The Brief

A workplace misconduct investigation found a top Orange County elected official violated gender discrimination and retaliation policies and harassed a subordinate over her medical disability, according to a confidential county-commissioned report obtained by LAist.

According to the investigator’s findings, O.C. Assessor Claude Parrish:

• Downplayed the employee’s chronic medical condition as a “tummy ache”
• Shared her private medical information with coworkers
• Regularly commented on her diet
• Told her to stop taking her prescribed medication 
• Made her “drink baking soda mixed with tap water to ‘fix’ her medical condition” 

The investigator’s final report, filed in 2023, also found that Parrish retaliated against the subordinate because of her disability by moving her to a different department for taking time off for her disability and medical condition.

In addition, the investigator found Parrish regularly used language effectively casting women employees as subservient to their male colleagues.

“It is more likely than not that Parrish routinely refers to male employees as ‘Mr.’ and female employees by their first name, based on their gender,” the investigation found. “The cumulative effect of Parrish's practice of using formal, deferential means of addressing men, while using informal, casual means of addressing women serves to highlight a subservient relationship between such employees, based on their sex.”

While the investigator’s findings were disclosed to county human resources officials in the May 2023 report, they have not been publicly reported until now. LAist obtained the report — which is labeled “confidential” — via a public records request.

At least two Orange County supervisors did not know of the findings until this month — and only found out because the county was preparing to release the report to LAist, according to their offices. Under state law, the Board of Supervisors has an oversight role over Parrish, though it’s limited because voters elected him.

Parrish, who has been the county assessor for 10 years, has continued to serve since the findings against him nearly two years ago. In interviews with LAist, Parrish said he was not at fault, named the former employee and called her a “pathological liar.” According to the report, witnesses corroborated many of her claims and the investigator found she was “generally credible.”

LAist obtained the investigation report after citing court precedent requiring local governments to release such documents under the Public Records Act.

Parrish was told to cease and desist

Citing the investigation findings, the county’s HR director sent a letter to Parrish telling him to stop violating harassment policies.

“The investigator’s findings raise serious concerns about your treatment of Assessor employees,” wrote Collette Farnes, the county’s chief human resources officer. The December 2023 letter was also obtained by LAist in the public records request.

“As the County’s Chief Human Resources Officer, I am obligated to instruct you to cease and desist from any and all conduct that violates County policy.”

Farnes went on to “strongly recommend” Parrish to take a two-hour anti-harassment training.

Parrish told LAist that he does not remember if he did the requested training.

“ I honestly don't remember if I did. It was too long ago, so I don't remember,” he said.

A county spokesperson told LAist that Parrish completed the training recommended in the letter from Farnes.

When asked about what was done in response to the findings, a county spokesperson pointed to the letter’s demands. No further action was described.

Under county policy and state law, all county employees have to complete a workplace harassment prevention training every two years. A county spokesperson told LAist that the requirement applies twice a year to supervisory and management roles.

Parrish told LAist he does not remember if he’s ever done harassment prevention training.

Who oversees the assessor?

Parrish is responsible for overseeing about 250 staff. His department determines the value of billions of dollars of homes and other real estate in Orange County for tax purposes. Parrish first took office in January 2015, in an election that followed his predecessor being charged with (and later convicted of) filing false nomination papers for re-election.

As an elected official, Parrish operates largely independently. The power to hire and fire the assessor rests with the voters, who choose every four years whether to re-elect him. Parrish was most recently reelected in 2022 when he won the primary outright with nearly 71% of the vote.

Under state law, Orange County supervisors’ authority is constrained “to ensuring that the assessor faithfully performs the duties of the office,” according to a state Supreme Court ruling in a case out of Orange County. But the board is not allowed “to control, directly or indirectly, the manner in which the [assessor’s] duties are performed,” according to that same ruling.

“As a County officer, the Assessor is subject to supervision by the Board of Supervisors,” county spokesperson Molly Nichelson said in a written response to LAist’s questions. She pointed to state law.

Parrish responds: ‘Nobody's more employee-friendly than me’

Asked for his response to the HR investigation, Parrish told LAist he’s a kind boss. He said he’d been on the “best terms” with the former employee he later was found to have harassed, until the day he transferred her to a different department in July 2022.

“ Nobody's more employee-friendly than me,” he said, adding that he let the employee take off whatever time off she needed for her medical issues.  “ I was like her best friend, for years.”

“We were on the best terms for the entire time she worked here, except for the last day,” he added. “To this day, to show you what a nice guy is, if she comes and says, ‘I’d like to work here,’ I'd hire her now. Even though she's said all those terrible things about me."

“She just lies, stabbed me in the back,” Parrish said, saying the former employee would “make up all sorts of stories.”

“I’m not mean to anybody,” he added.

While the initial complaint against Parrish did not include allegations of harassment based on gender, those allegations came up as employees were interviewed, according to the investigation report.

As for the findings about how he addressed male versus female employees, Parrish called that “a lie.” He said he referred to one high-ranking male executive — Neil Shah — as “Mr.” because they worked together at the State Board of Equalization.

“ Mr. Shah and I are old time friends from when I was on the Board of Equalization, so I have great respect for him. So that's the deal,” Parrish said.

Multiple employees told the investigator otherwise — saying that in the workplace, Parrish referred to all men as “Mr.” and all women by their first names, according to the report. The investigator found that Parrish’s practice was “gender-based rather than based on their role/title.”

The investigator determined that Parrish violated the county’s harassment policy based on gender.

Investigator found Parrish not credible

The confidential report redacted the names of the complainant and witnesses.

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County Orange County

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The investigator’s report, which redacted the name of the employee with the medical issue, found her to be “generally credible” — noting several witnesses corroborated her claims.

In contrast, the investigator wrote that they “did not find Parrish credible” for several reasons, including that he contradicted himself and “was at times evasive.”

“When the Investigator asked Parrish to respond to an allegation of race harassment and discrimination, his initial response was limited to, ‘Well, that's totally false. If anybody's a racist, it's [name redacted],’” the report states.

In addition, the report said in response to the investigator asking if there was anything Parrish wanted to say about the allegations against him, “he spoke for eight minutes about how he is ‘employee friendly’ as evidenced by his installation of air and ultraviolet filters, conducting air quality testing, and providing Dial soap at the Assessor’s Office.”

During his interview with LAist, Parrish also brought up the air filters and ultraviolet filters for employee computer screens.

In finding that he engaged in disability and gender harassment, the investigation report found that Parrish’s conduct “was not occasional, isolated, or sporadic.”

“Instead, the evidence shows that Parrish engaged in unwelcome conduct directly related to [redacted employee’s] medical condition on a continuous basis throughout her employment,” investigators wrote.

Unprompted, Parrish names employee he was found to have harassed

In the HR director’s 2023 letter, Parrish was instructed not to “ascertain the identity of any complainant or witness” and “not take adverse action, disparage, or otherwise retaliate against any County employee” because of their complaints or participation in the investigation.

The investigation records released to LAist blacked out the name of the former employee whom Parrish was found to have harassed, along with the names of witnesses. In responding to LAist’s records request, the county CEO’s office said they made the redactions because disclosing the names of reporting parties and witnesses “would constitute an unwarranted invasion of the right to privacy and would also have a chilling effect on an individual’s willingness to come forward.”

Parrish handled that differently in his interview with LAist.

Unprompted, Parrish repeatedly identified by first name the former employee he was found to have harassed. And he called her a liar.

“ Candace, bless her little heart, she's a pathological liar. She'd make up all sorts of stories,” he said.

Online records show only one employee in his office with that first name during a timeframe the investigation said the employee worked there.

During the interview with LAist, Parrish also brought up information about the employee’s medical condition.

“Candace was just sick all the time,” Parrish said. He went on to disclose, unprompted, a detail of her medical condition that was redacted from the investigation report.

What the former employee says

The Orange County Assessor's office is located on Main Street in Orange.

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Courtesy Orange County

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In interviews with LAist, Candace Jones confirmed she was the employee who filed the complaint that is the subject of the investigation and report. She gave LAist her account.

Jones said she had been a human resources employee under Parrish for years, until he transferred her out to a different county department in 2022.

Jones told LAist that when she started in her role at the department in 2015, she was in remission for Crohn’s disease, a chronic condition for inflammatory bowel disease. The following year, she said, she complained directly to Parrish and her supervisor alleging medical discrimination. She said they downplayed her complaints and forbade her from escalating the complaints to county-level HR.

When she did report issues within the Assessor’s department to county HR officials, Jones said, Parrish yelled at her “for going over his head.”

“ The stress got so bad where my intestines just completely got ruined, so now I've been left with a permanent ostomy bag, so that will be for the rest of my life,” Jones told LAist, referencing the redacted medical condition Parrish told LAist about. “I don't think I would be in my current situation if I didn't have to endure the stress at the assessor's office.”

Asked about Parrish’s claim that she’s a liar who makes up stories, Jones noted the county-commissioned investigation substantiated her credibility about many of her claims, including that Parrish discriminated against her.

“County HR has long been aware of Claude's behavior towards numerous staff throughout the County, but they have consistently failed to intervene and protect its employees,” she added in a text message.

“I look forward to the County taking the necessary steps to implement meaningful safeguards that protect employees from elected officials who are unwilling or unable to adhere to EEO laws and policies,” referring to equal employment opportunity regulations.

Parrish responds to Jones’ allegations

When LAist asked Parrish about Jones' account, he said her first complaint was about two colleagues with whom she disagreed. He said he tried “to smooth everything down to make everybody happy.”

Parrish said all employees can complain to HR and he couldn't stop them. He also said it was “an absolute lie” that he yelled at Jones for escalating to HR.

“ She's like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It's hard to believe. She's always so nice and always thanking me for everything I do,” he said. “She's having some second thoughts and fabricating stuff and twisting something and it just, it's never ending.”

In the interview, Parrish called himself “an innocent victim.”

Jones, he added, is “vindictive.”

Jones told LAist: “As an elected official, Claude can and will continue to cover up abuse and hostile working conditions without repercussions.”

Through the records request, LAist also obtained a log of when Parrish’s key card was used in his department’s headquarters. The log shows his badge was often swiped multiple days per month in 2021 and 2022, then dropped to only one day per month on average in 2023 and 2024.

In responding to the records request, the county said Parrish’s office “is accessible by physical key only and not through badge access. However, other floors within of the Assessor Department are accessible via badge access. Thus, the records…reflect whether Mr. Parrish’s badge was used to access the elevator or another floor.”

Asked about the drop in how often the log shows him swiping, Parrish told LAist he’s come in every day.

“ I pride myself, since I was elected, I came in — I come in here every day. Even when I'm sick, I come in and I spread the cold,” Parrish said. Asked about his employees, he said: “I don't touch them or sneeze.”

“I never miss. If I'm sick as a dog, I come in,” he said.

He also said he does not miss work except for holidays and official days off.

“ Under penalty of perjury, you could say that. I'm in here every single day,” Parrish said.

As for the badge log, Parrish said that “a lot of times I don't go upstairs. I just stay down [and employees] come to me.”

“ I'll swear on the Bible, I come in every — even when I'm sick,” he added.

He then asked a subordinate, “Would you swear under a Bible that I come in every day?”

The employee replied, “I would.”

“Even when I’m sick,” Parrish said.

“Even when you’re sick,” the employee responded.

OC supervisor says he’s ‘appalled’ by assessor’s conduct

LAist reached out to all five county supervisors for comment on the investigation’s findings.

In a statement, Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento said he was “appalled by the issues that have been brought forward regarding the functioning of the Assessor’s office and his conduct in the office.”

“As shown in recent actions, this Board has not shied away from addressing these issues in our workplace and I hope that county employees and anyone working with the county will feel empowered and supported to bring concerns regarding ethical or discriminatory practices to our attention so they can be addressed,” he said.

The Board of Supervisors recently yanked the investment authority of O.C.’s elected Treasurer/Tax Collector Shari Freidenrich after numerous complaints of mismanagement, some of which was examined and substantiated in a county-commissioned investigation. That investment responsibility was the only power that the county CEO’s office said supervisors had authority to remove from the treasurer.

Asked about Parrish, Supervisor Katrina Foley said she takes allegations of misconduct against county employees seriously and is following up to make sure the findings of the investigation are dealt with properly.

“I will continue to work with County Human Resources to ensure the Assessor's Office addresses and corrects the sustained allegations,” the statement added.

Both Sarmiento and Foley only found out about the investigation findings this month because of LAist’s records request, according to their offices.

LAist asked the county CEO’s office, which central HR falls under, why the findings weren’t disclosed to the Board of Supervisors sooner. Nichelson declined to answer, saying communication between county attorneys and the board are confidential.

Supervisors Don Wagner and Doug Chaffee declined to comment, and Supervisor Janet Nguyen did not respond to requests.

After learning of the investigation's findings, Sarmiento is exploring options to address employee concerns with the county’s attorneys, according to his spokesperson. And Foley told LAist she is looking to implement in-person harassment training.

Exposition Park’s new Lucas Museum of Narrative Art opens to the public on Sept. 22 — and LAist got a preview.

The 300,000-square-foot building, designed by architect Ma Yansong, working with the firm Stantec, could easily blend into the scenery of Coruscant or Bespin in the Star Wars universe.

For the fans of that certain long-time ago, far, far-away universe, you are immediately greeted by a Naboo Starfighter big enough to fit inside at the museum entrance with a life-size R2-D2 in the co-pilot seat.

Star Wars fans will definitely get their fill with pieces like this in the cinema section:

Doug Chiang, Podrace Crash, production art for "Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace," 1995–99. Digital print.

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Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

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You can find designs and set pieces from other George Lucas production companies, Industrial Light and Magic and Skywalker Sound, but the museum is dedicated to impactful storytelling of all kinds, with a special focus on the work of illustrators.

“Most of the stories are myths, they're not real, but the illustrations make them real,” George Lucas said at a preview event. “A picture is very powerful, and the stories are very powerful, and you combine them together, and those two elements create a society.”

So, you’ll also see works like this E.H. Shepard illustration from Winnie-the-Pooh in a section dedicated to children’s stories.

E. H. Shepard, “Christopher Robin at the enchanted place,” illustration for Home Chat, 1928.

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Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

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And that’s not the only significant work you’ll see there.

 “You can see one of the first historically important ‘dogs playing poker’ paintings made in 1894 as a whiskey advertisement, very close to Frida Kahlo, very close to Batman,” Lucas Museum senior curator Ryan Linkof said.

The museum’s umbrella of “narrative art” encompasses fine art like these works from painter, pro-football player and actor Ernie Barnes, photographer Dorothea Lange, and comic book artist Rafael Navarro:

Ernie Barnes, The Critic’s Corner, 2007. Acrylic on canvas.

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Matt Kroening

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Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

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Dorothea Lange, Migrant Mother, Nipomo, California, 1936.

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Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

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Rafael Navarro, art for Sonámbulo: Mexican Stand-Off, 2006.

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Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

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Murals and public art

The museum features public art installations — both reproductions of works by Diego Rivera and Banksy.

Three of the featured works by Banksy.

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Matthew Kroening

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Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

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You'll also experience an extensive video installation of Judith Baca’s The Great Wall of Los Angeles, which you can take in while sitting instead of having to walk the whole length.

A new green space in the middle of the city

The museum boasts extensive grounds built on a former parking lot. There, you can see a number of sculptures, including one of Jabba the Hutt and Princess Leia.

Jabba the Hutt and Princess Leia statue.

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Kevin Tidmarsh

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LAist

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“This public park is available and accessible to everyone all the time, even if you don't come to the museum, even if the museum's not open. You can come to the research library,” Linkof said. “It's an asset and a resource for everyone, including and especially the community.”

How to visit

• Location: One Lucas Plaza, Exposition Park, Los Angeles
• Tickets: Timed tickets cost $25 for adults, $21 for seniors and are to free to minors, active-duty military, members and LM37 passholders. See your options ▶
• Park access: Free
• Regular hours:
  Mon, Wed, Thu: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
  Fri: 10 a.m. – 9 p.m.
  Sat: 9 a.m. – 9 p.m.
  Sun: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
  Closed Tuesdays

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman on Wednesday won the backing of the Democratic Socialists of America L.A. in her challenge to incumbent Mayor Karen Bass. The DSA-LA is a potent political organization known for mounting successful door-knocking campaigns for candidates for political office.

The endorsement places the resources of DSA-LA to work for Raman in what’s expected to be a close race for mayor, but also opens Raman up to criticism that she’s too far left in her political views for the voters of L.A.

The endorsement came after Raman won more than 60% of the vote in an online election held within the organization over the past week. Of the more than 6,000 members in the L.A. region, 1,400 participated in the vote.

“With Raman at the top of the ticket, DSA-LA is organizing to unite tenants, union members, immigrant communities, and working Angelenos behind a slate that can break corporate interests’ grip on city government,” DSA-LA said in a statement. “Our vision is clear: win office, build a governing majority, and deliver a city working people can afford to call home.”

Raman, a member of the organization, was first elected with its help in an upset victory over an incumbent City Council member in 2020. She was the first of four DSA-LA members elected to the council in recent years.

“A socialist movement with a path to the mayor’s office in Los Angeles should make the political establishment nervous,” said Sean Wakasa, DSA-LA co-chair. “The opportunity in front of us is enormous, and we intend to meet it.”

Raman was not immediately available for comment.

A spokesperson for the Bass campaign did not comment specifically on the endorsement but pointed to some of the issues that surfaced in debates between the candidates, including how to handle homeless encampments and Police Department funding.

"Nithya Raman said kids aren't safer if an encampment is 500 feet away from a school and voted repeatedly to cut basic public safety funding to make LA safer," Alex Stack said. "Those are positions she now fully owns as she tries to flip-flop and convince voters otherwise."

Raman has defended her opposition to a ban on camping next to schools, saying moving them merely shuffles homeless people from one neighborhood to the next.

A 'double-edged sword'

Some voters will likely be turned off by the DSA’s endorsement of Raman, according to USC Political Science Professor Christian Grose.

“The DSA endorsement is definitely a double-edged sword,” he said. “It's going to hurt her with the Pratt voters, who will be decisive potentially in the election.”

Conservative T.V. personality Spencer Pratt finished third in the primary with 26% of the vote.

Grose added that Raman already has come under fire for her association with the DSA-LA.

“So those attacks were kind of happening already,” he said.

Wasaka said Raman nonetheless has a lot of appeal to progressive voters.

“Nithya Raman has had a long history with DSA-LA and has helped pass transformative policies at the city level,” Wasaka said. “Her leadership and progressive vision have aligned with DSA members, and we are excited to canvas for her and help her win.

“We’re knocking on tens of thousands of doors, we’re hosting fundraisers and we’re talking to all of our neighbors and families about how these candidates are going to build political power for the working class.”

The DSA-LA endorsed several other candidates in local elections, including Marissa Roy over John McKinney in the L.A. city attorney’s race.

Raman is a member of the DSA-LA, but was not endorsed in the primary, in part because some members said she didn’t hew closely enough to the party line. Raman, for example, wants to roll back part of the mansion tax, which places an extra tax on the sale of properties worth more than $5.4 million. Raman has said it discourages the building of affordable housing.

Other endorsements

The DSA-LA backing comes on the heels of another big endorsement of Raman from a major labor union. Earlier this week, Unite HERE Local 11, which represents hotel and restaurant workers, said it is backing Raman.

“Nithya Raman will fight alongside our members to protect working families, enforce our laws, preserve our housing, and hold corporations like Airbnb accountable when they take desperately needed homes off the market,” said Ada Briceño, co-president of UNITE HERE Local 11.

Political scientist Fernando Guerra of Loyola Marymount’s Center for the Study of Los Angeles said the union’s endorsement is important.

“I would 10 times more want the endorsement from UNITE HERE that has 30,000 members,” said Guerra. “They are one of the most powerful electoral bodies in terms of mobilization in all of California, especially in Los Angeles.”

Most labor unions back Bass in the election, including the powerful L.A. County Federation of Labor. The Democratic Party and Chamber of Commerce also have endorsed Bass.

Despite speculation earlier this week, a hurricane is not going to hit Southern California this weekend.

Tropical Storm Marie is churning in the Pacific Ocean several hundred miles off the coast of Mexico. It’s expected to reach hurricane strength by Thursday morning.

The storm is moving northwest, which is typical for most storms in the eastern Pacific. Forecasters say the chance is extremely minimal that it will veer north.

“The current forecast track is for Marie to continue to move off to the west and northwest, further and further away,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Rich Thompson.

A diagram shows the likely path of Tropical Storm and Hurricane Marie through Monday morning.

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NOAA

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But that doesn’t mean we’ll dodge its effects completely.

Hurricanes can affect weather patterns from afar, and Marie is likely to significantly impact Southern California’s weather and beaches over Labor Day weekend.

Beware dangerous beach conditions

Recent storm surges already have damaged Aliso Beach in Laguna Beach. A storm off the coast now has meteorologists warning of rough beach conditions and high moisture heading into the Labor Day weekend.

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Allen J. Schaben

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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

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The strongest effects from the storm will be felt along the coast.

 ”Those beach coastal impacts are gonna be the big thing to watch for this weekend,” Thompson said. “You're going to have a large and southeast southerly swell moving into the coastal waters from the hurricane.”

Forecasters are warning that the swell will come with dangerously strong rip currents and big waves, especially along south-facing beaches. It could also bring the potential for coastal flooding.

The swell's peak will probably hit Sunday and Monday.

Surf along the Southern California coast has already been high this summer. Last weekend, the conditions, combined with large beach crowds, led to more than 1,200 ocean rescues by L.A. County lifeguards. With temperatures soaring, more than 1 million people went to L.A. County beaches last weekend.

And with the holiday this weekend, large crowds are likely to return to the beaches, potentially putting more people in the path of even more dangerous ocean conditions.

If you do plan to go to the beach, the safest option is to stay near occupied lifeguard posts and heed lifeguard warnings. Also, stay off of jetties and coastal rocks.

If you’re caught in a rip current, swim parallel to the shoreline. Once you stop feeling the current’s pull, swim at an angle away from the current and toward the shore. If needed, tread water and wave for help.

National Weather Service safety tips on how to move out of a rip current safely.

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Courtesy National Weather Service

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The ocean conditions this weekend are also coming after high surf and tides have already caused significant coastal erosion ahead of this winter’s El Niño.

Moisture incoming

Marie will also bring a surge of moisture to Southern California, which means beaches will likely be socked in by tropical cloud cover.

It also means there will be a chance of rain across the region.

But at most, the rain will be light, with about a 50% chance of half an inch or less. Forecasters do not expect precipitation to be heavy enough to cause mudslides or hydrate vegetation in any significant way.

However, there is still some uncertainty among forecasters when it comes to the amount of rain and strength of the storm — they could vary if the storm’s path shifts even slightly.

“ That's what we're watching very closely in the next several days,” Thompson said. “If the forecast does seem to change over the next couple of days, it's because the track of the storm would have changed.”

If the storm veers slightly closer to North America, Thompson said the amount of rain and severity of ocean conditions would increase. If it veers the other direction, they would decrease.

Los Angeles Unified has blocked student access to generative artificial intelligence tools on district-issued devices.

”This is an emerging technology,” said Pia Sadaqatmal, chief academic officer in an interview with LAist. “We will continue to be adaptive as needed, but we do know that the heart of it is really making sure that we keep teaching and learning at the center of our decision.”

Wednesday’s announcement, made at the kickoff meeting of a new AI committee, was a surprise to board members and parents in attendance.

“Just based on the facial expressions of folks in this room, many parents, some of whom work at the district, some of whom don't, I don't think it's well-publicized,” said Nick Melvoin, one of three board members on the committee, after district staff explained the restrictions. “I would encourage us to do more.”

The district’s decision bars an estimated 378,000 students from using generative AI tools on LAUSD laptops and tablets. New York City’s public school system — the only district in the country larger than LAUSD — also announced new limits on artificial intelligence Tuesday.

Parents affiliated with the advocacy group Schools Beyond Screens, which has called for a moratorium on student AI usage in the district, edited prepared comments as they stood at the podium before the committee.

“ We are asking our local institut — no, we're thanking our local institution,” said Sandra Martinez Roe.  "Thank you, LAUSD for setting an example and knowing that your obligation is to do so.”

How LAUSD changed course on AI 

Previously, district policy allowed students 13 and older to use AI tools under school supervision and after they complete a lesson about “digital citizenship.”  

The LAUSD board voted in June to enact what was then the most-widespread student screentime restrictions in the country, but did not specify limitations to student AI use.

The resolution instead created an ad hoc generative AI committee with the goal of developing policy recommendations for board approval by next year.

Committee chair Kelly Gonez said the new restrictions were a surprise, but that she substantially agreed with the decision to limit students’ access to generative AI.

“ I wouldn't expect necessarily that there would be a pause for forever,” Gonez said. “But this provides us the opportunity to really think through what does our policy look like moving forward.”

How the AI rules work in practice

There is currently no mechanism or policy to prevent students from using AI on personal devices to complete school work, though the software will continue to block access if a student signs in to their district profile on that personal device.

District leaders said the web-filtering software Lightspeed prevents students from accessing any website or app categorized as an AI tool on an LAUSD Chromebook. There is a comparable tool for tablets, said  David Cooper, senior director of information technology.

The district’s interim chief information officer, Douglas Le, said Lightspeed can also track how long students use district devices.

“This allows us to capture their screen time, the app usage to the second,” he said.

That information will be available in the future to students’ families through the Parent Portal app, teachers and the board, Le said.

How to weigh in on LAUSD’s AI policy

The LAUSD board’s generative AI committee meeting is scheduled to meet at 10 a.m. on Wednesdays through April 2027.

• Oct. 21, 2026
• Dec. 9, 2026
• Jan. 20, 2027
• March 3, 2027
• April 7, 2027

Community members can tune in to the meetings online, over the phone or in person at the board room at 333 S. Beaudry Ave.

The district is also publishing information related to student screentime and other technology use, including information about a series of webinars, at lausd.org/screentime.