L.A. Schools Criticized on Site Selections

The California state auditor issued a sharply critical report Wednesday on the process the Los Angeles Unified School District uses to select new school sites.

The district fails to involve the community in deciding where schools should be built and recommends sites to the Board of Education before completing checks for environmental problems, state auditor Kurt R. Sjoberg said.

“Partly as a result of the district’s lack of information about potential school sites, the district has built 11 schools that are on or in close proximity to sites containing hazardous substances,” the report said.

The audit contained little new information, however. It largely recapped criticisms that have long been leveled against the district and were partly responsible for a change of leadership this fall that brought in lawyer and former board member Howard Miller to oversee the school construction program.

Miller said he agreed with the findings and is already following the audit’s recommendations.

“We have already begun to implement a community outreach program,” Miller said.

“We have also taken steps to ensure that staff and the board obtain enough information to make an informed decision about a site’s viability.”

The district now has an agreement with the state Department of Toxic Substances Control to obtain environmental certification of all school sites before constructing schools.