ROMER GIVES FINAL WELCOME TO NEW ACADEMIC YEAR IN L.A.

Byline: NAUSH BOGHOSSIAN Staff Writer

Giving his sixth -- and last -- back-to-school speech, the superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District on Wednesday urged nearly 2,000 administrators to ignore the turmoil surrounding district reform and to focus instead on improving student achievement.

During his annual address at the Los Angeles Convention Center, Superintendent Roy Romer cited a years-long trend of rising test scores as he encouraged principals, assistant principals and teachers to work with parents and other advocates to close the achievement gap between non-Latino whites and other students.

``You have become one of the fastest-changing, effective group of educators in the United States,'' said Romer, 77, who has announced he plans to retire this fall from the nation's second-largest school district.

``It's obvious there are two conclusions: We have done very well, and ... we have a whole lot of work yet to do. You are the professional core that will sustain this effort.''

His inspirational message, which was well-received, contrasted sharply with last year's address in which he urged educators to quicken the pace of student achievement.

``I leave with a very strong feeling of hope because I stand before a band of brothers that cares deeply and ... is going to improve this school district,'' he said.

But Romer also criticized Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's reform plan, Assembly Bill 1381, which aims to give educators at the local-school level greater control over budget, instruction and curriculum.

``There is value in the uniformity of our effort,'' said Romer, who lauded the benefits of a centralized curriculum. ``You have to have a uniformity of expectation, a uniformity of approach. Let's get off of all this rhetoric of `central,' `decentral.' We will have both.''

School board member Jon Lauritzen advised educators to ignore the increasingly frequent and bitter attacks against the district and to do what they do best -- teach.

``I promise you you're not failing. You're succeeding,'' he said. ``As you begin or continue this school year, I urge you to cast off the doubts and focus on student achievement.''

Valerie Codron, an assistant principal at the Rosa Parks Learning Center, said she was inspired by the superintendent's message.

``I think he gives us back the power in the schools with his message of how important it is to work together,'' she said. ``He brought that collaboration to the district, and I believe we will work together.''

Town Avenue School Principal Mark Hirata said he hoped that the progress made under Romer would not be erased if Villaraigosa's plan is passed by the Legislature and implemented.

``All good things must come to an end -- and I hope that's not true,'' he said.

``I hope the new superintendent will recognize all the things he's established and give it a chance to perpetuate. And I think the legislation, which is likely to pass, will also be overcome by this district.

``The public has a lot of faith in our school system, and we see gains that make us want to come to work every day.''

Elsewhere, two LAUSD board members -- President Marlene Canter and David Tokofsky -- were in Sacramento on Wednesday in a last-ditch effort to avert the expected passage of AB 1381.

The measure would give the mayor jurisdiction over three clusters of the district's lowest-performing schools and also would shift significant authority from the school board to the superintendent.

Tokofsky said he and Canter weren't having much success in persuading legislators to vote against the bill.

``We want to try to get them to vote no because they should put policy before politics, but the climate is such up here that they think voting no is like bungee jumping and someone will cut their cord. We want to see if they'll bungee jump together,'' he said.

``Everybody is clearly afraid of losing committeeships and losing the $100,000 job after they leave the Legislature.''

naush.boghossian(at)dailynews.com

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In his sixth and last back-to-school speech on Wednesday, the soon-to-retire superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, Roy Romer, points to Academic Performance Index improvements.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer