OurLA ...
Featuring
The Schoolhouse
On January 17, 2007, the
Mayor unveiled a new vision for the Los Angeles Unified
School District in a town hall-style meeting. Based on
months of research by the Mayor and his education team, "The
Schoolhouse: A Framework to Give Every Child in LAUSD an
Excellent Education," is a detailed policy framework for
improving every school in the Los Angeles school
district.
Over the last year and a half, the Mayor and
his education team have met with the most accomplished
educators in the country, visited dozens of schools in LAUSD
that are working for students and listened to thousands of
parents, students and teachers. The Schoolhouse
framework takes the best education practices from across the
country and learns from the success stories in the
LAUSD.
The policy framework contains 52 recommendations
for reform organized around six "Pillars of School
Excellence." These ideas have been proven to work.
In his address, the Mayor called upon the entire LAUSD
community to commit to implementing these Pillars of School
Excellence.
*High Expectations
*Safe, Small and
Clean Schools
*Empowered Leadership
*Powerful Teaching
and Rigorous Curriculum
*Family and Community
Involvement
*More Money to Schools
For a copy of
"The Schoolhouse," click here.
Keep
OurLA Safe
Mayor's Anti-Gang
Strategy
While overall crime has reached
historic lows in the City of Los Angeles, gang crime
is on the rise 14% citywide, with gangs committing 56% of
all murders in Los Angeles.
The Mayor has recently
stepped up efforts to address rising gang crime in the City
with four major efforts in the last month.
*On
January 3rd, the Mayor met with U.S. Attorney General
Alberto Gonzales to discuss how the City of Los Angeles
and the Justice Department can work more closely together to
combat gang violence. They discussed opportunities for
local and federal law enforcement agencies to coordinate gang
suppression strategies, including combating the growing
influence of trans-national gangs and increasing support for
proven anti-gang and prevention programs.
*On January
8th, the Mayor announced a $1 million signing bonus
program for new LAPD officers. New recruits
are eligible for a $5,000 signing bonus and officers
joining the LAPD from other California law enforcement
agencies are eligible for a $10,000
bonus.
*On January 16th, the Mayor announced a major
new gang suppression effort in the San Fernando Valley.
The LAPD and County Probation Department have joined together
to effectively combat gang crime that has risen by
42% over the last year in the Valley.
*On January 18th,
the Mayor, Chief Bratton, and local and federal law
enforcement officials announced a major crackdown on two
major street gangs in the Harbor-Gateway area. The 204th
Street and Eastside Torrance gangs have contributed to
the rise in racially motivated murders and other crimes,
including the murder of 14-year-old Cheryl Green in
December. The gang initiative involves a multi-agency
coordinated effort including the work of the LAPD, the FBI,
the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, the Los Angeles Unified
School District Police, the City Attorney's Office, the
District Attorney's Office, and the U.S. Attorney's
Office.
In order to strategically dismantle these two
gangs, the listed agencies will work together to: develop a
gang injunction, enforce and prevent violent crime, vandalism,
trespassing, narcotics, curfew, and truancy, issue search
warrants, check parole and probation compliance, and
investigate hate crimes and civil rights
violations.
*On January 23rd, the Mayor presented
Los Angeles' "best practices" for fighting gangs to the Mayors
Against Illegal Guns Coalition in Washington, D.C. and called
for increased federal aid to crack down on illegal
firearms fueling the gang problem in the country's urban
centers. Partnering with the federal government to track
legal guns and stem illegal transfers is part of the City's
comprehensive approach to fighting gangs. The Los
Angeles Police Department currently has 18 officers
permanently assigned to its anti-gun unit, while
the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms has
a 10-member task force in the City that works with the LAPD's
Project Safe Neighborhood.
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What OurLA
is thinking...
How well do you know the history of Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.? Last month, we
asked OurLA Readers some trivia on Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. Here are the correct responses with the percentage
of readers who answered correctly.
1. On what date did
Reagan sign the King Day Bill, creating a federal holiday to
honor Martin Luther King, Jr.?
November 2,
1983 25%
2.
On what date was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day officially
observed in all 50 states?
January 17,
2000 34%
3.
On January 16, 2006, which county was the last in the U.S. to
officially adopt Martin Luther King, Jr. Day as a paid
holiday?
Greenville County,
SC 34%
4. What was the date of Martin Luther King,
Jr.'s death?
April 4,
1968 48%
Is Los Angeles the
"City of the Future"? Click here to
select the city design of Los Angeles, New
York, or Chicago that best meets the needs of
the 22nd Century.
It's
OurLA
Looking for a way to make your mark in
OurLA? Start today by participating in one of
the ways below.
Have a say in
the City's Budget! Attend the Neighborhood
Council Budget Priorities Meeting
Saturday, Jan 27,
8am
City Hall Council Chambers
200 N. Spring
Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
For more information,
call 213-485-1360.
Become a Mentor! Studies have
shown that students with mentors are 70% more likely to
graduate from high school. 90% of these graduates
go on to college. Make a difference by going to connectinglosangeles.com.
Volunteer for the City's
Crisis Response Team! Contact Jeff Zimerman at
213-978-0697 or send an email.
Bilingual speakers who speak Korean or Spanish greatly
needed.
Be a Principal for a
Day!
Whether you are a civic leader, business
executive, parent, or community leader, you can experience the
Los Angeles public schools firsthand by shadowing a principal
for the day. For more info, call 213-580-7566 or go to
http://www.simplesend.com/simple/t.asp?S=174&ID=&NL=1872&N=13379&SI=0&URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eunitela%2Ecom.
Big Sunday '07 is April 28th
and 29th! Big Sunday '07: All Over Town. All
Weekend Long. Go to bigsunday.org
to submit a project idea or to donate funds or
supplies. Volunteer registration begins March
28th. For more info, go to the website or call
213-978-0600.
OurLA
Events
We hope you check out these events in
OurLA.
Free Jazz Concert in
Watts
Sat, Feb 3, 3pm
Watts Labor
Community Action Committee
Center
Phoenix Hall
10950 South Central
Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90059
For more info,
call 323-563-5639.
Pan African Film and Arts Festival
- Uniting Vision with Soul
February 8-19, AMC
Magic Johnson Theaters & Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw
Plaza
For more info and tickets, call 323-295-1706
or visit http://www.simplesend.com/simple/t.asp?S=174&ID=&NL=1872&N=13379&SI=0&URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Epaff%2Eorg.
African American Heritage Month Opening
Ceremony
Fri, Feb 9, 10am
Council Chambers
followed by program on South Lawn
200 N. Spring
Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Cash for
College Workshops
Beginning February 10
Go to
lacashforcollege.org
for the workshop nearest you.
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