For many children, a chance to do some artwork, make some music, or get up on a stage is the highlight of their school day, and a opportunity to learn lessons in a creative way. But the Los Angeles Unified School District is looking to take that away from their elementary school students, with a proposal of "total elimination of its elementary school arts education program." more ›

A new "community safety scorecard" compiled by a public policy group takes a look at each Los Angeles zip code. The scorecard, created by the Advancement Project and published by Miller-McCune, "assesses the factors that foster or fight violence in every community" in L.A. more ›

A group of Los Angeles Unified School District teachers, parents, students, and other district employees will march with the Occupy L.A. protesters this afternoon. The groups will leave the Occupy L.A. site at City Hall at 4 p.m. and head to the LAUSD headquarters on Beaudry for a rally and press conference. more ›

Pro Publica has published a database that makes it easy for you to compare your access to quality education and at what cost in an effort to provide insight into the opportunity gap demonstrated by economic difference in the classroom. more ›

Six charter schools will be shut down after being accused of cheating on 2010 standardized tests. The Los Angeles Board of Education voted this week to close the schools, saying there was insufficient response to the allegations. The schools are part of the Crescendo Organization. more ›

The city of West Hollywood is considering several proposals to limit cigarette sales including one potential regulation that would ban sales of smokes within 600 feet of a school. Another proposed ban looks to eliminate smoking outdoors, including on patios at nightclubs, bars and restaurants, reports KTLA. On Monday, city council is scheduled to meet and discuss the proposals. One neighborhood group has their own plans to meet up before the council meeting to hold a "happy hour protest party" at Fiesta Cantina on Santa Monica Boulevard in opposition to the proposed outdoor smoking ban. more ›

The Department of Health and Human Services' recommendation is one nurse for every 750 healthy students. In a 2009 report issued by NASN only 12 states met the Department's recommended daily allowance of nurses. Vermont came out on top with an average of one nurse per 311 students, Michigan ranked worst with one nurse for 4,836 children, and the nationwide average is approximately one nurse for every 1,378 healthy tots. more ›

South Pasadena's City Council has approved an ordinance that aims to protect school-age kids of the future, according to the Pasadena Star-News, by ensuring retailers don't sell cigarettes near schools. more ›

Have you ever been to a public school during drop-off or pick-up time? It's a madhouse and parents are willing to break the law -- great example, guys! -- to get in and out fast. In the Los Angeles suburb Aracadia of the San Gabriel Valley, some members of the community and police have had enough. more ›

45 firefighters were sent to Pierce College this afternoon where 12 people were injured at a high school track meet. A majority of the patients were sent to the hospital, said LAFD spokesperson Erik Scott over the phone. Authorities were alerted shortly before 4 p.m. Temperatures in the area were in the low 90s at the time. more ›

A building at USC has been evacuated after a suspicious package was reported to authorities, University officials said in an alert to students. Students were warned to stay away from the The Hedco Neuro Sciences at Watt and Downey Way (map). Campus security and LAPD were taping portions of campus off, including up to 34th Street and Trousdale (map), according to the Daily Trojan's twitter. Update: The suspicious package, which is a paper envelope, was reported at 1:14 p.m., said to LAPD Officer Gregory Baek. Update #2, 2:58 p.m: USC officials say the situation has been cleared and the suspicious packaged "checked OK." more ›

Summer is about to end and that signals a new academic year at UCLA. Nearly 40,000 students, mostly undergrads, are attending the university this year, according the school. That means more traffic, but also a more lively Westwood Village. 9,500 students moved on campus over the weekend. Other stats include 4,700 freshman, 3,400 new transfers and 3,000 international students. 57,651 had applied for Fall 2010 admission. Classes begin Thursday. more ›

Los Angeles may be gearing up to finalize its master bicycle plan, which would bring some 1,600 miles of bikeways to the city, but that may not be enough for those whose primary location is USC. That's where some 10,000 to 15,000 cyclists roam the campus each day, according to 2009 report. more ›

Do you get all jittery reminiscing about the many first day of schools you had as a kid? That sense of excitement -- or dread -- is happening across Los Angeles today as thousands head back to school today, changing the summertime traffic patterns to worse. And if there was ever an interesting year, this should be it, thanks to the LA Times and its watchful eye on teacher performance. Add to that the upcoming retirement of LAUSD's Superintendent Ramon Cortines and criticism being swung at the $578 Million Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools, which was the costliest school in the district's history. It also received an "F" in architecture. more ›

Long awaited by academics every year, U.S. News and World report today unveiled their 27th list of college rankings for universities and liberal arts colleges. And lots of applause should go locally. Among the top 50 universities were six in Southern California: CalTech (#7), USC (#23), UCLA (#25). UCSD (#35), UCSB (#39) and UC Irvine (#41). more ›

Long Beach continued its challenge to all mayors, including L.A.'s Villaraigosa, around the country in its bid to become the greenest city in America. On Tuesday, the city officially announced a new bicycle sharing program, something that has been talked about for years in Los Angeles, but has not been able to get off the ground, even if for one area like downtown. more ›

If you want to be a reporter for the Beverly Hills Courier, there's one job you can't have on your resume."Former full-time staff of the Los Angeles Times need not apply," reads a recent Craigslist posting for the $36,000 - $48,000 salaried job. more ›

The immediate area around North Hollywood High School has been shut down by the LAPD after a suspicious package was reported to them this morning. At 6:12 a.m., police received a call from LAUSD police officers who found a box with wires coming out of it at the front entrance. more ›

It's not just the Los Angeles Public LIbraries that are facing budget cuts, forcing reduced hours, but libraries across the region. At California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA), students were put into a bind when officials shortened hours from midnight to 8 p.m. That's bad news, but what makes it worse is that it was finals week. more ›

A proposed bill to ban the sale of sports drinks in California public schools during school hours was approved by the State Senate yesterday, advancing it to the Assembly for consideration. If passed there, the bill's sponsor Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is likely to sign it. more ›

What happens when you combine activism and flash mobs? For some UCLA architecture students, it's a series of performance games called "30 Seconds of Awesome." As Daimen Newton at Streetsblog LA explains, "this was a living and moving demonstration that demands open space and embraces the urban form similar to the more recognized events such as Park(ing) Day or Critical Mass." more ›

Amy Beck was sentenced to two years in prison for having sex with a 14-year-old student, the LA Times is reporting. A judge ruled that she has to register as a state sex offender as well. The popular David Starr Jordan Middle School teacher was arrested in March after she turned herself in. A wife and mother of three apparently couldn't live with herself. She pleaded no contest in court. more ›

At a rally at Cal State University Long Beach yesterday, the transgender man who was attacked on campus earlier this month said the suspect carved the words "it" into his chest. "For those of you who don't know why 'it' is such a derogatory term, it takes away a person's humanity. It takes away their personhood. It makes them less than human," Colle Carpenter he said at a rally. more ›

An apparent phoned-in bomb threat prompted USC officials and LAPD to close a portion of the campus and surrounding streets down this afternoon. Although sources tell the LA Times it was believed to be a false report, officials had to act with precaution and shut down areas while searching for the apparent bomb. A suspicious package was located in the Leavey Library building. more ›

When California banned sugar-sweetened soda in public schools six years ago, there was a loophole: sugared electrolyte replacement beverages (sports drinks). SB 1255, legislation by Senator Alex Padilla in the San Fernando Valley, took another step today when the Senate Education Committee approved it in a 6 to 2 vote. “We have prohibited the sale of soft drinks at schools during the school day to improve both the health and academic focus of our children, SB 1255 continues that effort,” said Senator Padilla. “This is a common sense step forward in the effort to address the obesity epidemic in California." The bill is sponsored by Governor Schwarzenegger. more ›

A charter high school in Lawndale--that city where vampires and garlic made the news earlier this year--is on the short list of schools under consideration to receive a graduation commencement speech by President Barack Obama, reports KPCC. Environmental Charter High School is one of the five to make the list out of thousands of high schools that entered the Race To the Top High School... more ›

Of the five islands that make up Channel Islands National Park, it's one of the smallest that has some of the biggest problems. 17 miles off the coast of Oxnard is Anacapa Island. The 1.1 square-mile series of three large volcanic rocks that shoot out of the ocean is the birthplace to most all seagulls you see on Southern California beaches and many of the pelicans found throughout the West Coast, as far as Alaska. more ›

California recognizes March 31 as Cesar Chavez Day, in honor of the civil rights leader and founder of the United Farm Workers, although in Los Angeles the holiday is being observed today. more ›

Officials at Long Beach City College are looking down the rabbit hole. Actually, many holes. The college's east campus has become a haven for dumping rabbits and the population is increasing... and fast (bunnies can have about 10 babies a month). Announced Wednesday, the school said how rabbit holes are be a public safety hazard--don't trip!--and that they are digging, well, a hole in the landscaping budget. Now the bunnies are being collected so they can be spayed or neutered while an education campaign has been launched to warn against abandoning them, which is against the law, punishable by a $500 fine or six months in jail. more ›

Santa Monica Police officials say things have improved over the last several months at a local nursery school where celebrities pick up their children. After complaints that paparazzi were becoming unruly at the First Presbyterian Nursery School on 2nd Street, the City Council agreed to a "good faith" effort last October in lieu of creating an ordinance that could have violated the 1st Amendment. However, one councilman believes the problem hasn't been solved, despite the police department's report, says the Santa Monica Daily Press. more ›