During his comments, Barr also continued to lie about the structure of his proposed school. Parroting words from the proposed school's website, he referred to this charter as being an "affiliated model", which means that while it would run semi-independently, its charter would be held by the District. However, the charter application being considered shows that it would be an "independent charter", with a separate governing board operating completely outside the district's control.
The Charter School Division pointed out the discrepancy in its denial recommendation, stating "Petitioners submitted a Community Impact Assessment for that of an affiliated charter school even though Petitioners' new petition seeks to establish an independent charter school." The Division also noted that "at the December 10, 2024 LAUSD Board of Education meeting, Petitioner presented information at the initial public hearing in support of an affiliated charter school, as opposed to an independent charter school, which Petitioners seek to establish through the Petition." It was also apparently dishonest with its proposed partner, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), as the union presented a letter of support for an "affiliated charter" not a new startup independent charter school.
With the deadline set by law, both sides had to agree to delay consideration for 30 days. Superintendent Carvalho should have just allowed the vote to go forward but instead agreed to the delay, giving Barr a lifeline. The voters ignored $6.2 million in spending by the Charter School Industry in the November election to elect a pro-public school majority. The Board Members that were elected in November have a mandate to demand a Charter School Division that is not overly accommodating to these publicly funded private schools.
Carl Petersen is a parent advocate for public education, particularly for students with special education needs, who serves as the Education Chair for the Northridge East Neighborhood Council. As a Green Party candidate in LAUSD's District 2 School Board race, he was endorsed by Network for Public Education (NPE) Action. Dr. Diane Ravitch has called him "a valiant fighter for public schools in Los Angeles." For links to his blogs, please visit www.ChangeTheLAUSD.com. Opinions are his own.
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