After Scramble, Canter Elected to Lead School Board

The Los Angeles Board of Education selected Marlene Canter as its president Tuesday after last-minute, behind-the scenes maneuvering that involved the new leader of the teachers union.

Canter, who beat Jon Lauritzen for the position, was elected 5-1 by the seven-member board. Lauritzen abstained, and Marguerite LaMotte dissented. Canter voted for herself.

The vote occurred quickly, with no public discussion, but came after a lengthy delay as outgoing board president Jose Huizar spearheaded an attempt to persuade Lauritzen to step aside.

“It was a three-hour scramble in an attempt to get a 7-0 vote -- to find unity,” Huizar said. “But Jon decided to press ahead and take the vote nonetheless.”

Huizar said he sought the help of A.J. Duffy, president of United Teachers Los Angeles.

Duffy, the recently elected chief of the powerful teachers union, said he called Lauritzen to relay a compromise at the urging of board members. He declined to elaborate.

Union leaders supported Lauritzen in his election four years ago and have repeatedly weighed in on the selection of board presidents. This year, Duffy said the union would remain neutral.

Board members and district staff members, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that Lauritzen was asked to abandon his push for the presidency in exchange for promises that Canter would support him in a future run for the position.

Lauritzen expressed frustration as he waited for the meeting to begin. “There are still negotiations going on. I’m disappointed that it has come down to this.”

Canter’s election comes at a time when L.A. Unified is under scrutiny from inside and outside the district. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who was sworn into office last week, has said repeatedly that he will push for a larger role in how the traditionally independent district is run. In addition, the City Council has created a commission to explore the governance of the district.

Canter said she welcomed the interest of the mayor and City Council, but added that she expected the board to have an equal voice in the discussion.

“There is a very big civic dialogue going on right now about our schools, and I want to represent a strong voice of the board in that discussion,” Canter said. “I do not want people to write it off as, ‘Nothing is working and therefore the board is not working.’ ... I want everyone to know as they step into this how complex and difficult it is. Governance is not the only issue.”

As board president, Canter will also play a leading role in setting the agenda for the second-largest public school system in the country, which serves about 745,000 students and operates on a more than $6.5-billion annual budget. Along with running the unwieldy meetings, the president decides when the board votes on issues and attempts to find middle ground on contentious matters.

One of those issues is likely to be whether the board will allow Supt. Roy Romer to remain through the end of his contract, which expires in 2007. Because of a compromise when the contract was extended a year ago, the board must decide by October whether to keep Romer on or remove him next year.

Canter, who is widely seen as a strong supporter of Romer, said she “believes it is in the best interest of the district for the superintendent to remain until the end of his contract.” She emphasized that the board had not yet discussed the matter, but said removing Romer early would disrupt the district’s ongoing, multibillion-dollar school construction project.

First elected to the board in 2001, Canter was reelected this year when she ran unopposed. Since joining the board, she has led efforts to increase the number of credentialed teachers and to ban the sale of soft drinks and junk food on campuses.