Politics as usual at LACOE means ousting an award-winning teacher

Image courtesy of Michael Contratto

I'm fortunate to be an alumni of the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (LACHSA)  (class of 1990 - vocal music).

Mr. Jerry Freedman was my history teacher. Mr. Freedman, now the Social Studies Department Chair of LACHSA,  has been a part of the school since its inception 23 years ago. Mr. Freedman has been told he will not be welcome back next year.

Word spread to all the LACHSA alum that have reconnected via Facebook. Immediately, we went into action, sending emails to the superintendent of the LA County Office of Education (LACOE). At the same time, many of us were questioning how this could happen.

Mr. Freedman has been frequently honored in his years at LACHSA.

He received awards as Teacher of the Year, from Los Angeles County, was named Education Hero by the Los Angeles Dodgers, was the first non-arts teacher to be a finalist for the Los Angeles County Music Center’s Bravo Award and earned Certificates of Recognition from the California State Senate and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. He has served as a consultant to the Grammy’s Leonard Bernstein Center education foundation and a teacher trainer at Hillel Academy. He was named by the Mayor and Los County Board of Supervisors as one of Los Angeles’ “Most Inspirational Teachers.” He was the first recipient of the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Alumni Association’s Outstanding Educator Award. He is the also the recipient of the Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction Award.

This is what I remember about Mr. Freedman. He was always quick to point out the artistic achievements that correlated (and sometimes affected) the time of history that we were studying. He valued art and its contribution to his field, and the passion he had inspired all of us. I remember having quite lively discussions in those classes that encouraged our critical thinking process. I also remember Mr. Freedman was usually there to cheer us on at our artistic performances. At the open reunion we had a few years ago (to which all LACHSA graduates were invited), Mr. Freedman was one of the most popular attendees.

One fellow alum decided to investigate how this could happen, as we all were skeptical that "the budget" was truly the reason to allow such a treasured member of our LACHSA family to be replaced, as the superintendent had copied and pasted into all of the emails in reply to us.

LACHSA is a public high school open to all Los Angeles county residents that have successfully passed the admissions process, which includes an audition. LACHSA is not an LAUSD school, but is run through LACOE. When LACHSA first opened, it received its teachers as part of a loan program through LAUSD. Year after year, LAUSD continued to loan us these teachers.

However, we have since learned that as the school became more established, LACOE began to slowly replace our teachers with those through LACOE. Through the years, they replaced our first Music department chair, our first Theatre chair, our first Visual Arts chair, as well as three consecutive chairs of our Dance department. These teachers were all uniquely qualified to run rigorous arts programs as part of a public high school.

The other schools that LACOE runs are mostly court court schools with 12 students per class, one teacher, and 2 correctional officers. Needless to say, an incredibly different environment requiring a different skill set than teachers at an arts high school! And while our outrage certainly isn't personal to any current LACOE teachers, we are distressed that this seems to be a systematic endeavor to replace all of the teachers that have unique experience and history with LACHSA, and understand and appreciate the value that LACHSA has to all of its students.

Many of the teachers that have since left (or, more appropriately, been forced out) as well as Mr. Freedman were stuck between a rock and a hard place as soon as this loan-out program began. Most of them already had built up tenure through LAUSD, and while they could have made the switch to LACOE, they therefore would have lost their LAUSD tenure and their jobs would be vulnerable from the moment they forfeited that. Now, they are vulnerable because while they have continued to build up their LAUSD tenure, they are susceptible to losing their jobs to LACOE teachers.

This also points to a larger problem, of course, about the teachers' unions as a whole, and one that we're seeing playing out in every district in California. My own daughter's elementary school is losing teachers even though there are still jobs available, but because of union rules and tenure, they must lose out and other, more tenured teachers must come in.

As a single parent, I know how consistency and stability is crucial in our children's lives, since many have already been disrupted by a divorce or separation. Last year, we lost a beloved principal to political games at a charter school, a principal that had truly made a difference in my daughter's life.

It's time for parents everywhere to take a stand. It's time for the unions and districts to take note of how their rules and procedures actually diminish our children's education.

While the deadline has passed in most districts to try and save jobs, we still have a chance at saving Mr. Freedman's job. There will be a LACOE Board meeting on Tuesday, June 9 at 1:00 pm at 12830 Clark Ave., Downey, CA. In addition, there is a petition site to voice support for Mr. Freedman, and the LACHSA Archives Facebook group will continue to keep a watchful eye.