L.A. school plan in danger of collapse in Sacramento

By: MICHAEL R. BLOOD - Associated Press | Thursday, June 15, 2006 7:24 PM PDT ∞

LOS ANGELES -- Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's ambitious plan to take control of the Los Angeles Unified School District -- the centerpiece of his mayoralty -- is in danger of collapsing in the Legislature where Democrats are deeply divided over its reach and impact on teachers.

The future of the takeover proposal is so shaky that Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, a close friend of the mayor, warned him in a phone call Thursday that it could fall apart unless Villaraigosa makes a lobbying trip to Sacramento next week to personally pressure legislators and interest groups. Democrats hold a majority in both chambers.

"It's not dead but it's in trouble," Nunez said in an interview. The mayor "is not a threat to the teachers. ... He simply wants to close the achievement gap."

Villaraigosa's office confirmed the call and said a trip to the Capitol was being scheduled for Monday and he will meet with legislators, unions and business leaders with a stake in the outcome.

The mayor "has known all along that reforming the public schools would be an uphill battle," said a spokeswoman, Janelle Erickson. "He wants to force a debate that makes it impossible for people to say no to reform."

Villaraigosa has anchored his mayoralty to his proposed takeover of the 730,000-student system -- the second-largest in the nation -- which includes Los Angeles and more than two dozen smaller, suburban cities.

In April, Villaraigosa called on the Legislature to largely strip power from the troubled district and shift much of it to his office, a proposal that is loosely modeled on mayoral takeovers in Chicago, Boston and New York City. If approved by lawmakers, it would negate the possibility of sending the issue to voters, where the outcome would be far from assured.

The mayor's blueprint would wrest control from an elected school board, establishing a council of mayors to oversee the schools. Los Angeles is by far the largest city in the district, and its mayor would essentially be in charge of the council.

Critics call the mayor's proposal a power grab, and it has strained his relationships with district officials and the teachers union. Villaraigosa has said he expects his proposal to result in a political war over school control.

"It's not a surprise it's in trouble -- it's not a good idea," said Barbara Kerr, head of the 335,000-member California Teachers Association. "There are many things we can do for our students, but mayoral control is not one of them.

"If you take control of the schools farther away from the community and the parents, that will make it more difficult all the way around," Kerr said. "We see it as another entanglement -- it's like another sideshow -- instead of concentrating on the classroom and the teachers and the things that they need."