Southeast L.A. communities call on LAUSD to release billions

Los Angeles CA

13 June, 2022

6:01 PM

Description

Families and elected officials from Southeast Los Angeles gathered for a press event at Huntington Park City Hall (6550 Miles Avenue, Huntington Park, Ca. 90255) on Wednesday, June 1, 2022 from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. to call on the Los Angeles Unified School District (L.A. Unified) to release billions in pandemic recovery funding and provide immediate solutions to tutoring deserts in their communities. During the event, Innovate Public Schools, a nonprofit that works to ensure all students receive a quality public education, released a policy brief, "To Address Pandemic and Teacher Shortage Impacts, LAUSD Students Need Tutoring Now," detailing untapped districtwide expanded learning opportunities. This was followed by an announcement from the mayors of Huntington Park and South Gate regarding local investments aimed at addressing the need for tutoring in their communities. Participants of the Southeast L.A. (SELA) Regional Tutoring Initiative include: L.A. Unified Parents and residents of Southeast Cities, Innovate Public Schools, Huntington Park City Mayor Graciela Ortiz, South Gate City Mayor Al Rios, Southeast Community Foundation, Woodcraft Rangers, and Southeast L.A. Community Development Corporation. According to Innovate Public Schools, since the start of the pandemic in 2020, L.A. Unified has received more than $6 billion in federal funding. Last year, the school district received $395 million from the state. Although much of this funding is earmarked for pandemic recovery strategies such as tutoring and expanded learning opportunities, two-and-a-half years into the pandemic, the district has only spent $138.1 million or 35% of the funding. More recently, in fall 2021, the district committed $54 million of this funding toward tutoring and small-group-instruction, but only 14% was allocated and none spent. Spanish translator and parent, Aida Vega at the podium This year, the district received an additional $523 million through an Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELO-P), and will receive this funding for the next four years. The funding will likely increase based on the governor's proposed budget for 2022, which if passed promises an unprecedented $4.4 billion for local education agencies. In spite of funding available for student recovery, L.A. Unified has yet to spend 2021 ELO-P funds. While the district decides when and how to spend the funding, hundreds of thousands of students are left without essential services to support their academic recovery needs, and parents must find ways to seek additional support. The most affected by the district's inaction are high-need low-resource students. Carlos Rodriguez, state-wide community organizer for Innovate give a statement to Telemundo52. "We know from research that quality tutoring is one of the most effective strategies to address incomplete learning," said Carlos Rodriguez, L.A. and statewide lead community organizer for Innovate Public Schools. "L.A. Unified has a responsibility to create and implement a tutoring strategy offering low-income communities intentional access to one of the most proven interventions in academic recovery. Anything short of this would be a disservice to students and will exacerbate inequity," added Rodriguez. Parents contended that despite receiving academic recovery funding in the billions, L.A. Unified has yet to spend any of the money on strategies that will help their children get back on track. They say their children need more than after-school help with homework, and this has spurred many to seek outside help. Aida Vega, a resident of Huntington Park, took on a second job to pay for tutoring for her daughter. Southeast parent meeting prior to the press event. "When we ask district leaders for individualized tutoring for our children, they tell us that they already offer after-school tutoring, which we know means tutoring for large groups without any structure or evaluation," said Aida Vega, parent of a 9th grader. "It's not quality tutoring. We aren't looking for homework assistance. We need one-on-one tutoring that will evaluate each student's progress and support them where they need the help," added Vega. The need for tutoring has spurred a regional collaboration between Innovate Public Schools, parents, expanded learning programs, and mayors representing southeast cities. For this reason, and following the release of the policy brief, the Hon. Graciela Ortiz, mayor of Huntington Park, and the Hon. Al Rios, mayor of South Gate presented parent leaders with approved city investments totaling $100,000 toward a pilot program to provide immediate assistance for families. The mayors say their cities are stepping in at the request of constituents to address the need and support their communities. (L-R) Al Rios, South Gate Mayor; Eduardo Martinez, Huntington Park Vice Mayor; and Karina Macias, Councilmember of Huntington Park present local investments aimed at addressing the need for tutoring in their communities. "The City of Huntington Park is excited to partner with Innovate Public Schools on the SELA Regional Tutoring Initiative," said Graciela Ortiz, mayor of the City of Huntington Park. "Providing free one-on-one tutoring through an after-school program will give children most affected by the pandemic an opportunity to catch up, advance and obtain the academic support they need to be successful in school," added Ortiz. About Innovate Public SchoolsInnovate Public Schools represents more than 1,000 parents across California, including low-income parents of color, parents of English learners, and parents of students with special needs. These parents collectively advocate for their children's education, especially in light of the significant academic and socio-emotional toll that COVID and distance learning have taken on our most underserved students.