LAUSD faces challenges in Race to the Top bid

Skeptical unions pose challenge to districts’ Race to the Top

Original article at EdSource by John Fensterwald

Nearly 900 districts nationwide, including 76 districts and charter schools in California, have told the federal government that they plan to compete for the final $400 million Race to the Top district competition. But with local unions having in effect a veto over their districts’ application, that number could dwindle.

A sticking point, not surprisingly, is teacher evaluations. Among the Race to the Top requirements, districts must commit to enacting a teacher evaluation system within two years that gives significant weight to measures of student learning, including the use of state standardized test scores.

Last month, Warren Fletcher, president of United Teachers Los Angeles, expressed skepticism about participating in Race to the Top but also said he was willing to hear Superintendent John Deasy out. Los Angeles Unified intends to seek $40 million to expand career technical programs for high school students.

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