Adolfo Guzman-Lopez

Starting this week the curtain rises on one of the most significant reforms at the Los Angeles Unified School District in more than a decade. L.A. Unified’s handed the administration of dozens of new and low-performing schools to outside nonprofits and teacher groups that will try new plans to better educate kids.

Rio Hondo Community College in the East San Gabriel Valley today announced a partnership with an area school district and UC Irvine that seeks to get more students into the four-year university.

Results out today from an annual batch of standardized tests indicate incremental improvement among public school students.

A group of veterans plans to gather at the Queen Mary in Long Beach tomorrow to commemorate an act of bravery during World War II.

California educators are elated that the federal government plans to send California about $1.2 billion for teacher jobs. Those educators also have a lot of questions.

Forty years ago this month a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy killed Los Angeles Times journalist Ruben Salazar. LA County Sheriff Lee Baca said today he’s decided to reconsider a decision to keep the investigation records sealed.

L.A. County Sheriff Spokesman Steve Whitmore told KPCC today he’s reconsidering the denial of a records request from the L.A. Times. “We’re going to revisit this request," Whitmore said. "The sheriff wants to make sure all options are explored before he makes another decision and that decision may be no. But he wants to let the process of analyzing all the documents, which the volumes are eight boxes full of paperwork.”

After years of graffiti tagging and futile restoration attempts, some observers say the end is near for dozens of Los Angeles’ once-glorious freeway murals.

One of the most visible Southland supporters of Arizona’s proposed illegal immigration enforcement law is longtime L.A. homeless activist Ted Hayes. He’s an African-American who aligned himself with national anti-immigrant groups about five years ago under the rationale that deporting all illegal immigrants would help solve the nation’s homeless problem. The group doesn’t have many followers, but it does hope to make a big presence in Phoenix this weekend with others to oppose a judge’s blocking of the main provisions of Arizona’s new immigration law.

Busloads of Southland protesters against Arizona’s new immigration law are headed to Phoenix tomorrow.

The fiscal problems of public schools have gotten plenty of air time, but private K-12 schools in Southern California have also had to trim their budgets. The prolonged economic downturn has many private school staffs wondering how long they can hold on.

After a year and a half in the job, L.A. Unified Superintendent Ramon Cortines says he's retiring from the school district in the spring. He says the long days and the workload during the budget crisis of the last few years has taken a toll on him.