayed behind for a faculty meeting where they were scheduled to receive their new application packets. All teachers, including those at Burbank's magnet schools, will have to reapply for their jobs if they want to continue working there.

Principal Arturo Valdez says not everyone who applies will necessarily be rehired, but no one is really being "fired" because those teachers not asked back can seek employment at other LAUSD schools.

"We are going to have an interview panel looking and asking questions, and then make the decision about who are the best candidates out there, not just within Burbank, but in LA Unified, that can come to Highland Park and put [together] the best program for our students," he told EGP.

In addition, all teachers who wish to work at Burbank will be required to sign a compact that will outline various commitments and expectations-like how they use data, what strategies they'll use in the classroom, how they'll interact with students and parents, among other things, LAUSD District 4 Director Shannon Corbett told EGP.

The rehired teachers will have the same UTLA contract but they will have to sign and follow the compact annually. "It's not a skinny contract, they still have the same rights within their union, but their level of commitment-what we are asking them to do and commit to is different," Corbett said.

Teachers who wish to be remain at Burbank must submit their documents by the April 8 deadline, interviews will take place in the following weeks and by the end of April, school administrators will have decided who they will hire, Shannon explained.

The plans for improved instruction, in the works for well over a year, remain and will not change, she said.

"We really are doing all of this to make sure we are getting some better results and students are getting what they need. So what it means, I think, is a renewed look, a refocus on student achievement and making sure that we are really focused on what is happening in the classroom," Valdez said.

Teachers are not happy, in fact, they are "pissed," according to Gregg Solkovits, UTLA Secondary Vice President.

"UTLA thinks it's totally and completely unnecessary," Solkovits said. "I think it's ultimately what the Board Member [Yolie Flores] wanted. I think it was not necessary and reconstitution is not proven to work at any school where it's been done in the country."

Burbank Middle School has been in Program Improvement Status since 2004 after failing to meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for two consecutive years. The school is beyond the 5+ years that the campus had to improve or be subject to consequences under No Child Left Behind, signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2001.

In 2008, it was identified as one of numerous chronic underperforming schools in LAUSD and was subject to the first round of the Public School Choice reform. Under the reform, outside education-based groups are invited to submit proposals to improve underachieving schools or to run new schools. No outside group applied to run Burbank, and the school's staff, led by the former principal, submitted a plan that failed to gain the support of the district superintendent and school board. The revised plan was never approved.

Since last summer, parents have complained that plans to convert the school to a pilot program had not materialized.

Burbank's Academic Performance Index (API) is 663. The index, created under California's Public Schools Accountability Act of 1999, measures the performance and academic growth of schools. Statewide, the API goal is 800 for all schools.

During the last five years, Burbank's API growth has been 10 points while the average for other schools in Local District 4 is 72 points in 5 years, Corbett said.

Based on 2009/2010 California Standardized Test scores, 33.3 percent of Luther Burbank students, including the magnet schools, were proficient or above in English Language Arts. The California benchmark is 56.8 percent, according to Corbett.

Based on the same tests, only 30.5 percent-less than a third of the students-were proficient or above in math. California's benchmark is 58 percent, she said.

Valdez plans to do more parent and community outreach this month/

The change will be immediate, it will not take 5 or 6 years, it will be the fastest change the district has seen in a while, Valdez said. "Next year will be new, and we are looking for some better results for next year," Valdez said.

"We are very excited about the prospect of the new school and what we will be able to offer the students in the fall of 2011," Corbett said.