Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2017)

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2019 → ← 2015
Los Angeles Unified School District Elections
Primary election date
March 7, 2017
General election date
May 16, 2017
Enrollment (14-15)
646,683 students

A general election was held on May 16, 2017, for the District 4 and 6 seats of the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education. In District 4, board President Steve Zimmer was defeated by challenger Nick Melvoin. The race for the open District 6 seat featured Kelly Fitzpatrick-Gonez and Imelda Padilla. Fitzpatrick-Gonez won the seat. The election of the two newcomers marked a change in the board majority. Prior to the general election, a majority of the board was supported by the teachers union, which was reflected in a 4-3 vote to support three state bills regulating charter schools in April 2017. The vote was split between those supported by the teachers union, who voted in favor of the resolution, and those supported by charter school associations. Zimmer voted in favor of the resolution, while Melvoin and Fitzpatrick-Gonez voiced opposition to it. In the primary election held on March 7, District 2 incumbent Mónica García defeated challengers Lisa Alva and Carl Petersen to win re-election.

Zimmer and Padilla were endorsed by United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), while Melvoin and Fitzpatrick-Gonez were endorsed by California Charter Schools Association Advocates. Prior to the primary election, the teachers union sent out mailers that Melvoin said portrayed him as a supporter of President Donald Trump and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. Melvoin fought against that portrayal in his general election campaign. He said he worked on Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and was a lifelong Democrat.

Zimmer and Melvoin advanced to the general election after they defeated Gregory Martayan and Allison Holdorff Polhill. Fitzpatrick-Gonez and Padilla advanced to the general election for District 6 after defeating four fellow challengers—Patty Lopez, Araz Parseghian, Gwendolyn Posey, and Jose Sandoval. District 6 incumbent Monica Ratliff opted not to run for re-election to the board and instead ran for a Los Angeles City Council seat.

The board members elected in 2017 were tasked with shrinking the district's projected $1.46 billion cumulative deficit over the next three years. The district notified the state and county of its economic troubles in December 2016. Throughout 2016, the Los Angeles Unified School District's inspector general investigated allegations of fraud and fiscal mismanagement by a charter school network that operated seven charter schools in the district in the 2016-2017 school year. The board of education denied the renewal of two of the network's charters in October 2016. In January 2017, state and federal authorities investigated the network due to similar allegations.

The 2017 election had a higher average number of candidates running per seat compared to the district's 2015 and 2013 elections. Like the 2017 election, the 2013 election had one open seat on the ballot. In 2015, however, every incumbent whose seat was up for re-election ran for additional terms. The two new members elected in 2015 defeated incumbents to win their seats on the board. Click here for more election trends in both the district and the state.

Following the 2016 presidential election of Donald Trump, the Los Angeles Unified Board of Education unanimously voted to protect student data and reaffirm the district's safe zone policy for students residing in the country without legal permission. Weeks later, Superintendent Michelle King announced the district was opening extended support sites and setting up a hotline for students anxious about the presidential election results.

See also: What was at stake in the Los Angeles Unified School District elections?

Elections

Voter and candidate information

The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education consists of seven members elected to four-year terms. Elections are held by district on a staggered basis. The 2017 election was the last time elections were held in the spring of odd-numbered years. The district's next elections was held in June and November of 2020, corresponding with state and federal elections. To accommodate this change, school board members elected in 2015 served extended five-year terms ending in 2020, and those elected in 2017 served five-year terms ending in 2022.

The District 1, 3, 5, and 7 seats were up for election in 2015, and the District 2, 4, and 6 seats were up for election in 2017. A primary election was held on March 7, 2017, and a general election was held on May 16, 2017, for the top two vote-getters in the District 4 and 6 primaries as no candidate received a majority of the votes.

To get on the ballot, school board candidates had to file a declaration of candidacy by November 12, 2016. They also had to file nominating petitions by December 7, 2016. The deadline to withdraw from the race was December 12, 2016. School board members are limited to serving three terms.

To vote in the primary election, citizens of the school district had to register by February 21, 2017, and to vote in the general election, they had to register by May 1, 2017. Photo identification was not required to vote in California.

District 2

Results

Los Angeles Unified School District, District 2 Primary Election, 5-year term, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Mónica García Incumbent	55.68%	20,710
Lisa Alva	34.38%	12,788
Carl Petersen	9.94%	3,696
Total Votes		37,194
Source: Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Los Angeles County Election Results: Consolidated Municipal and Special Elections March 7, 2017," accessed March 30, 2017

Candidates

Mónica García		Lisa Alva		Carl Petersen
	Incumbent Member from 2006-2017 Bachelor's degree, University of California at Berkeley Master's degree, University of Southern California		Bachelor's degree, University of the Pacific Master's degree, Keller School of Management Title One Coordinator, Roosevelt High School		Bachelor's degree, University of Phoenix Director of logistics, Arecont Vision

District 4

General election

Results

Los Angeles Unified School District, District 4 General Election, 5-year term, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Nick Melvoin	57.23%	38,673
Steve Zimmer Incumbent	42.77%	28,897
Total Votes		67,570
Source: Los Angeles City Clerk, "Official Election Results May 16, 2017: Certified Final Bulletin," accessed May 30, 2017

Candidates

Steve Zimmer		Nick Melvoin
	Incumbent Member from 2009-2017		Bachelor's degree, Harvard University Master's degree, Loyola Marymount University J.D., New York University School of Law Adjunct professor, Loyola Marymount University

Primary election

Results

Los Angeles Unified School District, District 4 Primary Election, 5-year term, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Steve Zimmer Incumbent	46.70%	45,088
Nick Melvoin	32.90%	31,771
Allison Holdorff Polhill	13.99%	13,510
Gregory Martayan	6.41%	6,189
Total Votes		96,558
Source: Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Los Angeles County Election Results: Consolidated Municipal and Special Elections March 7, 2017," accessed March 30, 2017

Candidates defeated in the primary

Gregory Martayan		Allison Holdorff Polhill
	Bachelor's degree, Pepperdine University		Bachelor's degree, University of California at Los Angeles J.D., Loyola Law School Educator and lawyer

District 6

General election

Results

Los Angeles Unified School District, District 6 General Election, 5-year term, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Kelly Fitzpatrick-Gonez	51.46%	16,961
Imelda Padilla	48.54%	15,996
Total Votes		32,957
Source: Los Angeles City Clerk, "Official Election Results May 16, 2017: Certified Final Bulletin," accessed May 30, 2017

Candidates

Kelly Fitzpatrick-Gonez		Imelda Padilla
	Bachelor's degree, University of California at Berkeley Master's degree, Loyola Marymount University Teacher		Bachelor's degree, University of California at Berkeley Commissioner, Los Angeles County Commission on Women and Girls

Primary election

Results

Los Angeles Unified School District, District 6 Primary Election, 5-year term, 2017
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Kelly Fitzpatrick-Gonez	37.16%	15,984
Imelda Padilla	31.13%	13,390
Patty Lopez	11.99%	5,159
Araz Parseghian	8.96%	3,853
Gwendolyn Posey	5.77%	2,483
Jose Sandoval	5.00%	2,149
Total Votes		43,018
Source: Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Los Angeles County Election Results: Consolidated Municipal and Special Elections March 7, 2017," accessed March 30, 2017

Candidates defeated in the primary

Patty Lopez		Araz Parseghian
	Former California State Assembly member, 2014-2016		Loan officer
Gwendolyn Posey		Jose Sandoval
	Event planner, community activist, and advocate		Founder, Latino Alliance for Animal Care Foundation

Additional elections on the ballot

See also: California elections, 2017

General election

The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education general election shared the ballot with the District 7 seat on the Los Angeles City Council and Seat No. 2 of the Los Angeles Community College District. It also shared the ballot with a Measure C for the city of Los Angeles. The measure appeared on the ballot as follows:

"	Shall the Charter be amended to allow the City Council to provide that a police officer who is entitled to a Police Department Board of Rights hearing for a disciplinary matter may select a Board of Rights composed of all civilian members?	”
—City of Los Angeles (2017)

Primary election

The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education primary election shared the ballot with municipal elections for Los Angeles mayor; city controller; city attorney; and the District 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, and 15 seats on the city council. The District 2, 4, and 6 seats of the Los Angeles Community College District were also on the ballot. Additionally, one ballot measure for Los Angeles County and three measures for the city of Los Angeles appeared on the ballot.

The ballot measures appeared on the ballot as follows:

Measure H Los Angeles County

"	Los Angeles County Plan to Prevent and Combat Homelessness. To fund mental health, substance abuse treatment, health care, education, job training, rental subsidies, emergency and affordable housing, transportation, outreach, prevention, and supportive services for homeless children, families, foster youth, veterans, battered women, seniors, disabled individuals, and other homeless adults; shall voters authorize Ordinance No. 2017-0001 to levy a ¼ cent sales tax for ten years, with independent annual audits and citizens’ oversight?	”
—Los Angeles County (2017)

Measure M Los Angeles City

"	CANNABIS REGULATION AFTER CITIZEN INPUT, TAXATION AND ENFORCEMENT. PROPOSITION M. Shall an ordinance providing for enforcement, taxation and regulation of cannabis and/or cannabis products (cannabis) by: 1) providing that the City Council retains the authority to amend existing and adopt new regulations regarding cannabis activity in the City after conducting public hearings regarding various aspects of the commercialization of cannabis and medical cannabis, and giving priority in the processing of applications to existing medical marijuana dispensaries operating in compliance with current City law; 2) authorizing criminal penalties, nuisance abatement, increased civil fines and disconnection of water and power utilities for unauthorized cannabis activities; and 3) establishing new business taxes, effective January 1, 2018, including taxes of $100 per each $1,000 of gross receipts from cannabis sales and $50 per each $1,000 of gross receipts from medical cannabis sales, $10 per each $1,000 of gross receipts from cannabis transportation, testing or research, and $20 per each $1,000 of gross receipts from cannabis manufacturing, cultivation or other commercialization of cannabis; be adopted?	”
—Los Angeles City (2017)

Measure N Los Angeles City

"	CANNABIS ACTIVITY PERMITS, REGULATION AND TAXATION. INITIATIVE ORDINANCE N. Shall an ordinance establishing a City permitting program for cannabis activity, prioritizing existing medical marijuana businesses compliant with current City law (MMBs) and maintaining 135 dispensaries in the City unless increased by the City Council, including by: 1) authorizing the City to issue permits for cannabis activity including cultivation, manufacture and sale of medical cannabis; 2) providing existing compliant MMBs a limited time to register for initial permits for specified cannabis activity and other priority in the permitting process; 3) allowing permitted cannabis activity in certain non-residential zones; 4) providing operational standards and minimum-distance requirements from schools and other sites; 5) authorizing fines and other penalties for non-permitted cannabis activity but limit enforcement procedures for violations of the ordinance by permit holders; and 6) allowing permittees to operate as adult use marijuana businesses and impose a tax of $80 per each $1,000 of gross receipts from adult use marijuana sales if state law changes to allow non-medical adult use of marijuana; be adopted?	”
—Los Angeles City (2017)

Measure P Los Angeles City

"	MAXIMUM TERM OF HARBOR DEPARTMENT LEASES. CHARTER AMENDMENT P. Shall the City Charter be amended to increase the maximum term for franchises, concessions, permits, licenses and leases that may be entered into by the Harbor Department from the current maximum of 50 years to a new maximum of 66 years, to be consistent with recent changes to state law?	”
—Los Angeles City (2017)

Key deadlines

The following dates were key deadlines for the Los Angeles Unified School District election in 2017:

Deadline	Event
November 7, 2016 - November 12, 2016	Filing period for Declaration of Intention to Become a Candidate
November 12, 2016 - December 7, 2016	Filing period for candidate nominating petitions
December 7, 2016 - March 7, 2017	Filing period for 24-hour contribution reporting for primary election
December 12, 2016	Deadline to withdraw candidacy
January 10, 2017	Deadline to file 4th quarterly campaign finance report
January 26, 2017	Deadline to file first pre-primary election campaign finance report
February 6, 2017 - March 6, 2017	Filing period for vote-by-mail ballots for primary election
February 21, 2017	Voter registration deadline for primary election
February 23, 2017	Deadline to file second pre-primary election campaign finance report
March 3, 2017	Deadline to file third pre-primary election campaign finance report
March 7, 2017	Primary election
March 8, 2017 - May 16, 2017	Filing period for 24-hour contribution reporting for general election
April 6, 2017	Deadline to file first pre-general election campaign finance report
April 17, 2017 - May 15, 2017	Filing period for vote-by-mail ballots for general election
May 1, 2017	Voter registration deadline for general election
May 4, 2017	Deadline to file second pre-general election campaign finance report
May 12, 2017	Deadline to file third pre-general election campaign finance report
May 16, 2017	General election
July 1, 2017	Board members take office
July 31, 2017	Deadline to file semi-annual campaign finance report

Endorsements

See also: Endorsements in the Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2017)

For a list of official endorsements made by political parties, education organizations, and elected officials in the Los Angeles Unified School District elections, click here.

Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at [email protected].

Campaign finance

See also: Campaign finance in the Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2017)

Candidates received a total of $2,141,996.64 and spent a total of $2,128,847.50 in the election, according to the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission. For detailed information on how much individual candidates had raised and spent as of that date, click here.

Past elections

See also: Past elections in the Los Angeles Unified School District

To see results from Los Angeles Unified Board of Education elections since 2007, click here.

What was at stake?

2017

Election trends

See also: School boards in session: 2015 in brief

The 2017 Los Angeles Unified Board of Education election added two newcomers to the board. One won an open seat, while the other defeated an incumbent for a place on the board.

It was not unprecedented for Los Angeles Unified incumbents to be unseated by newcomers. In 2015, four incumbents ran for re-election, and two were unseated. In 2013, no incumbents were unseated, but one newcomer was elected to the board after winning an open seat. The 2014 special election also added a newcomer to the board due to an open seat.

School board election trends
Year	Candidates per seat	Unopposed seats	Incumbents running for re-election	Incumbent success rate	Seats won by newcomers
Los Angeles Unified School District
2017	4.33	0.00%	66.67%	50.00%	66.67%
2015	3.25	25.00%	100.00%	50.00%	50.00%
2014 (special election)	7.00	0.00%	0.00%	K.A.	100.00%
2013	3.67	0.00%	66.67%	100.00%	33.33%
California
2015	2.01	22.95%	73.77%	81.11%	39.34%
Vereinigte Staaten
2015	1.72	35.95%	70.37%	82.66%	40.81%

Issues in the election

Candidate forums

See also: Los Angeles Unified School District school board candidate forums (2017)

Candidates who ran in the Los Angeles Unified Board of Education elections participated in a number of candidate forums. Click here for more information on those forums.

Teachers union brings up Trump and DeVos as campaign issues

President Donald Trump

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos

After the primary election, District 4 challenger Nick Melvoin said his campaign for the general election had to focus on correcting misinformation. He said a mailer released by the independent expenditure committee for United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) had portrayed him as a supporter of for-profit charter schools, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, and President Donald Trump, but Melvoin said he opposed all three and was a lifelong Democrat. He worked in the White House under the Obama administration, and he worked for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016. He was also endorsed by former Secretary of Education Arne Duncan (D).

“The union’s attacks, I think were effective, they were misleading,” Melvoin said before he won the general election. “It doesn’t take people a lot of time at doors to realize how crazy it is, but they’ve hit it so many times and there’s such a discomfort and heightened awareness about Trump, for good reason, that it’s been effective.” He also said he was not surprised by the tactic. “It’s something we anticipated as soon as it all was unfolding.”

Melvoin said he wanted to change the narrative of the campaign for the general election to “change versus more of the same.” Proponents of making changes in LAUSD and charter school supporters, such as California Charter Schools Association Advocates, endorsed Melvoin in the primary election, while UTLA endorsed board President Steve Zimmer, whom Melvoin defeated in the general election. The two groups spent more than $5.4 million in the primary election for the District 4 seat. According to the LA School Report, those in favor of changing the traditional public school structure saw unseating Zimmer as an opportunity to shift the board's majority their way, while UTLA tried to keep a pro-union majority on the board before teacher contracts expired in the summer of 2017.

Zimmer was endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). In a statement, Sanders said, “Billionaires should not make a profit off of public school children. That’s why I’m supporting Steve Zimmer and Imelda Padilla for the Los Angeles School Board. They will fight against the Trump/DeVos agenda to destabilize and undermine public schools.” It was the first time since 1989 that a U.S. senator endorsed a candidate in the school board race, according to LA School Report.

Zimmer said he was not against charter schools. Though he proposed a moratorium on charter school expansion in the district in 2012 (a move that was ultimately voted down by the board), he voted to approve more charters than he denied during his tenure. After the primary election, Zimmer said he hoped to compromise with charter school organizations. “There was a turn in charter leadership somewhere in the early 2000’s where people got in their minds that they can bring this district down and that there was nothing good in the district. They so dehumanized us,” said Zimmer.

“I think the stars can align when it comes to things like Marshall running,” said Melvoin, referring to Marshall Tuck, another supporter of charter schools who unsuccessfully ran in the California Superintendent of Public Instruction election in 2014. Tuck announced he would be running for the office again in 2018. State Assemblyman Tony Thurmond (D-15), Tuck's opponent for the state superintendent election in 2018, said he would push back on messages of privatizing or defunding public education. “The opportunity to brand a reformer as a Trump/DeVos Republican is a real risk for a Democrat,” said Mattis Goldman, one of Tuck's advisors for his 2018 campaign. “It’s important for candidates who disagree with that to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Support for charter schools outside of elections had also been affected by Trump's election and Devos' appointment, according to Jason Mandell, a spokesman for the California Charter Schools Association. "Certainly what’s happening at the national level is trickling down," said Mandell. "And yes, it does provide folks who don’t like charters to make charters an issue and equate them with Trump … It’s a shame. It’s something we’re going to have to deal with."

Candidates file complaint with Fair Political Practices Commission over teachers union ads

District 4 candidate Nick Melvoin filed a complaint with the California Fair Political Practices Commission in February 2017 after a political action committee (PAC) tied to United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) sent out mailers featuring the face of Melvoin's opponent, District 4 incumbent Steve Zimmer, and the words "call and thank Steve Zimmer." District 6 candidate Kelly Fitzpatrick-Gonez also filed a complaint against UTLA regarding a billboard that had a picture of her opponent Imelda Padilla as well as the words: “Thanks, Imelda Padilla, for supporting public schools!” Padilla was also featured in the same mailer as Zimmer.

Melvoin's complaint accused the union of presenting the mailer as an issue ad rather than a campaign ad, which allowed them to avoid disclosing how much they paid for it. He also said the mailer was not the only ad the union had presented as an issue campaign. “I’ve seen video ads, bus benches, Facebook ads ... that have said, ‘Call Steve Zimmer and thank him,'" he says. "It's really political spending that's done through their issues PAC," said Melvoin.

Melvoin and Fitzpatrick-Gonez were endorsed by the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) Advocates, while Zimmer and Padilla were endorsed by UTLA. All four candidates won the primary election and advanced to the general election that was held on May 16, 2017. Melvoin and Fitzpatrick-Gonez won the general election.

UTLA officials said the mailer had been approved in August 2016 and was part of a pro-union marketing campaign. They also said that Zimmer and Padilla were not the only people featured in the mailer.

"I think it’s a distraction when we are a week away from an election," said UTLA vice president Cecily Myaert-Cruz, "when we know that CCSA and the billionaires have been funding the campaign of Nick Melvoin."

Officials with CCSA Advocates did not agree that the ad was a pro-union campaign and said the union was skirting campaign finance reporting laws. An employee of the California Charter Schools Association filed a separate complaint against the union with the Fair Political Practices Commission. "We don’t actually know that we’re the source of the biggest amount of spending because they’re not reporting all of theirs," said CCSA Advocates Executive Director Gary Borden. "That’s, in part, the purpose of the complaint."

On March 2, 2017, the Fair Political Practices Commission announced they would open an investigation into the complaints against UTLA. The commission had not resolved the investigation as of the general election on May 16, 2017.

PACs set up to promote issues were not required to report their financial activity as often as election PACs, which had 24 hours to report any expenditures made within 45 days of an election. As of February 28, 2017, UTLA had spent $1.3 million in expenditures in the 2017 Los Angeles Unified Board of Education primary election, and CCSA Advocates had spent more than $2.7 million, according to 89.3 KPCC. Candidates in the District 4 primary raised more money in direct contributions than the candidates in the District 2 and District 6 primaries raised combined.

Board of Education unanimously approves resolution in support of public financing for local elections

The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education unanimously approved a resolution on February 14, 2017, approving the Los Angeles City Council's proposal to create a public financing system for local elections. Board President Steve Zimmer, who ran for re-election in the most expensive district race in 2017, proposed the resolution.

"	Our electoral system is broken; it is not as it was designed to be. We need to work together to do whatever is in our power to restore the integrity of our electoral process. Public financing for elections is a real possibility in our near future if we have the courage to stand up to special interests on all sides. We need election processes that honor the hopes, dreams, and aspirations of our children and their families. This is one step in the right direction.	”
—Steve Zimmer (February 14, 2017)

Mónica García said she was happy to support the resolution. “The public sector does demand leadership and responsibility to make it work. We are the seven folks elected to make it work for kids. Whoever wants to get involved in elections, we need to point out that ours are the most expensive in the country,” said García.

Large contributions added to District 4 race

See also: Campaign finance in the Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2017)

The 2017 race for three Los Angeles Unified Board of Education seats outpaced the district's 2015 election in which 13 candidates ran for four seats. That year, candidates raised a total of $1,119,469.76 in direct contributions as of the May general election, an amount the 2017 election surpassed in February 2017, prior to that year's primary election. Candidates raised a total of $2,036,642.21 as of the 2017 general election.

Campaign finance reports from the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission covering financial activity prior to the 2017 primary election showed candidates had altogether raised $1,274,845.49 in contributions. A total of $798,174.33 of those contributions (62.6 percent) were raised by the four candidates who ran for the District 4 seat in the primary election.

Those contributions included reports submitted by the candidates, which included only direct contributions. Individuals were limited to giving candidates a maximum of $1,100.00 in direct contributions; however, individuals and organizations alike could give money to campaigns or political action committees that were not under the control of the candidate. The 2017 race set a record in the amount of outside spending, surpassing a former record set by the 2013 race. As of February 17, 2017, outside campaign spending was seven times higher in the races for three seats on the Los Angeles Unified Board of Education than in the city's elections for 11 municipal offices that shared a primary ballot with the school district. As of May 12, 2017, the last reporting deadline before the general election, outside spending had totaled $14.3 million. The highest outside spending for board of education seats occurred in District 4.

In January 2017, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) formally endorsed District 4 incumbent Steve Zimmer and contributed $150,000 to an independent campaign on his behalf called "Students, Parents, and Educators in Support of Padilla and Zimmer for School Board 2017, sponsored by Teachers Unions, including United Teachers Los Angeles."

Eli Broad

Also in January 2017, former Los Angeles Mayor Rick Riordan (R) made a $1 million contribution to an independent campaign backing Zimmer’s challenger Nick Melvoin. These large donations highlighted the struggle between teachers union-backed candidates and non-union-backed candidates to gain a majority on the board. Riordan's 2017 contribution lined him up against UTLA, following a pattern of past relations that dated back to his time as mayor from 1993 to 2001. Riordan and billionaire-philanthropist Eli Broad also donated large contributions in the district's 2013 election to defeat union-backed candidates.

Zimmer was one such candidate. His opponent in the 2013 race raised 54 percent more in total direct contributions than he did. Zimmer's supporters successfully framed the large donations made by billionaires as an argument in favor of his re-election, according to the Los Angeles Times. The 2017 election did not turn out the same way; Zimmer was defeated by Melvoin in the general election on May 16, 2017.

During the elections in 2015, a political action committee controlled by the California Charter Schools Association Advocates served as the pipeline for contributions to non-union-backed candidates. That year, three of the four candidates backed by the pro-charter organization won election to the board. Scott Mark Schmerelson was the only union-backed candidate to win, defeating incumbent Tamar Galatzan by over 3,000 votes. With the re-election of Mónica García in the primary election, and the elections of Melvoin and Kelly Fitzpatrick-Gonez in the general election, the 2017 race was swept by pro-charter candidates.

The four candidates who ran in the 2017 primary election were asked why the race had attracted so many contributions at a candidate forum on February 27, 2017. District 4 challenger Gregory Martayan said, “The reality is that this seat has historically been controlling the conversation. This district represents the 1 percent, it’s the wealthiest district in the country.”

Zimmer said it was about control of the school board.

"	The charter schools association wants to win a majority of the seats on the school board. We should be honest about it, and people should be open and direct about it. The labor interests want to maintain at least the open door they have. So that’s what it’s about. It’s not about truth, it’s not about kids, it’s about power, and so we should just be honest about it, and we should have the conversation and where it will lead if the charter association has a majority of the board and if it doesn’t.	”
—Steve Zimmer (February 27, 2017)

Melvoin said that Zimmer could not campaign against his opponents by calling them privatizers and then say he wanted to be collaborative and for the kids. "You can’t have it both ways," said Melvoin. “This is the most expensive school board race. I don’t like it. I want to spend time talking to parents and kids."

District 4 challenger Allison Holdorff Polhill said she wished the conversation was about the district's financial problems.

"	This district has to get itself in fiscal order to have philanthropists directly donate to LAUSD, and I believe we can do that. But we cannot do that if one suggests that the philanthropists who want to benefit kids and want to donate to a failing school district are ill motivated to somehow make money off the backs of the children. We need to end that discussion right now.	”
—Allison Holdorff Polhill (February 27, 2017)

District 4 candidates criticize phone survey

Board President Steve Zimmer and his opponent in District 4, Nick Melvoin, criticized a phone survey that was conducted throughout the district in January 2017. Pollsters for the survey, which was presented as nonpartisan and unbiased, repeatedly stated: “More than 200 children have been molested and abused under Steve Zimmer’s watch at the school board." They then asked for reactions to that statement, according to the LA School Report.

Both Zimmer and Melvoin said the survey was exploitive. “After we have gone through such a vitriolic presidential campaign, that kind of rhetoric is the last place I would go,” said Melvoin. “I have a lot of respect for Steve.”

Since Zimmer was elected to his second term on the board in 2013, Los Angeles Unified has paid $200 million in settlements to 146 students involved in a sexual abuse case. In 2013, former Miramonte Elementary School teacher Mark Berndt was convicted of sexually abusing 23 students and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. “There is no way there could be a connection to Steve and what happened to those children,” Melvoin said. “No, there’s no way he could be blamed for that. My campaign will have nothing to do with a survey like that.”

Zimmer said he was not surprised by the survey.

"	What we have seen at the federal, state and local levels over the past few years indicates that there is absolutely no moral compass when it comes to what issues are used to get control of an elected board of education or even state legislature. The most troubling thing is that these were tragedies and crimes that were committed by criminals against children, and to exploit that suffering as a tactic so insults the families who experience this pain and so degrades their dignity that we really all should take stock of our humanity.	”
—Steve Zimmer (January 6, 2017)

The survey was conducted by Precision Opinion, a private polling company based in Las Vegas. The company did not provide information on who paid for the poll or provide a full transcript of the poll, according to the LA School Report. A spokesman for the California Charter Schools Association said he did not know of any polls conducted by the organization, and United Teachers Los Angeles said they had not conducted the survey.

Issues in the district

Board votes 4-3 to support state charter school regulation bills

The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education approved a resolution on April 18, 2017, to fund lobbying efforts to support three bills in the California State Legislature that relate to charter schools. Board President Steve Zimmer and members George J. McKenna III, Scott Mark Schmerelson, and Richard A. Vladovic voted in favor of the resolution, while Mónica García, Ref Rodriguez, and Monica Ratliff voted against. The 4-3 vote was split between those supported by the teachers union, who voted in favor of the resolution, and those supported by charter school associations.

The three bills were introduced to the state legislature on February 17, 2017. Two of the bills, AB 1478 and AB 1360, sought to require charter schools to follow state and federal guidelines. AB 1478 would have required charter schools to follow the California Public Records Act for open meetings and records, while AB 1360 sought to require charter schools to follow guidelines surrounding admission, suspension, and expulsion. AB 1478 was ordered inactive on May 30, 2017. AB 1360 was passed by both chambers of the state legislature and signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) on October 13, 2017.

The third bill, SB 808, sought to remove charter schools' ability to appeal to the county or state if a school board rejected a charter petition. The bill was pulled from consideration for the 2017 legislative session on April 17, 2017, but the Los Angeles Unified Board of Education included it in its resolution.

United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) and the California Federation of Teachers came out in support of all three bills. The California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) said it would support measures to make charter schools more transparent, but it said it would oppose SB 808. Richard Garcia, director of elections communications for CCSA, called SB 808 "one of the most aggressive anti-charter bills that the state has seen," according to the LA School Report.

Nick Melvoin and Kelly Fitzpatrick-Gonez, who won seats on the board in the general election on May 16, 2017, said they were against the resolution passed by the Los Angeles Unified Board of Education. “I firmly believe that we must have comprehensive and meaningful accountability for all charter schools and we must ensure that they serve all students, but I oppose this legislative package as currently written,” said Fitzpatrick-Gonez.

Melvoin called the resolution disappointing and said it was politically motivated.

"	This is not an all kids resolution; rather, it stokes the flames of this ‘us vs. them’ rhetoric. Given the assault on public education from the Trump Administration, we need leaders who stand with all public school families. This resolution directs LAUSD’s lobbyists to spend less time securing necessary funding for teachers, the arts, and other basic services and more time waging political fights.	”
—Nick Melvoin (2017)

McKenna, who proposed the resolution to the board, said he wanted to protect the district. “It is a fact that the loss of enrollment is a hardship on this district. There are those who unashamedly, unabashedly said their intent is to take 50 percent of our students and they are competing against us," said McKenna. He also said he was worried about the district's finances. “We will be economically insolvent if in fact we continue to allow and help others come in to get students and come into our space,” he said.

In a survey conducted by 89.3 KPCC in February 2017, Zimmer said he supported transparency in finances and governance for public schools.

"	Whether you are a public school, charter, magnet, traditional neighborhood school, the definition of a public school is that it serves every child that comes through the schoolhouse door. It is also true that if you are a public school, you must have transparency with your finances and you must have transparency with your governance. We work very, very hard every day to make that happen in our Charter Schools Division. There is always room for improvement, and I will continue to advocate for us to get stronger and stronger in this area.	”
—Steve Zimmer (2017)

Imelda Padilla, who lost the race for the open District 6 seat to Fitzpatrick-Gonez, refused to take a position on the board resolution when contacted by the Los Angeles Times. In a candidate forum held on May 10, 2017, Padilla stated, "Those independent charters have been hiding behind their private operator status from being able to tell us what they do with our taxpayer dollars, and I think that’s a problem... So we do need to pass some policies about them being more transparent."

Los Angeles charter school network investigated by authorities

A charter organization called the Celerity Educational Group was served a warrant to search its administrative offices by the U.S. Attorney General's Office in Los Angeles on January 25, 2017, in connection to an investigation into possible fraud and fiscal mismanagement. Six other agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, and the U.S. Department of Education, were also involved in the investigation, which started after the Los Angeles Unified School District's inspector general conducted an investigation into similar allegations in 2016. The offices of Celerity Global Development, a nonprofit with governance power over the Celerity Educational Group, and the home Vielka McFarlane, Celerity Educational Group's founder and CEO, were also investigated.

“I don’t know what information the U.S. attorney is relying on, but the district’s inspector general has conducted a thorough and ongoing investigation into this matter, and I expect that some of that work led to this,” said David Holmquist, general counsel for Los Angeles Unified.

The Celerity Educational Group oversaw seven charter schools in Southern California, six of which were in the Los Angeles Unified School District in the 2016-2017 school year. All of its schools used public funds but were privately operated. A spokesperson for Celerity Educational Group released the following statement after the investigation:

"	Celerity has been informed of this investigation and looks forward to cooperatively addressing any concerns raised by the investigating agencies. Regardless, Celerity will continue to pursue the high educational standards of which it has always been proud.	”
—Stefan Friedman, Celerity Educational Group (January 2017)

Los Angeles Unified's inspector general began investigating the Celerity Educational Group in response to the group's petition to open two new charter schools in 2015. District officials raised concerns about the group's governance structure under Celerity Global Development and its financial transactions, such as the CEO charging the group's credit card for restaurant, chauffeur, and out-of-state travel expenses. The report from district officials led the Los Angeles Unified Board of Education to reject the group's petition despite approving similar petitions in the past. The Celerity Educational Group denied any wrongdoing and appealed to the California State Board of Education, which approved the opening of the schools.

In October 2016, the Celerity Educational Group petitioned the board of education to renew the charters of two of its schools, both of which had tested higher in math and English than neighborhood schools. Again, the board rejected the petition, listing similar concerns about the group's finances and governance structure. Specific concerns surrounded changes to the group's bylaws, which gave oversight of its charter schools to Celerity Global Development. District officials said they did not have a full picture of the relationship between the two organizations and had concerns about lack of transparency. Though the district had asked for more information about Celerity Global Development's leadership, the organization did not respond by the October 2016 board meeting. The vote was unanimous with one member—Ref Rodriguez—abstaining.

Rodriguez said he abstained from the vote because he thought the charter schools could stay open if they separated from Celerity Educational Group. Though district staff had proposed his suggestion to Celerity Educational Group, the group had declined the separation.

Celerity Educational Group appealed the board's rejection to the Los Angeles County Office of Education, but the county did not act on the appeal. The group also appealed to the California State Board of Education, which declined to renew the school charters at a hearing on May 11, 2017. State Board of Education members said they had lost confidence in the Celerity Educational Group and were concerned about its finances, governance structure, and possible conflicts of interest.

District prepares for $1.46 billion deficit

The Los Angeles Unified School District notified the Los Angeles County Office of Education and the state of California on December 15, 2016, that it faced a cumulative deficit of $1.46 billion through the 2018-2019 school year. The deficit required the district to register as qualified.

“Qualified means that we may not meet our financial obligations in the subsequent two years,” Los Angeles Unified Chief Financial Officer Megan Reilly said. She said that registering as qualified was better than needing to register as negative. Despite the estimated deficit, the district had the chance to make its obligations, according to Reilly.

Six months later, when the board passed its three-year budget with a 5-1 vote and one abstention on June 20, 2017, the cumulative deficit had decreased. The budgets for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 school years were balanced, and the budget for the 2019-2020 school year had a projected deficit of $422 million.

After the district registered as qualified, Reilly said the deficit was not due to mismanagement and pointed out its AAA credit rating. She said that though the district's enrollment was decreasing, which meant lower per-pupil funding from the state, its fixed costs, such as utilities and payments into CalPERS and CalSTRS retirement funds, were not decreasing. The retirement payments equalled nearly $780 million a year, according to Reilly, and utility costs were expected to increase by $24 million, despite reducing water consumption by 13 percent, according to the district’s director of architectural and engineering services Christos Chrysiliou.

A large portion of the projected deficit came from costs associated with serving low-income students, foster kids, and English learners. In the summer of 2016, the California Department of Education said the district had to outline more clearly how it would serve those students. The district submitted a realignment plan with the Department of Education in December 2016, which allowed the projected deficit to fall from over $1 billion to under $500 million.

In February 2017, Superintendent Michelle King proposed the district reduce its administrative staff, which was recommended by an Independent Financial Review Panel in November 2015. “The district’s loss of 100,000 students would indicate that the district staff would need to be reduced by about 10,000 staff, including administrators, classified and certificated personnel, for a savings of about $500 million per year,” the report by the panel stated.

King recommended nearly 1,600 administrators be put on notice of their contracts' possible termination, and the board approved the proposal on February 14, 2017. The proposal included “all non-school-based certificated administrators, confidential employees, and supervisory employees.” Principals, deans, and counselors with permanent school site contracts were not included. By law, district employees had to be notified by March 15, 2017, of potential layoffs.

“We know we have declining enrollment and a federal impact and other cost drivers such as special education and health and welfare costs, and it is important to note that we must be fiscally responsible and that we did get recommendations on how to do that,” said King.

Board President Steve Zimmer said he doubted the district would follow through on the 2017 layoffs. In 2016, approximately 1,700 administrators were notified of possible layoffs, but all of those notices were rescinded. In June 2017, 115 of the notified administrators were informed that their contracts would not be renewed. They were offered other positions in the district. Another 114 employees were laid off and 180 were reassigned when the board passed the final budget on June 20, 2017.

Board passes resolutions following presidential election

See also: School boards pass sanctuary resolutions and Sanctuary policy preemption conflicts between the federal and local governments

Sanctuary policy conflicts

Los Angeles Unified School District was one of 15 districts tracked by Ballotpedia that debated sanctuary policies as of October 16, 2017. Learn more about these debates on Ballopedia's coverage of sanctuary jurisdictions  »

The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education voted on November 15, 2016, to reaffirm the district's safe zone policy for students residing in the country without legal permission. The board also adopted a resolution pledging to “continue to protect the data and identities of any student, family member, or school employee who may be adversely affected by any future policies or executive action that results in the collection of any personally identifiable information.”

The resolutions were adopted in reaction to four consecutive days of student walkouts following the presidential election of Donald Trump (R) and concerns voiced by the district's community. In a speech on immigration in August 2016, Trump said, "According to federal data, there are at least 2 million, 2 million, think of it, criminal aliens now inside of our country, 2 million people criminal aliens. We will begin moving them out day one. As soon as I take office. Day one. In joint operation with local, state, and federal law enforcement." After he won the election, Trump announced plans to remove them in his first 100 days in office. He also pledged to cancel federal funding for cities with sanctuary policies. Sanctuary cities have enacted policies that limit the involvement of local officials in the enforcement of federal immigration law. Examples of sanctuary policies include restricting local law enforcement from arresting individuals who violate federal immigration law and prohibiting law enforcement inquiries into a person's immigration status.

One in 10 residents in Los Angeles County was estimated to be residing in the country without legal permission, according to a study conducted by the University of Southern California. Due to the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court case Plyler v. Doe, the Los Angeles Unified School District was required to educate students residing in the country without legal permission if they lived within the district's borders. Board President Steve Zimmer said he did not expect that the district's obligation to those students would change under the new administration.

The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education's vote on November 15, 2016, reaffirmed the district's commitment to the Plyler v. Doe ruling and reminded staff of a February 2016 board decision to not allow U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents onto district property without approval from the superintendent. After that decision, Virginia Kice, a spokesperson for ICE, said that ICE agents would not request access to schools as they were considered sensitive sites.

In reaction to concerns of how student data collected through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) would be used, the board unanimously voted to protect student data “to the fullest extent provided by the law.” The two programs were created by the Obama administration to shield students and some workers residing in the country without legal permission. The board additionally directed Superintendent Michelle King to send a letter to Trump "affirming the American ideals that are celebrated in Los Angeles.”

The board passed another two resolutions on December 13, 2016. One resolution asked President Barack Obama (D) to “issue an executive order prohibiting the use of information derived from the DACA application and participation process for purposes other than originally intended, including for the purpose of removal or deportation.” It also asked the president to pardon “civil immigration violations for young immigrants that participated in DACA.”

The second resolution asked Trump's nominees for secretary of education and attorney general to "directly affirm the Obama administration’s guidance to states and local education authorities regarding the dignity and humanity of transgender students and access to safe restrooms, locker rooms and all school facilities.”

United Teachers Los Angeles President Alex Caputo-Pearl and regional director of the California Charter Schools Association Sarah Angel voiced support of the board's resolutions, but approval of the board's actions was not unanimous among the state's education organizations. Larry Sand, president of the California Teachers Empowerment Network, wrote an editorial piece in the National Review that opposed the board's resolutions. Sand wrote, "While Trump has indeed made some questionable comments about immigration, certain educators and a compliant mainstream media have blown things way out of proportion and worried many children needlessly."

Sand also said, "Maybe instead of playing psychologist and engaging in dubious policymaking, the school board should focus on its mandate, which is to educate children and, at the same time, be judicious in spending taxpayers’ money," alluding to the district's $1.46 billion deficit.

On January 25, 2017, Trump signed an executive order to withhold federal funding from sanctuary cities. "Sanctuary jurisdictions across the United States willfully violate federal law in an attempt to shield aliens from removal from the United States," the order stated. "These jurisdictions have caused immeasurable harm to the American people and to the very fabric of our republic."

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who reaffirmed the city's sanctuary status in November 2016, said that the idea that Los Angeles does not cooperate with the federal government was "simply at odds with the facts." He also said that cutting federal funding to the city would affect ports that move 40 percent of the country's goods.

"	We regularly cooperate with immigration authorities — particularly in cases that involve serious crimes — and always comply with constitutional detainer requests. What we don’t do is ask local police officers to enforce federal immigration laws — and that’s an official LAPD policy that has been enforced for nearly 40 years. That is for everyone’s good, because trust between police and the people they serve is absolutely essential to effective law enforcement.	”
—Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (January 25, 2017)

District announces opening of extended support sites

Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Michelle King announced on December 5, 2016, that the district had opened extended support sites and set up a hotline for students anxious about the presidential election results. President Donald Trump (R) ran on a campaign promise to deport immigrants residing in the U.S. illegally and to build a wall along the country's border with Mexico. The district's student population was 74 percent Latino for the 2016-2017 school year, and teachers said they spent class time reassuring their students that they were safe at school.

In the days following the election, hundreds of students participated in walkouts to protest the results. The board of education responded by reaffirming the district's safe zone policy and vowing to protect student data.

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About the district

See also: Los Angeles Unified School District, California

The Los Angeles Unified School District is located in Los Angeles County, California.

The Los Angeles Unified School District is located in Los Angeles County in Southern California. The county seat is Los Angeles. Los Angeles County was home to an estimated 10,170,292 residents between 2010 and 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau. The district was the largest school district in the state in the 2014-2015 school year and served 646,683 students.

Demographics

Higher education achievement

Los Angeles County underperformed compared to California as a whole in terms of higher education achievement between 2011 and 2015. The United States Census Bureau found that 30.3 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 31.4 percent of state residents.

Median household income

The median household income for Los Angeles County between 2011 and 2015 was $56,196, compared to $61,818 for the entire state.

Poverty rate

From 2011 to 2015, the percentage of people living below the poverty level in Los Angeles County was 18.7 percent, while it was 15.3 percent statewide.

Racial demographics

Racial Demographics, 2010-2015
Race	Los Angeles County (%)	California (%)
White	71.1	72.9
Black or African American	9.1	6.5
American Indian and Alaska Native	1.5	1.7
Asian	15.0	14.7
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander	0.4	0.5
Two or more races	3.0	3.8
Hispanic or Latino	48.4	38.8

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Los Angeles Unified School District California election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2017) - Google News

See also

Los Angeles Unified School District	California	School Boards
Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2015) Los Angeles Unified School District elections (2013) List of school districts in California	California school board elections, 2017 Public education in California Local ballot measures, California	School board elections, 2017 School board elections, 2016

External links

• Los Angeles Unified School District
• Los Angeles City Clerk's Office Election Division