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• Many feel Mokelumne River should be open

• Park 'host' enjoys people, living among wildlife at Clements park

• Report cards more than just A, B, C's

• Restaurant veteran brings Vietnamese flavor to Lodi

• Regional Roundup

November 2nd, 2009

• Deputies name suspect in fatal Acampo shooting

November 7th, 2009

• Lodi High graduate was at Fort Hood

• Lining up for flu shots in Lodi

• Tour packs buses as birdwatchers admire Sandhill cranes

• City of Lodi staff looking into possibility of limiting number of taco trucks

• Daytime thieves targeting Lodi homes

• Lodi High School rally featured on 'Good Day Sacramento'

• Out of control

• Homicide suspect Anthony Hubbard arraigned

• Regional Roundup

• New Lodi Memorial rule to combat spread of H1N1: Visitors must be older than 16

November 6th, 2009

• Short sales make up nearly half of Lodi market

• Regional Roundup

• Lodi man accused of smuggling drugs, weapons for inmates at state prison

• 'I-5 Strangler' sentenced to 6 terms of life

• Jury convicts Acampo man of torture, assault of his girlfriend

• Young girl is 200,000th person to assemble AIDS, HIV care kit

• Woman in wheelchair struck by car

November 5th, 2009

• A lower Lodi Lake

• Streetside scarecrows

• San Joaquin County considers moratorium on new Williamson Act contracts

• Speakers address Lodi Unified School District budget shortfalls, plea to keep programs

• Armed robbers still targeting Lodi shops

• Regional Roundup

• California voters have final say over $11 billion water bond

• Weekend bus service to continue until Lodi City Council makes decision

• Paul Tebbel shines spotlight on sandhill cranes

• Your complete guide to Sandhill Crane Festival

• David Diskin is first to give an invocation under new city of Lodi policy

• Man wanted in Acampo homicide gives up to San Joaquin County Sheriff's detectives

November 4th, 2009

• Candle fire

• Rep. Jerry McNerney sets telephone town hall for Thursday

• Jason Behrmann is unanimously named Galt's city manager

• Regional Roundup

• Galt City Council argues over ordinance hiring residents

• San Joaquin County sues state over prison hospital planned for Stockton

• Big win for Allen Baroni in reclamation election

• California sends Democratic loyalist John Garamendi to Congress

• Bicycling father raising awareness of teen suicide

• Lodi City Council weighs raising fares to restore some bus service

November 3rd, 2009

• 500 attend service for Kyle Coumas

• Correction

• Galt considers ordinance that would require city contractors to hire locally

• Regional Roundup

• Have you seen a missing guide dog puppy in Lodi?

• Galt man dies after weekend Highway 12 crash

• Jason Behrmann is top candidate for Galt city manager

• Deputies name suspect in fatal Acampo shooting

• Clarification

November 2nd, 2009

• Downtown Lodi trick or treat

• Public Meetings

• Correction

• Kyle Coumas funeral today

• 27-year-old man shot to death Saturday night in front of Acampo home

• Regional Roundup

• Group investigates reports of haunting

• Sandhill Cranes Festival comes to Lodi next weekend

• Lamborghini lovers gather for show, fine wine, luncheon in Woodbridge

• Lodi's 'Biggest Loser' Christy Richesin runs 5K Halloween race

The following stories have received the most reader comments during the last 7 days.

• Bible is entwined with American civic life (135)
• I predict: A conservative tide will rise in 2010 (73)
• David Diskin is first to give an invocation under new city of Lodi policy (70)
• The Treaty of Tripoli hoax (60)
• Universal health care solves big problems (54)
• Here's what my father knew about the assassination of JFK (35)
• Stuck in neutral? Hardly! (35)
• Words from our forefathers (27)
• City of Lodi staff looking into possibility of limiting number of taco trucks (24)
• Majority cannot deprive the minority (23)

ADVERTISEMENT

LA's mayor taking on a big headache with city schools

In a political power grab that has few historic parallels, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is slowly but successfully maneuvering to take over the troubled Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation's second largest K-12 system.

At first glance, any shake up at this vast district might be considered advantageous.

With a high school drop out rate of about 50 percent and lower than average national test scores, many wonder what's to lose by changing the bureaucratic players on a losing team.

But is a brand new mayor, just beginning his second year in office and with a full plate of municipal challenges already overwhelming him, the man for the job?

Since Villaraigosa took office on July 1, 2005, in Los Angeles the following have risen: spending, taxes, water rates, murders and certain municipal employee salaries.

Now despite overseeing the police and fire departments, the airport and the harbors, Villaraigosa wants responsibility for Los Angeles unified, the biggest headache of all.

What Villaraigosa proposes is that through Assembly Bill 1381, introduced by his friend Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, the Los Angeles mayor would have virtually unlimited power to choose a new school superintendent as well as to appoint key administrators with LAUSD. The superintendent, under Villaraigosa's direction, would have expanded powers while the Board of Education's influence would be reduced.

Before considering whether or not such a heavy-handed ploy is good for the

727,000 children served by LAUSD, let's pause to consider the politics, never far from the surface.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, endorses Democrat Villaraigosa's plan. Schwarzenegger said that he will sign AB 1381 no matter what its final form.

A more natural ally for Villaraigosa is Schwarzenegger's Democratic opponent, Phil Angelides.

But a Villaraigosa-Angelides partnership does not serve the Mayor well. In one of California's most open secrets, Villaraigosa has his eye on the governor's seat in 2010 when Schwarzenegger will be termed out.

A Schwarzenegger win in 2006 therefore plays right into Villaraigosa's hand.

On the other hand, if Angelides pulls off an upset, he would be running as the Democratic incumbent in 2010 thus delaying Villaraigosa's gubernatorial bid until 2014, a political eternity away.

If you can get past the cynicism of using school children as political pawns, is the idea of a government body running a school district sound? If history is the judge, the answer is an overwhelming "No."

In 1989, 1991, and 1995 New Jersey took over Jersey City, Paterson and Newark schools. California seized control of Compton 1993. Other states interceded, too.

But they all shared a common experience. As soon as states ran the troubled districts, they wanted out.

In her 1996 Education Week article, Caroline Hendrie wrote: "In case after case, when state administrators have tried to elbow out local officials and run a failing district themselves, improvements have come at the heavy cost of lawsuits, bitter media battles and confused and angry teachers and parents"

States also found that administering from hundreds of miles away is not so easy. Parents, especially residents of minority communities, resented interfering, predominantly white legislators. And firing teachers and principals sounds easy. But no one lined up to replace them.

Some mayors fared better, specifically Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and New

York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. In those two major cities, school plumbing now works and texts arrive on time, no small achievement. But academically, test scores remain in the pits.

Villaraigosa, should LAUSD fall to him, shows no particular talent or training for educational tasks. He has no degree in education and never worked as a teacher. In fact, Villaraigosa sat for and failed the California bar examination four times.

Los Angeles can't afford to suffer through a coup that will leave its students stranded.

Joe Guzzardi, an instructor at the Lodi Adult School, has been writing a weekly column since 1988. He can be reached by e-mail at joaquin@lodinet.com

First published: Monday, August 14, 2006