LAW LETS L.A. ADD CHARTER SCHOOLS : LEGISLATION LIFTS STATE LIMIT.

Byline: Terri Hardy Daily News Staff Writer

In the past two years, Tony Pena has watched the educational transformation of his daughter's school with delight.

Teachers at Fenton Avenue Charter School seemed happier, and little Carmen Pena's test scores seemed to rise accordingly. The school grounds were cleaned up, and Tony Pena became active in school decisions.

``This school went from rags to riches,'' Pena said. ``Hopefully, every school will become a charter school.''

A new law signed Monday will allow 12 additional charter schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District - more than doubling the programs now permitted by the state.

At a news conference at Fenton in Lake View Terrace on Thursday, state Sen. Tom Hayden said he wants to see more of the independently run schools because they could provide ``salvation for the independent school system.''

``In the public schools there is a crisis of confidence, they are underfunded and over centralized,'' he said to a crowd of squirming grade-schoolers. ``Charter schools make a promise to parents to get the job done,'' said Hayden, D-Los Angeles.

The new law lifts a 100-campus limit on charter schools in California. Hayden sponsored the legislation, which was signed into law by Gov. Pete Wilson.

Since the cap was reached, charter applicants had been forced to seek a waiver from the Board of Education, Hayden said.

There are 112 charter schools in the state, with nearly 40,000 students enrolled.

L.A. Unified operates seven charter programs at 14 schools. Three are located in the San Fernando Valley: Fenton, Vaughn Century Learning Center, the first charter in the LAUSD; and Montague Charter Academy, the most recently approved program.

A state commission charged with investigating charters recently found that the program encourages local leadership and education reform. Long waiting lines and reports of improved parental involvement are strong signs that the program is successful.

However, the report by the Little Hoover Commission said there is no proof charter programs are better than regular schools. The group urged that the schools be included in statewide assessment testing to measure their success.

Hayden said it was impossible to judge the program when so few schools were participating, and hoped the new law would allow better evaluation by opening up the field.

The charter concept allows schools to experiment with different administrative and educational approaches. A new school develops its own charter, with district approval, which frees the new school from following most educational regulations and policies.