Broadway Elementary Parents Deliver Petition to LAUSD

9:12am

At the Los Angeles Unified School District’s morning board meeting, two parents, on behalf of the 350-strong organization Parents for Progressive Education, will express opposition to cuts to Mandarin Immersion Program at Venice’s Broadway Elementary school.

Broadway Elementary Mandarin Immersion 3 — Hundreds of parents are opposing planned cuts to the Broadway Elementary Mandarin Immersion program

The parents will address the Board at the start of the meeting and deliver to the Board a petition signed by hundreds of parents. A growing coalition of 350 public school parents is calling on School Board President Steve Zimmer and Superintendent Michelle King to reverse the LAUSD’s decision to cut in half the Mandarin Immersion program at Venice’s Broadway Elementary School.

With plans for the next school year being finalized in the next few weeks, parents anxious to take action is now. Recently, thousands rallied at LAUSD schools as part of a “walk in” to show support for public schools. Cutting this program, the parents say, validates the narrative that the LAUSD is unwilling or unable to compete with charter and private operators.

“This program makes our kids more competitive and shows how the District can compete against charter and private operators who are siphoning away public school parents, students and resources,” says Jennifer Pullen, a Broadway Elementary School parent and President of Parents for Progressive Education.

If the District stands by its decision to cut the number of incoming Kindergarten Mandarin Immersion seats from 96 to 48, there will be a reduced chance for new families to enroll their children in the program because more than 40 seats are already claimed by sibling-priority students.

Los Angeles’ public schools face tough competition from private schools and private operators. The coalition say Parents are removing their children from their local public schools in droves, reducing enrollment and parental involvement. “This is creating a Tale of Two Education Systems for Los Angeles students that harms their ability to succeed and Los Angeles’ future competitiveness,” says the group.