You, Too, Can Be Austin Beutner (No Prior Experience Necessary)

The Ex-Financier Has Run the L.A. Times, the L.A. Department of Water and Power, and Now L.A. Schools. All He Lacks Is Know-How.

No Californian inspires me more than Austin Beutner.

Haven’t heard of this Los Angeles investment banker? Your loss. Because following his example could change your life.

Beutner’s recent career exposes the lies we Californians tell ourselves about our limits. Sure, we want our children to believe they can grow up to be anything they want. But we believe that rising to the top in a field requires years of preparation, not to mention knowledge, and experience.

Austin Beutner shows us we’re wrong.

In this decade alone, Beutner has gone straight to the …

Why Don’t Angelenos Trust Homegrown Talent?

Unfortunately, to Make It Big in L.A., You Often First Have to Go Make Your Mark Elsewhere

Last week, Michelle King was appointed superintendent of L.A. Unified, California’s largest school district. But can we really trust her to lead the Los Angeles schools? After all, she’s from …

What LAUSD’s New Minimum Wage Means for My Family

The Worst Thing About My Job as a School Custodian Has Always Been the Pay. Now I’m Imagining What a Difference $15 Per Hour Will Make.

Monday through Friday, my full-time job is cleaning restrooms at Van Nuys High School. But that work is not the hardest part of my life. The hardest part is saying …

LAUSD Teacher Carlos Castillo

Don’t Serve Him Cow Tongue. Do Ask Him to Sing Karaoke.

Carlos Castillo teaches social studies and coordinates the Teen Court at Roosevelt High School in L.A.’s Boyle Heights neighborhood. Before participating in a panel on how schools should discipline children, …

Time to Suspend Zero-Tolerance School Discipline

Los Angeles Has Tried Get-Tough Approaches Toward Classroom Misbehavior. What Might Work Better?

The way discipline is enforced in American schools is changing quickly, explained Beth Shuster, Los Angeles Times education editor, at an event co-presented by the California Endowment. Zero-tolerance policies—which mandate …

An Old-School Champion of L.A.’s Schools

Remembering LAUSD School Board Member Marguerite LaMotte, a Tough, Powerful Advocate for Students, Educators, and Her Community

Marguerite Poindexter LaMotte reminded me of the teachers I had as a student—and of the teachers I worked with during my 20-plus years in the classroom. She was old school. …