As a writer for the Wave Newspaper, a publication that covers South Los Angeles, East L.A. and Compton, I developed and continued a beat on education in the South L.A. neighborhoods.
Dr. Dre to give $10 million to Compton schools
Music mogul and former member of N.W.A hip-hop group, Dr. Dre, wanted to give back to the city he once called home. The music mogul pledged $10 million to build a performing arts complex at the new Compton High School campus. Construction is slated to begin in 2020.
Deadline nears for L.A. College Promise program
Starting in the 2017-2018 school year, Los Angeles Unified School District high school seniors are now able to apply for a free year of community college, regardless of their grade point average or financial standing. This is an initiative of the Los Angeles College Promise program, a partnership with the city of L.A., the L.A. Unified School District and the nine colleges that make up the L.A. County Community College District (LACCD).
Proposed technological hub being discussed in Compton
With a new technological hub proposed for Compton, the city aims to launch the new Snapchat or Steve Jobs. The potential HubCity Live development includes a seven-story innovation and business center with labs, offices and flats. It will also feature a three-story cultural and education center.
Compton YouthBuild offers young people ‘a tool belt for life’
Compton YouthBuild, an initiative to help young people build self-sustaining lives, formed a partnership with Solar Gard, a company that makes protective window coatings. Representatives of the organization came to Compton and showed students how to install film on windows. Compton YouthBuild founder Sara Silva, a former teacher, thought the lesson could have larger implications for their future. “We want our students to see that construction isn’t just putting up lumber; it can take you lots of places,” she said, adding that window installation is an in-demand profession.
El Rancho district seeks $200 million bond issue
The El Rancho Unified School District Board of Education voted 4-0 to approve a $200 million bond and a parcel tax for modifications to El Rancho High School. The bond will also fund the construction of a new math and science building as well as a sports complex. School district voters approved the initiative in November 2017.
LAUSD opens girls-only leadership academy
Photograph by Anne Artley
When former L.A. Unified teacher Elizabeth Hicks saw the education her daughters were receiving at the Marlborough School, a private, all-girls academy in nearby Hancock Park, it inspired her to start a similar school in South L.A. The Girls Academic Leadership Academy aims to inspire interest in science, technology, engineering and math.
Community tells superintendent their goals for South L.A. schools
In 2015, a lawsuit was filed against the Los Angeles Unified School District on behalf of the Community Coalition, a social justice organization based in South Los Angeles. The lawsuit claimed that the district misused funds intended for underserved schools, which the school board designated in a 2014 resolution. In the midst of the controversy, district Superintendent Michelle King addressed the concerns of students and parents representing these schools at a town hall meeting.