Public Education Supporters Can Breath A Little Easier In Los Angeles

“As educators, we recognize that people can learn and evolve through courageous conversations.”

– UTLA

Before dumping $690,949.34 into the BD1 race supporting Kahllid Al-Alim, one would have thought that United Teachers Los Angeles would have done the basic research into their chosen candidate. Having failed to perform this due diligence they were forced to withdraw their endorsement of Al-Alim when a Twitter post was shared where the community organizer called for an anti-Semitic book to be “MANDATORY Reading in Community Schools…part of the BSAP (Black Student Achievement Plan).”

What is not surprising is that the Charter School Industry easily found this information and was holding onto it until it would cause the most amount of damage. The publicly funded private schools showed in the past that they do not mind using anti-semitism if it helps their candidates when they released a widely-condemned flyer during the 2020 campaign against BD3 Board Member Scott Schmerelson. However, if it could help them gain power, then they could also be against such bigotry. It would not be their first flirtation with hypocrisy.

The fact that Micheal Trujillo, a strategist for the industry, suddenly released the information during the primary election instead of using it in the general election should have indicated where he thought the race stood. If charter school supporter Didi Watts was headed for a top-two finish, the information could have been used in November to sink her opponent. However, if it did not look like she would make the runoff it made more sense to release it immediately and improve her prospects.

The preliminary results from Tuesday’s election show why Trujillo dropped the damaging information early. As of 5:12 PM yesterday, Watts is in third place and 2,197 votes behind Al-Alim. Sherlett Hendy Newbill, who also supports public schools but campaigned without the help of UTLA is in first and is 3,162 votes ahead of Al-Alim. If these results hold it is guaranteed that charter school supporters will not control the seat.

Charter School BD5 candidate Graciela Ortiz’s campaign was floundering after she was sued by a former student alleging that she did not take the steps necessary to prevent a sexual assault against the minor at gunpoint. Allegations similar to the ones that resulted in Ref Rodriguez’s felony conviction have also been leveled against the candidate. She was placed on leave from her LAUSD job while an investigation was conducted. While CSEA dropped its endorsement, SEIU 99 continued to spend heavily in the race, making expenditures of $77,669.68 in the last week. The union representing some of the lowest-paid workers in the District spent a total of $859,381.78 trying to get Ortiz elected.

UTLA’s failure to vette Al-Alim allowed the spotlight to be removed from Ortiz and may have helped her to come in second in the preliminary results. Karla Griego is in the lead, securing 34.47% of the vote. If she can secure support from third-place finisher Fidencio Gallardo, who also supports public education, she will be in good shape for the general election.

UTLA’s second biggest misstep in this election cycle was the failure to recruit a viable challenger to run against charter school industry shill Tanya Ortiz Franklin in BD7. This left voters with a choice between the incumbent and public school teacher Lydia Gutierrez, who has social views that are unpalatable to many.

Any suggestion that Franklin was unbeatable was not believed by her supporters who spent $1,099,715.78 on the race, including $357,779.36 in negative ads. By comparison, Gutierrez spent $3,084.41 on her campaign.

As lopsided as the spending was, Franklin was only able to secure 55.9% of the vote. Surely, a candidate with more centrist social and political views could have made up that 6,238 vote deficit. Having a third candidate would have at least increased the chances of forcing a runoff election.

In BD3, incumbent Scott Schmerelson easily secured first place, besting his nearest competitor by 12,778 votes. However, he only achieved support from 43.81% of the electorate and now faces a runoff in November. To win in the general election he will have to convince supporters of the three vanquished candidates that he understands the mistakes he has made during his tenure including his initial support of the NVMI charter school and his refusal to secure protections for students with Special Education needs.

Charter supporter Dan Chang also faces challenges going into the runoff election. His supporters outspent Schmerelson’s by $207,288.42, with much of the $870,079.99 provided by Bill Bloomfield, who has also indirectly contributed to white supremacist Steve King and provided funds to the presidential campaign of Rudy Giuliani. A one-on-one race could also mean further scrutiny of Chang’s role in the failures at Green Dot charter schools, especially at Locke High School.

If public education supporters are to maintain their slim majority on the LAUSD School Board, they must win all three of the contested School Board races on November 5, 2024. A lot is riding on Schmerelson’s ability to succeed.

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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.