Los Angeles Unified will overhaul how it teaches English-language learners and black students in the wake of a 19-month-long federal probe that found they weren't getting the same education as other students in the district.
Almost one-third of the district's roughly 700,000 students are English-language learners, but the review by the U.S. Department of Education's Civil Rights Office found too many of these students were getting lost in the system and failing to graduate.
The district plans to more quickly move English-language learners into mainstream classes and focus on helping them graduate.
The district also committed Tuesday to boosting after-school programs, technology and other resources to schools with large African-American populations after the probe found wide academic disparities.
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan presented the findings and agreement to the LAUSD board Tuesday. Duncan praised the district for working over the last 19 months to draft a solid blueprint aimed at improving performance by the targeted students.
"Though we still have a long way to go until English-language learners and African-American students fulfill their potential, we are committed to getting (them) what they need," Duncan said.
He stopped short of saying that students' civil rights were violated and did not reveal detailed results of the investigation, just the terms of the agreement. But the Education Department
Schools in the West San Fernando Valley and southeast Los Angeles were among those examined, federal officials said when the probe began.
The plan calls for nearly 20 areas of improvement, including retraining teachers and staff and holding them accountable for the success or failure of those who are learning English.
The district also plans to improve technology, add library resources, reach out to special education students, advance those who qualify for gifted programs and prepare these students for college.
While officials could not estimate how much the overhaul will cost the cash-strapped district, Duncan said he hoped President Barack Obama's jobs plan would provide money to hire needed teachers and staff.
District officials said they will need federal funding and greater state financial support to make their plan work.
Superintendent John Deasy said he appreciated the civil rights investigation and was confident the district's plan will address inequities.
"I'm very proud to work here in L.A. and with a community that doesn't find blame or shame, but solutions," Deasy said. "We didn't spend time and months arguing, or time and months finding fault. I'm proud of the process."
Still, Deasy said the district has its challenges. One in three students is classified as an English-language learner, and the district has students who speak 92 different languages. But studies have found that only 3 percent of those students score at the proficient level in English and math in high school.
Some 93 percent of those students speak Spanish, but there also are large numbers who speak Armenian, Korean and Tagalog.
United Teachers Los Angeles praised the plan to help English-language learners, and said bringing back some of the 1,200 laid-off teachers and health and human services professionals could help achieve the new goals.
"These professionals can provide critical services in areas such as English language instruction, library and technology resources, and parent communication," UTLA President Warren Fletcher said in a written statement.
The Department of Education investigation launched in March 2010 was aimed at determining whether the nation's second-largest school district was providing English-language learners equal access to educational opportunities offered other LAUSD students.
The probe entailed evaluating how English-learning students were identified, what programs allowed them to learn fluent English, whether they had qualified teachers, and if parents were included in the process.
The investigation found that many students who completed the English-language program were not promoted to more advanced classes, and there was no focus on helping these students graduate.
Only one in four English-language learners who completed the program moved into mainstream classrooms. The concern was that too many English-language learners were getting stuck in the system instead of progressing and completing their education.
After the federal government announced its probe into the LAUSD's English-language learners, several civil rights groups, including the NAACP, Urban League and Black Educational Task Force, said the school district neglected its African-American students and any civil rights probe should include them as well.
The investigation was later expanded to include black students.
