United Teachers Los Angeles sues to stop handover of 24 new schools

Within months, the Los Angeles Unified School District is set to green-light petitions from outside groups — including charter school operators — to run newly-built campuses. The school district’s teachers union announced today it’s suing to stop that process.

The teachers union says the district is skirting state education law because it won’t allow teachers to vote before it converts new public schools into charters.

Garfield High School social studies teacher Tomas Chavez says operating his campus and a nearby new high school set to open next year as charters would jettison gains instructors like him have made so far. "We feel that LAUSD’s actions are inexcusable. We, the students, the parents, and the teachers are on the front line for this district every day and the district has chosen to abandon us first."

The dispute appears to focus on the definition of a “new” campus. State law says that existing schools converted to charter status must have teacher approval. There’s no such requirement for a charter school that starts from scratch.

The stakes in the dispute are high. Outside groups are filing petitions to run two-dozen new L.A. Unified campuses set to open within the next year and a half.

L.A. Unified school board president Monica Garcia released a statement in opposition to the lawsuit. “We are facing a crisis in our classrooms and in our District. We need adults to work together for our students.”