RIORDAN TOUTS DROP IN CRIME, ATTACKS L.A. SCHOOL SYSTEM.Byline: Rick Orlov Daily News Staff Writer Assessing the state of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. as it enters 1998, Mayor Richard Riordan Richard J. Riordan (born May 1, 1930) is a Republican politician from California, U.S. who served as the California Secretary of Education from 2003–2005 and as Mayor of Los Angeles from 1993–2001. Riordan ran for Governor of California unsuccessfully in 2002. touted the drop in crime and improved economy Tuesday while keeping his attack on the Los Angeles school The Los Angeles School of Urbanism is an academic movement emerged during the mid-1980s, loosely based at the University of Southern California and UCLA, that poses a challenge to the dominant Chicago School of Urbanism. officials. Riordan said his primary concern remains over the state of public education. ``I believe every citizen cares about schools and . . . should demand a revolution to get changes in Sacramento, to get changes in the local school district,'' Riordan said during the wide-ranging year-end news conference. ``We need a system . . . where people who fail children are fired.'' Riordan did not criticize individual school board members, but said they are part of a system that created the problem and has blocked solutions. ``It is not any one board member,'' Riordan said. ``But when you have a committee running things where politically they will not back a strong superintendent like Ruben Zacarias, you are doomed to failure. You have to put aside politics and hold people accountable.'' Board of Education President Julie Korenstein, whose district is in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. , said she agreed with Riordan's assessment. ``I can only speak as one board member, and I've been supportive of Zacarias, but there are some who choose not to give him the freedom he needs,'' Korenstein said. The mayor compared the problems with the school district with his efforts to rewrite re·write v. re·wrote , re·writ·ten , re·writ·ing, re·writes v.tr. 1. To write again, especially in a different or improved form; revise. 2. the City Charter to give the Mayor's Office more authority. ``You could have the brightest City Council there is - they could all be Nobel laureates Winners of the Nobel Prize are scientists, writers and peacemakers who have been awarded in their field of endeavour, and who are known collectively as either Nobel laureates or Nobel Prize winners. - but you'd still have a committee,'' Riordan said. ``And you know what you get with a committee? A camel.'' On other issues, Riordan pointed to the continuing drop in crime in the city as he praised new Police Chief Bernard C. Parks Bernard Parks (born December 7, 1943 in Beaumont, Texas) is a member of the Los Angeles City Council, representing the 8th District in South Los Angeles and former Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department. Parks attended Los Angeles City College, received his B.S. for increasing deployment of officers. ``Our goal was and is to be the safest big city in America,'' Riordan said. The mayor also renewed his call for Councilman Mike Hernandez, who pleaded guilty to cocaine possession earlier this year, to step down. ``He's a terrible role model for our city,'' Riordan said. |
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