The Brief

Older and wiser from one academic year with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, faculty at community colleges have recognized that their students are no strangers to generative artificial intelligence tools.

With a new academic year beginning, faculty fall somewhere between two sentiments — optimism on what generative AI can do for students, and serious concern about what damage it can cause.

Across the country, education guidance for generative AI has in some cases been unclear and in other cases too didactic — outright bans of its use.

In the absence of official guidance, this leaves faculty members to figure this out on their own. Faculty leading these discussions share one thing in common: They want to make sure students are learning.

And so at the start of the fall semester, in an auditorium at Pasadena City College, a talkative group of just over 30 faculty and staff gathered to talk about the inevitable new presence in their classrooms and offices.

You can feel that the room is ready to engage. Even before the session kicks off, instructors swap stories about how new technology enters the classroom. One laughs about whether to borrow a playbook from another professor and ban all electronics in the classroom.

Writing center faculty Giselle Miralles and Genesis Montalvo address the crowd.

“We just want to do a really quick reflection on this AI tsunami that we have suddenly experienced, as we have heard more and more about AI and its use in the classroom,” Montalvo says, kicking off the training with a partner exercise.

“Where are you now? Are you still in the same place that you were when you first learned about ChatGPT and other AI? Or have you changed directions, changed your viewpoint?”

Not a replacement for learning 

Miralles and Montalvo tell LAist their own thinking has developed over time. The English instructors learned about ChatGPT last year through TikTok. They say faculty feared their jobs could be replaced, and many had planned to prevent or catch students using the generative AI for assignments.

“It became this really negative conversation. And that kind of brought into question, well, I don't want my job to be just policing students. Like, ‘ha, gotcha,’” Montalvo says. “What we want to do with this presentation is let professors know that this is here to stay. And rather than treating it as an enemy, how can we treat it as a learning tool?”

Giselle Miralles

(

Veronica Lechuga

/

for LAist

)

Genesis Montalvo

(

Veronica Lechuga

/

for LAist

)

Montalvo and Miralles personally have both found ChatGPT useful. Montalvo has used ChatGPT for starting the simple mundane task of summarizing author biographies before adding her own take on the assignment. She says she’s not out to stop students from becoming digitally savvy, knowing friends in the legal and medical fields who have used the AI for their professions.

For Miralles, ChatGPT can reach students in a way that she might not. She reached that conclusion when she asked ChatGPT to explain how a camera exposure works, in simple terms, hoping it could do better than her husband. (This took a few tries.) For students, Miralles reasons, that would be like having someone who could explain concepts when faculty are not available — on the weekends, 24/7.

Full of tradeoffs

Over the course of the training, faculty explore all kinds of questions and comments.

One offers at the outset that he finds ChatGPT is very good at writing code. Another says she could see that the AI could enhance accommodations to students. One notes that ChatGPT could give students instant feedback on their work. A counselor shares that generative AI can help first-generation students construct resumés and write cover letters. Another attendee complains that ChatGPT is "usually giving me C-level work."

Genesis Montalvo presenting at a faculty presentation about AI at Pasadena City College.

(

Veronica Lechuga

/

for LAist

)

There are thornier issues, too. If ChatGPT learns through material it can access, well, there’s a lot of prejudiced and otherwise bad material out there, so does that mean ChatGPT might be replicating those issues? Another participant says he’s seen on the news that ChatGPT might cite sources that don’t actually exist.

And as much as instructors may recognize the benefits of AI, they still express concern about students completing assignments without contributing their own work.

Set a starting point

Montalvo supports students using ChatGPT as a starting point for their assignments, a brainstorming tool. Nonetheless, she expects that students revise the output for accuracy and to reflect their own voices.

“If you're using AI to just completely generate without you, yourself, engaging with it, you are hurting yourself in the long run because you're taking yourself out of that equation and solely relying on the AI to create everything for you,” Montalvo says. “So, it's finding that balance of empathy and understanding, but also being firm and holding the student accountable for their own actions and their own learning.”

Miralles agrees. The worst would be if students were to cut and paste from ChatGPT directly as their own work. Reminding students that faculty are there to help students learn, not just tell them what to do, is what Miralles thinks is important to instill in students.

“You know, I think it's out of respect to tell students like, this is why I'm having you do it, because I think it's valuable for your learning, right?” Miralles says. “This is why I have you understand how to vet your sources, right? Because you want to understand what kind of sources are credible, right? Like, that you can understand what information is something that you can believe, right? So that is a skill you need in everyday life, I think, right?”

Assignments only humans can do  

Software to detect AI has proven to be unreliable, and questioning students about cheating has been difficult. Reflecting on the initial faculty response to ChatGPT, which had struck a policing tone, Montalvo realized there must be underlying reasons students were using ChatGPT instead of producing their own work.

“It's like why students plagiarize for any reason. It's never because of like, ‘Oh, it's easy. I don't wanna do this.’ It's usually because they're stressed, they're unsure about the topic, they don't really understand the topic, like there's a bunch of other reasons behind the plagiarism.”

Miralles says the responsibility of the instructor is to adapt material to ChatGPT and consider what the instructor can do to motivate students to engage with the work. Faculty say the way to push students to create original work has been to emphasize what only students can do — that which is human.

Montalvo, who teaches poetry, points out the times when she suspects a student is using ChatGPT to write a poem. The poems are boring — they lack artistry, depth and personality. Montalvo says she tells them, “I want to know you.”

Miralles encourages assignments that are metacognitive, which is defined as an awareness of one’s own thinking. “As we know, ChatGPT does not have human emotions, so it can't recreate that.”

She suggests asking students about their learning process. “How are they learning? What did they learn from this assignment? What parts of their personal experience can they bring, right?” Miralles says.

Faculty are also discussing how to assess students’ performance in the context of AI. Miralles, as an English instructor, expects that grading criteria can assess students for originality, creativity, and even for the “energy” of their work.

Collaborate on guidance

The faculty trainers at Pasadena City College did not fault their administration for a lack of guidance. They express that it has taken time, the technology is still so new, and that they’re still figuring out how to respond to AI.

There's some evidence to suggest the conversation will need to happen sooner than later. A survey of students in grades 6-12, released Wednesday by the nonpartisan think tank Center for Democracy & Technology, found that students with special needs are more likely than their peers to use generative AI and be disciplined for doing so. That survey also found widespread differences in how educators use AI and discipline students for using it. The center suggests that administrative guidance can provide consistency and protect vulnerable students.

At the moment, the Pasadena City College trainers said faculty-driven guidance is more valuable than the administrative kind. Administrative guidance could run the risk of taking a more punitive stance, policing students, and generating fear.

Eventually, the trainers at Pasadena City College say that the faculty can have open discussions with administration or bring proposed suggestions to the administration that they hope would be supported.

“I think that with any change on any campus, I do think it should always be faculty driven, just because faculty are the ones that are engaging with students,” Miralles says. “So the fact that it's faculty talking about it, I think that's great.”

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

Destination Crenshaw was supposed to transform 1.3 miles of Crenshaw Boulevard along Metro’s K Line into an art-filled gathering space, but according to some neighbors, the project has become an inconvenience and an eyesore.

South L.A. locals held a meeting Thursday called “Keep the Promise. Destination Crenshaw” at Bethesda Temple Church to discuss the impact of the project on their community and local businesses. The event was hosted by KBLA Talk 1580 operator Tavis Smiley.    

Residents and business owners aired their grievances, which included the lack of parking, fencing along the sidewalks, dissatisfaction with the project’s fluid timeline and hazardous conditions. Locals said the project has caused cracks in buildings and emergency vehicles will have difficulty passing through the construction. 

“They took all the parking from the cars. The industrial trucks and the big buses … they zoom down the street at 50 to 65 miles an hour, and we’re just blessed that nobody’s gotten hit or anything,” Dr. Jeanette Parker, CEO of Today’s Fresh Start Charter School, said during the meeting.  

South LA locals say the Destination Crenshaw project has become disruptive and an eyesore. A photo of the construction, shown here, was taken on July 16, 2026.

(

LaMonica Peters

/

The LA Local

)

Destination Crenshaw broke ground in February 2020 and was supposed to have a public opening in February 2024, according to a 2023 architectural fact sheet. The project includes commissioned art projects from local artists and stretches from Leimert Boulevard to 60th Street along Crenshaw Boulevard, according to Destination Crenshaw’s website. 

Representatives from Destination Crenshaw were not represented at the meeting. Terrii Young, the project’s chief of staff, wrote in an email to The LA Local that “construction is moving forward and crews are on site to complete the final phase of work at Sankofa Park,” adding that they’re also “working hard to get construction at the Crenshaw Wall started.” 

“We hear the community’s frustration and are grateful to our neighbors for their patience, partnership, and continued support, despite the impact of an extended construction timeline,”  Young wrote. “We remain committed to raising the funds needed to complete the remainder of the project and cement the history, identity, and achievements of Black L.A. for generations to come.”

L.A. City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, who represents District 8, spearheaded the creation of Destination Crenshaw. The project was conceived in 2016, its nonprofit formed in 2018 and construction began in November 2021, according to Cerrina Tayag-Rivera, Harris-Dawson’s spokesperson.  

Crenshaw Boulevard is a main thoroughfare that runs through the Black cultural corridor in South LA, and Destination Crenshaw seeks to celebrate the legacy and contributions of L.A.’s Black community. The project was also supposed to provide career opportunities and inspiration for future generations, as mentioned on the project’s website. 

“Marqueece Harris-Dawson has an office in the back of Prince Hill Destination. I have not seen this brother one time in my life. On TV? Yes. Newspapers? Yes,” Beron Thompkins, owner of Miles Copy Center, said during the meeting. “But to come across the street and talk to people, or even next door to talk to people? I haven’t seen this brother ever.” 

Harris-Dawson, who did not attend the meeting, responded to the community’s frustrations Monday in an email to The LA Local. 

“The concerns of businesses and residents in the Crenshaw District are critical, and my office will work with Destination Crenshaw to address them,” Harris-Dawson said. “This project started with several community meetings and community input, and to be successful, we need our neighbors to know and feel that this project is for them and to build a prosperous future.”

Here’s what neighbors said during the ‘Keep the Promise’ meeting

Gregory Dulan, who opened his Dulan’s On Crenshaw restaurant in 1992, told the group the street needs more parking and mentioned seeing other businesses suffer as a result of the Destination Crenshaw project. 

“When I see my senior customers, struggling to walk down to my restaurant from Victoria Avenue with their canes and their walkers, that’s what impacts me,” Dulan said during the meeting, which is also posted on KBLA’s Facebook page. 

Smiley, who owns Smiley Audio Media and operates KBLA Talk 1580, echoed Dulan’s testimony and said the KBLA building has cracks in it due to the project. He also said his car has been hit three times because of the narrow street, and he has spent $20,000 in repairs.

Neighbors held a meeting on July 30, 2026 at Bethesda Temple Church about the Destination Crenshaw project and the lack of parking it has created. Photo taken August 3, 2026.

(

LaMonica Peters

/

The LA Local

)

O’lita Schafer said she moved to Crenshaw Boulevard two years ago. She explained that her house is undergoing a major construction project because of an unstable foundation. She said her project is stalled because the trucks can’t pass through. 

“I really hope we never have a major emergency on this street because being able to get the fire department in and out would be very difficult,” Schafer said during the meeting.

KimMarie Johnson-Roussell, president of the Park Mesa Heights Community Council, said the council had meetings with developers prior to the project’s approval. She said the council represents 50,000 people, and she now feels it has no power to protest anything built on Crenshaw Boulevard. 

“Marquees (Harris-) Dawson took that power out of us and sent it to Destination Crenshaw,” Johnson-Roussell said. 

At the end of the meeting Smiley encouraged people to continue to push for the completion of the project and to post on social media with hashtags like #KeepThePromiseCrenshaw, #ProcrastinationCrenshaw and #DestinationCrenshaw. 

Harris-Dawson’s spokesperson did not provide details on a final completion date for Destination Crenshaw, but did say locals who want updates can sign up for the project’s newsletter or follow them on social media. 

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

The Trump administration appears poised to gut the central policies that shape Head Start, a popular and long-established early childhood education program that serves the country’s neediest children, including thousands in California.

The federal Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs posted a notice that it intends to “significantly reduce regulatory requirements” for Head Start, effectively stripping the program of the unique features that have defined it since its creation in the mid 1960s.

The announcement came in late May and will likely go through a review process before becoming official in 2027.

The agency doesn’t specify what exactly it plans to cut, but reports indicate that it could be most of the program’s standards and guidelines. That may include low student-to-teacher ratios, minimum teacher qualifications, and stipulations that Head Start accept all income-eligible children regardless of whether they’re disabled or if their parents are citizens.

The agency also suggested it wants to shift Head Start funding to the states, although it didn’t specify how or when this would happen.

“The complete gutting of these goals ignores what we know really works in early childhood education,” said Deborah Stipek, a former dean of the Stanford School of Education who’s researched the topic. “If you’re going to spend money on something, wouldn’t you want it to have positive effects?”

The agency said in its announcement it expects the cuts to be “well-received by Head Start programs, since they will welcome reduced (administrative) burden and increased flexibility.”

It also said it would allow local Head Start programs to keep policies that “best address the needs of their communities.” But individual Head Start programs are unlikely to comply with standards that aren’t required, particularly if they’re facing pressure to serve more students, said Melanee Cottrill, executive director of Head Start California, a nonprofit that advocates for California’s 1,813 Head Start centers.

In the same announcement, the agency said it also planned to boost the nutrition and physical exercise components of Head Start, but didn’t offer further details.

‘It will be very different’

So far, Head Start has evaded major budget cuts, and the federal government doesn’t appear poised to slash funding now. A handful of California Head Start programs shuttered during the government shutdown last fall, but reopened when legislators returned to work.

But a reduction in standards would, eventually, have a significant impact, Cottrill said. It’s likely Head Start will have less qualified teachers, larger class sizes and fewer opportunities for parent involvement, she said.

“Those standards are what make Head Start a high quality program,” Cottrill said. “Head Start will still exist, but it will be very different from what it is today.”

Head Start, launched in 1965 as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty, is a federal childcare program that serves the country’s lowest-income families – those earning less than $33,000 a year for a family of four. The federal government issues grants directly to school districts, nonprofits or other organizations that run Head Start programs, sometimes in combination with other funding sources.

Head Start offers health screenings, meals, curriculum focused on literacy and math, and resources for parents such as parenting classes. Children who attend Head Start are more likely to go to college and hold professional jobs later in life, a 2022 study found.

In California, about 70,000 children are enrolled in Head Start. The number would be higher but programs have had to turn away families because they struggled to hire staff. Early childhood educators sometimes earn less than fast food workers and turnover is high, Cottrill noted.

Cost of losing disability screening

One Head Start standard that could be especially costly to eliminate is disability screening. Identifying and addressing disabilities such as dyslexia early can reduce the need for special education later on, potentially saving thousands of dollars, Stipek said.

Beth Meloy, an early childhood education consultant who worked on the federal government’s Head Start standards, said that simplifying and streamlining the standards is probably a good idea. Navigating too many standards may be overly burdensome for some local Head Start programs, she said.

But gutting them entirely would be a disaster, she said.

“Head Start is built around a mission of giving low-income children a path to sustained education and life outcomes,” Meloy said. “These changes lack the thoughtfulness that these children deserve.”

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

New campaign finance data shows who’s bankrolling the closely-watched race for Los Angeles mayor — and most of the money is backing Mayor Karen Bass.

Money supporting Bass — whether in direct donations, public matching funds or outside spending — has outpaced money backing City Councilmember Nithya Raman by about 3 to 1.

The disparities in the mayor’s race are much starker among groups that handle the largest donations because they’re not subject to contribution limits. Those money flows from independent expenditure committees have backed Bass 36-to-1, compared to Raman.

Among money raised directly by candidates, donors who gave $1,000 or more account for 47% of Bass’ donors and 18% of Raman’s. Those donors are subject to an $1,800 per donor limit.

A look at the top spenders

The largest spender so far is the LAPD officers’ union, which reported spending $1.2 million on ads against Raman — who made the runoff — and progressive community organizer Rae Huang, who didn’t. The data covers what’s been reported so far for the 2026 election cycle, including the lead up to the June primary.

The second-biggest is Airbnb, which reported giving $750,000 to a committee backing Bass. This year, Bass advanced a proposal backed by the company to relax city regulations by letting Airbnb hosts rent out second homes and investment properties through 2028.

Another large spender is Douglas Emmett, which is a large property investment company. It gave $525,000 to the police union’s main spending committee, of which at least $225,000 was disclosed on anti-Raman ads by the committee.

In recent years, the company is known for attempting the largest eviction from rent-controlled housing in Los Angeles in at least four decades, citing a need to upgrade fire sprinklers. The city declined to legally intervene on behalf of the renters, who ended up suing and winning a 2024 court ruling that found the evictions were illegal.

Significant spending for Bass has also comes from several other large unions for workers, including about $200,000 from Laborers’ Local 300 — which represents workers in construction and maintenance — and $180,000 from affiliates of SEIU, which represents most of the city government’s staff.

The latest spending numbers come from city data based on disclosures required by state law to be filed by the spending committees. Friday was the deadline to submit a more complete set of filings showing all raising and spending in the first half of this year.

Bass had a head start for years, entering this year with a hefty $1.5 million in her re-election account. Raman started fundraising in February.

Other big spenders

• $100,000 to a pro-Bass committee from the construction workers’ group State Building and Construction Trades Council of California.
• $50,000 to a pro-Bass committee from Kaiser Permanente CEO Gregory Adams.
• $50,000 to a pro-Raman committee from Arts District redeveloper Yuval Bar-Zemer.  
• $25,000 to a pro-Bass committee from the real estate company of Frank McCourt.  McCourt co-owns the parking lots around Dodger Stadium and has been seeking approvals from the L.A. Metro board — which Bass serves on and now chairs — for a controversial gondola project.

Records show unions spent big against candidate and former reality TV star Spencer Pratt, who did not make the runoff. The umbrella group for unions in the region — the L.A. County Federation of Labor — reported spending about $500,000 against Pratt, paid by a committee largely funded by the union for L.A. County sheriff’s deputies.

Pratt was supported by about $329,000 in spending by the Save L.A. committee. The committee was funded largely by four executives: John Hering, the San Francisco-based founder of cybersecurity company Lookout.; Jason Larian, the L.A.-based president of Zero Point Capital; Redwood City-based David Dollinger of Silicon Valley landlord company Dollinger Properties; and Phillip Sarofim, the L.A.-based founder of the investment firm Trousdale Ventures.

How the biggest donations flow

Direct giving to the candidates’ campaigns is legally restricted to $1,800 per donor each election cycle. So the biggest donors instead spend through “independent expenditure” committees, or “IEs.” State law allows individual donors to spend unlimited amounts on elections through IEs, as long as it’s not coordinated with the candidates’ campaigns.

That IE money often flows through multiple committees — many of which combine money meant for candidates in multiple different races — on its way to election ads, which can make the money hard for the public to easily track.

The general election will take place Nov. 3, with ballots mailed to registered voters about a month ahead of time.

At the Hollywood Bowl last week, I had the pleasure of sitting next to Jose Rizo, longtime afternoon host at our local jazz station, KJZZ. Jose is a walking history lesson in the California jazz scene and beyond. The encounter inspired a rewatch of La La Land and reminded me about the excellent jazz clubs — like Sam First by LAX — that we have at our fingertips. Plus, it’s extra fitting because this week kicks off the first-ever L.A. Jazz Festival, which is bringing a slew of mostly free concerts to venues across the area.

If you’re not a jazz person (and like Sebastian says, if you hate jazz, you just don’t have context), check out Licorice Pizza’s picks for some rock ‘n' roll.

Music

Patti LaBelle will be at the Pacific Amphitheatre this week.

(

Erika Goldring

/

Getty Images

)

Wednesday

• ZZ Top & Cheap Trick at the Hollywood Bowl
• Sierra Ferrell at the Wiltern
• Die Spitz at the Fonda

Thursday

• YG at the Grammy Museum
• Patti LaBelle and the O’Jays at the Pacific Amphitheatre
• Alejandro Aranda aka Scarypoolparty at the Echo

Friday

• Grupo Frontera at the Intuit Dome
• Macy Gray plays the first of her two nights at Blue Note
• Counting Crows begin their two-night run at the Hollywood Bowl

Saturday:

• Ed Sheeran with Myles Smith at SoFi Stadium
• Little Feat at the United Theater
• Yoko Only celebration at the Broad

Sunday:

• Lionel Richie with Earth, Wind, & Fire at the Intuit Dome
• Free Latin Grooves show at Pershing Square Park 

Monday:

• John Mellencamp plays the Hollywood Bowl
• Benson Boone with special guest Ashe at Crypto.com 
• Cruz Beckham — yes, David and Victoria Beckham’s son — at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever

Tuesday:

• Rüfüs Du Sol continue their run at the Forum
• Jill Scott begins her two-night run at the YouTube Theater

Events

10 Years LA!

Through Saturday, Aug. 15; Summer Party event Thursday, Aug. 6, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Sprüth Magers
5900 and 6145 Wilshire Blvd., Miracle Mile
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

(

Spruth Magers

/

Sutton Comms

)

Catch the expansive group show at Sprüth Magers (and the former Sizzler down the street) before it’s gone. The exhibit includes the gallery’s artists from the past decade who have represented Los Angeles in a variety of forms, from Jenny Holzer’s electronic messages to Barbara Kruger’s room-sized wall installations to L.A.-based artists like Sterling Ruby and Analia Saban. Thursday’s event at the Sizzler space includes 22 video works from the late 1960s to the present, plus there will be hot dogs by Tail O’ the Pup; music by Wormwood Star, Mo0d and Yacht; and a cash bar.

Two Gentlebots of Verona

Through Saturday, Aug. 15 
Media Park
9091 Culver Blvd., Culver City 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

(

Courtesy Culver City

)

Shakespeare in the Park … but make it robots? Welcome the most gentlemanly robot overlords into your theater life this summer as The Actors’ Gang does their (50-minute! You can handle this!) take on the Bard’s Two Gentlemen of Verona in Two Gentlebots of Verona. The action takes us to fair Culver City, where the bots’ friendship is tested over their love for Silvia Dot Matrix. Order your Coco to the park (or maybe not, the organizers may get mad at me for that one!) and see what happens.

LA RiverFest

Sunday, Aug. 9, 2:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. 
L.A. State Historic Park
1245 N. Spring St., Downtown L.A. 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

(

Courtesy dubroWORKS

)

Friends of the LA River host their 5th annual LA RiverFest, full of arts (including an environmental art gallery), entertainment, family-friendy “eco-activities” and more at the L.A. Historic Park. Plus, there will plenty of treats from local food trucks. You can even sign up to volunteer here.

World Taste of the Anaheim Packing District

Tuesday, August 11, 5 p.m to 9 p.m. 
440 S. Anaheim Blvd., Anaheim
COST: $33.85; MORE INFO

(

Courtesy Anaheim Packing District

)

The annual World Taste of the Anaheim Packing District coincides with the big Disney fan fest D23 this year, so they are making all the events D23-themed. Disney fans and fanatics of all ages will enjoy Disney-themed trivia and giveaways, plus you can punch your World Taste passport for all different bites at the wide range of restaurants along the way. LAist readers get 15% off using the direct link here.

Iceage

Thursday and Friday, Aug. 6 and 7
The Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever
5970 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood
COST: $37.75; MORE INFO

(

Courtesy Pitch Perfect PR

)

Danish post-punk outfit Iceage returns to Los Angeles for a two-night residency at the Masonic Lodge in support of their new album, For Love of Grace & the Hereafter — one of the most critically acclaimed releases yet as part of the band's ascent. Their sound is hard to pin down, but there's an instant familiarity to each listen, paired with wry lyrics that feel sharply attuned to the moment — songs like "The Weak," "No Fear," and "Tender Blades" among them channel everything from Beggars Banquet-era Rolling Stones to Bends-era Radiohead, with a heavy dose of sardonic wit throughout, just enough to feel something. – Gab Chabrán

Blueprints of Nature: A Cyanotype Sunprint, Tea Blending & Sound Journey

Sunday, Aug. 9, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 
1451 Carroll Ave., Echo Park
COST: $80, sliding scale available; MORE INFO

(

Courtesy Granada Events

)

I remember making cyanotypes as a kid (I think we knew them better as sun prints back then), and in the past couple of years I’ve seen them making a resurgence both as craft — like this fun workshop in Echo Park — and even in fancy art galleries. Get your inner artist inspired by learning how to make your own cyanotypes alongside a relaxing tea blending and sound experience.

Yoko Only 

Saturday, Aug. 8, 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. 
The Broad 
221 S. Grand Ave., Downtown L.A. 
COST: SOLD OUT; MORE INFO

(

The Broad

/

Motormouth Media

)

Artists from Rufus Wainwright to Sleater-Kinney to Silvan Esso will gather to give Yoko Ono her (long past!) due at this super-group tribute concert curated by Yuka Honda celebrating Ono’s solo show at The Broad. The show is sold out, but keep an eye out for last-minute availability. The exhibit is on through October and is well worth checking out!

National Oyster Day deal 

Wednesdays in August
Evangeline Swamp Room
701 N. Spring St., Downtown L.A. 
COST: $25 per dozen; MORE INFO 

(

Christy Linder

)

National Oyster Day may only be one day (it’s today, August 5), but the Evangeline Swamp Room downtown is making it last all month. Every Wednesday in August from 5 to 9 p.m., the New Orleans-themed hot spot will be offering its signature Charbroiled Oysters for $25 per dozen (usually $25 per half-dozen). They’re charbroiled in a beer and butter sauce, topped with white cheese, breadcrumbs, Cajun spices, onion, bacon bits and served with lemon. Wash them down with an Abita beer or a classic New Orleans cocktail for a perfect summer dinner.