Schools: No Time to Waste

It appears that Ramon C. Cortines, the Los Angeles school board’s first choice for interim superintendent, will come aboard after all. Who blinked first in the disagreement that seemed to kill the deal Wednesday is not important. The last stumbling block appeared to be conquered late Thursday night when current Supt. Ruben Zacarias accepted a lucrative buyout offer from the board.

What matters now is resolving the school leadership crisis and getting on with the dramatic changes needed to rescue public education in Los Angeles.

Cortines, who headed the schools in New York, San Francisco and Pasadena, did not exaggerate when he labeled Los Angeles Unified “the most dysfunctional district in America.” The power struggle between newly designated chief operating officer Howard Miller, with his backers on the board, and Zacarias is only one of many controversies that paralyzed the district. The $200-million Belmont Learning Complex sits more than half completed, a environmental disaster that might never open. Now we find that Palisades High School must shut down because of asbestos danger, and there may be more to come. No one has been willing to take responsibility for these or any other LAUSD failures.

Any further debates over who is in charge must be resolved quickly in order to get back to the main issue, student achievement. Three of four LAUSD students cannot read at grade level. Most test poorly in math. Tens of thousands of children are expected to be held back a grade in July when the district’s ban on social promotion takes effect. Even more children are expected to flunk in future years unless something is done immediately about the shortage of qualified teachers and effective principals, the outdated textbooks and the dirty, overcrowded campuses.

If Cortines improves instruction, something he has done in his previous jobs and a subject he knows well, Miller can concentrate on removing obstacles to reform. If the turmoil at the top is brought to an end, the board can concentrate on policy while a nationwide search is conducted for the next permanent superintendent.

Change is hard and messy, and this process has been more painful than most. But if the deal holds--bringing in Cortines, keeping Miller and easing out Zacarias--the turnaround can begin. The top leaders and the board can clean house, demand individual accountability and reverse a culture that puts personal agendas ahead of education. With the chaos of recent weeks reviving efforts to break up the mammoth district, Cortines and his partners in reform have not a single day to waste.