Bill Would Let Students Switch to Better Schools

Children lagging behind grade level at 350 of the state’s lowest-performing schools would be able to transfer to more successful public schools and receive free public transportation, under legislation to be introduced today by Bill Lockyer, the Democratic leader of the state Senate.

Lockyer’s bill is likely to become the Democratic alternative to a voucher proposal backed by Republican Gov. Pete Wilson, which would allow students in failing schools to attend private schools as well as public ones. That bill has passed the state Assembly, where Republicans are in the majority, and is awaiting action in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

“You can think that vouchers and giving public dollars to private schools are wrong and still want to . . . improve our public schools,” said Lockyer spokesman Sandy Harrison.

Under the proposal, schools identified as failing would receive a state grant of $200,000 to help them tackle whatever roadblocks they believe stand in the way of academic improvement. The money could be used for tutoring, or it could be used to deal with gang problems or community health issues if those are seen as preventing students from learning.

Students who still lagged behind grade level after a yearlong improvement effort could then transfer to other public schools, within or outside of their home school district, that have space available.

Now, school districts are required to establish open enrollment policies meant to accommodate students who want to attend public schools outside of their neighborhood. Districts also are allowed to establish policies for accepting students from other districts, but those choices are restricted in many ways.

Under Lockyer’s bill, the state would pay for busing the students to the new school for two years if it was within 10 miles of where they go to school now.

Lockyer also plans to link the bill, which must pass the Senate and Assembly and be signed by Wilson if it is to become law, to legislation by Jim Costa (D-Fresno). The Costa bill, which is pending in the Senate, would establish neighborhood development corporations to cut crime, welfare dependency and economic distress in blighted communities.

A spokesman said Wilson has not been briefed on Lockyer’s proposal.

Education groups are rallying around the plan, which would carry a price tag of $109 million.

The state Department of Education supports the idea, although it will seek some relatively minor changes, said Deputy Supt. Henry Der. The department had opposed the Wilson legislation, contending that it penalized troubled schools financially without giving them the resources needed for improvement.

Der said state Supt. of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin “strongly supports the underlying goal of [Lockyer’s] bill, to address the needs of low-achieving schools.”

Kevin Gordon, a lobbyist for the California School Boards Assn., said the Lockyer plan is nearly identical to a bill his organization proposed.

“The idea of being punitive and taking money away is like saying you’re not going to put oil in your car until it starts running better,” Gordon said. “It just doesn’t get the job done.”

Kevin Teasley, a founder of the pro-voucher Center for the Study of Popular Culture based in Los Angeles, blasted the Lockyer idea as “a tired, old and disproven solution.”

“We’re talking about sending kids to bad schools for another year and giving the bad schools $200,000 and it’s just outrageous,” said Teasley. “You are just turning your back on the children.”