LAUSD'S DECREE BID FAILS JUDGE DISALLOWS MODIFICATION OF SPECIAL-EDUCATION ORDER.A federal judge on Monday flatly rejected efforts by the Los Angeles Unified School District The Los Angeles Unified School District (the "LAUSD") is the largest (in terms of number of students) public school system in California and the second-largest in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population. to significantly change key elements of a 5- year-old consent decree A settlement of a lawsuit or criminal case in which a person or company agrees to take specific actions without admitting fault or guilt for the situation that led to the lawsuit. A consent decree is a settlement that is contained in a court order. aimed at improving special education. School officials had hoped to modify the Chanda Smith Consent Decree because, they said, its parent-run committees have focused on administrative tasks rather than on delivery of services. They also noted that implementing the decree decree, in law, decision of a suit in a court of equity. It is the counterpart in equity of the judgment in a court of law, although in those jurisdictions where law and equity have merged, judgment is sometimes used to include both. now costs the district about $1 billion annually. But U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Lew ruled that school officials are bound by the legal promise they made to special-education students and their parents five years ago. The district's arguments, he said, ``are all complaints about the structure of the consent decree - a structure to which defendants agreed and of which they were aware.'' The decree was drafted as part of a settlement agreement in the class-action lawsuit filed by the parents of Chanda Smith, a special-education student. The 1993 suit alleged that the district failed to evaluate disabled students and ensure them federally mandated special education. Attorneys representing the district's 83,000 special-education students and their parents heralded Monday's ruling. ``This consent decree is on the verge On the Verge (or The Geography of Yearning) is a play written by Eric Overmyer. It makes extensive use of esoteric language and pop culture references from the late nineteenth century to 1955. of full implementation. It was designed to reverse decades of neglect of our special-education students,'' said Mark Rosenbaum, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), nonpartisan organization devoted to the preservation and extension of the basic rights set forth in the U.S. Constitution. Foundation of Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . ``The judge's ruling sends a message to the district that it's going to have to keep to its word.'' Of the roughly 20 plans called for by the decree, Rosenbaum said all but four have been implemented. Those four will focus on improving access to schools, ensuring accountability, fostering programs for students with learning disabilities and developing related services for special-needs students growing up in the district. LAUSD LAUSD Los Angeles Unified School District (Los Angeles, CA) General Counsel Hal Kwalwasser said the district is ``profoundly disappointed'' by Lew's ruling. He maintains that the district's intention in proposing the change was not to abandon its responsibility to reform special education or comply with the consent decree. Rather, he said, the motion to modify the decree was aimed at establishing more specific performance benchmarks by which to gauge the schools' progress and to cut costs. The district's proposal Monday also would have replaced existing consent decree administrators, whom the district said were not independent enough, with a court-appointed special master to monitor the district's progress. Though the judge's written order maintains the status quo [Latin, The existing state of things at any given date.] Status quo ante bellum means the state of things before the war. The status quo to be preserved by a preliminary injunction is the last actual, peaceable, uncontested status which preceded the pending controversy. , Lew's oral remarks from the bench indicated he had some sympathy for the district's predicament Predicament Dancy, Captain Ronald must persecute friend to save own skin. [Br. Lit.: Loyalties, Magill I, 533–534] Gordian knot inextricable difficulty; Alexander cut the original. [Gk. Hist. . ``I feel the consent decree that was entered into was probably broader than the underlying complaint brought in 1993,'' Lew said. Plaintiffs said they would be willing to meet with school officials to discuss future changes. Parents, meanwhile, said they feel better knowing the system they worked so hard to implement in recent years won't be unraveled. Sherman Oaks parent Ruth Holzman said the consent decree has worked to improve families' access to special-education services. But she said it is difficult for families with special-needs children to get those services. ``My son's education has been very good because he has a mother who is articulate articulate /ar·tic·u·late/ (ahr-tik´u-lat) 1. to pronounce clearly and distinctly. 2. to make speech sounds by manipulation of the vocal organs. 3. to express in coherent verbal form. 4. , educated ... and because I've made it my business to learn about this school district,'' said Holzman, an attorney. |
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