LAUSD TO SPEND UP TO $400K TO REVIEW FILES OF 8,300 EMPLOYEES …with what money?

By Barbara Jones, Staff Writer, LA Daily News | http://bit.ly/LqMxXx

6/26/2012 04:43:28 PM PDT  ::  Los Angeles Unified plans to spend up to $400,000 to review at least 8,300 employee files unearthed in a search for misconduct that may have gone unreported over the last 40 years, officials said Tuesday.

Principals at 941 of the district's 1,222 campuses met Superintendent John Deasy's deadline of June 22 to sift through employee files, and any files from the remaining 281 schools and offices are expected soon, District spokesman Tom Waldman said.

Deasy ordered the search in February, amid the sex-abuse scandals unfolding at Miramonte Elementary and other LAUSD campuses.

"There was a sense in the aftermath of Miramonte, and other revelations of misconduct, that the public's confidence in the district had been shaken a bit," Waldman said. "This unprecedented combing-through-the-files process, along with stricter (notification) guidelines, lets parents feel their kids are as safe as possible in our schools."

Deasy originally said he wanted every file searched, but he later narrowed the focus to 40 years because some schools are more than a century old and the task proved overwhelming. Administrators still said they had to search attics, basements and sheds where outdated files had been stored.

Waldman said administrators hadn't kept count of how many files they'd pulled, read and separated in search of suspected verbal, physical or sexual abuse.

The files have been scanned into a computer system, and will now be scrutinized

by a team of eight retired supervisors and administrators - a process that is expected to take three months, Waldman said.

To fund the project, the district has included $400,000 for the project in the 2012-13 budget set for approval on Thursday.

According to Waldman, two of the retirees will independently review each file and will judge whether appropriate action was taken in the past or whether follow-up is warranted. If either one suspects misconduct, the file will be returned to the school site, where the principal will be instructed to pursue the case with "due diligence," Waldman said. "Our efforts will focus initially on files of active employees," he said. "If the review determines further investigation or additional administrative action is needed, the school and Educational Service Center will be notified that further follow-up is required." Deasy previously ordered district staff to to refile four years' worth of misconduct reports with the state Commission on Teacher Credentialing, which has the authority to suspend or revoke an educator's license for sexual misconduct or other inappropriate behavior. At the time, Deasy said he wanted to be sure there was no lapse like the one that occurred when the district waited a year before notifying the state that it was firing Mark Berndt, the Miramonte Elementary teacher charged with committing lewd acts with students.

Waldman said it's possible that that there is some overlap between the 600 cases sent to Sacramento and the 8,300 files awaiting review by LAUSD.

The head of United Teachers Los Angeles said the district's duty was to report suspected misconduct when it happened, not years later, and that its lapse potentially created unsafe conditions at local schools.

"The district opted for a PR-driven appearance of vigilence and oversight in the place of discharging its duties in a timely manner to make sure children are protected," UTLA President Warren Fletcher said. "The LAUSD has spent years out of compliance with the state's requirements and the dangerous situation they created then can't be erased. You can't unring that bell."

California law sets a four-year statute of limitation for the state Commission on Teacher Credentialing to take disciplinary action against an educator suspected of misconduct.

Under Los Angeles Unified's teacher contract, four years is also the length of time that unsubstantiated allegations of misconduct can be retained in a employee's personnel file. After that, it must be kept in a separate "expired" file.

The scandals at Miramonte and other campuses sparked an outcry from Los Angeles Unified officials and children's advocates about the lengthy and difficult process of firing teachers accused of offenses against children.

Board President Monica Garcia and San Fernando Valley board members Tamar Galatzan and Nury Martinez introduced resolutions seeking to streamline the dismissal process and to create a standard procedure for notifying parents about suspected abuse.

LAUSD has since implemented a policy to notify parents within 72 hours if an employee is pulled from a classroom or arrested for suspected misconduct.

The district also backed a bill by state Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Pacoima, that would make it easier to fire teachers suspected of crimes involving children.

That bill, SB 1530, has been approved by the Senate and is set for a vote Wednesday by the Assembly Education Commission. That bill, SB 1530, has been approved by the Senate and is set for a vote Wednesday by the Assembly Education Commission. Garcia and Martinez are scheduled to testify in favor of passage.

"We all know and appreciate that the vast majority of our children's teachers are caring and responsible professionals," Martinez said in a statement. "But when a trusted employee has engaged in unspeakable behavior involving a child, we need the ability to act quickly to protect our students.

"Senator Padilla has stepped up to the plate on this issue and I want to challenge his colleagues to follow suit," she said. "This limited change to state law is just plain common sense and is the right thing to do."