蜜桃影视

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for 蜜桃影视 Newsletter

The California Charter Schools Association last month against LA Unified over its controversial new policy barring charters from using classrooms in certain district school buildings. 

It鈥檚 unclear if the CCSA will prevail in court, but the suit is already making an impact on the nation鈥檚 second-largest district. 

LAUSD鈥檚 new colocation rules were . The CCSA鈥檚 suit seeks to prevent the district from enforcing .

The suit alleges the new rules violate a 2000 compelling LAUSD and other California school districts to provide charter schools with classroom space that is 鈥渞easonably equivalent鈥� to classrooms used by traditional public schools.  

The new policy prevents charter schools from colocating with low-performing schools, community schools that provide social services, and schools in the district鈥檚 . It also prevents charter schools from being sited in places where they could siphon students away from district-run schools.聽

The restrictions would prevent charters from being sited at roughly 350 of about 770 public school buildings in the district, according to the CCSA. 

Under the new regulation, impacted charter schools will still be offered space to operate in other LAUSD district buildings. But charter school operators and their advocates say the restrictions will prevent them from serving communities that need them most.

Representatives for LAUSD declined to comment on the litigation. In in January, LAUSD superintendent Alberto Carvalho said he believes the new regulation is legal. 

Attorneys for CCSA and LAUSD will meet with a judge on July 12 to determine whether the case is ready for trial and to set a trial date.

Here鈥檚 what鈥檚 to know about the looming legal fight: 

1. CCSA has a track record of legal victories, but a win in this case is no sure thing.

The CCSA has sued various California districts numerous times over the years, and has managed victories in the courtroom, including a 2015 win against LAUSD that . But David Bloomfield, an education law professor at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center, said the suit faces a legal challenge in part because the impact of the policy is still unclear. 

鈥淭he court may say, well, let’s just see how this plays out,鈥� said Bloomfield.  

2. Even without a legal victory for CCSA, LAUSD鈥檚 regulation still may be modified or even abandoned

Carvalho created the district鈥檚 new colocation policy only after LAUSD school board members last year issued a resolution calling for the restrictions. But though he favors district-run magnet programs as a tool for reform, Carvalho is not a vocal opponent of charters. At the presentation of the new rules to the board, he said they might have to be changed.聽

The regulations also passed the LAUSD board by a slim majority. Bcould bring a pro-charter majority back in control, setting the stage for a resolution calling on Carvalho to alter or revoke the regulation. 

3. The colocation policy may already be having a chilling effect on LA鈥檚 once-booming charter school sector 

Los Angeles Unified has more charter schools than any other district in the nation. But today . The district overall is shrinking, and LA鈥檚 charter sector is dealing with a hostile school board, falling charter enrollment and the resumption later this year of charter renewals, after they were suspended during the coronavirus pandemic. Charter operators said the new colocation rules have already affected school staff morale and, in some cases, worsened their relationships with traditional public schools. 

4. The impact of the regulation could vary, depending on how it is enforced

Officially, the new regulation will affect where schools can operate starting in the 2025-26 school year, but board members have instructed LAUSD鈥檚 charter school office to take 鈥渢he spirit鈥� of the regulation into consideration in colocation decisions made this year. 

There are currently 50 charters co-located in 52 LAUSD school campuses, with 21 charter schools located in buildings that fall into the categories identified by LAUSD as no-charter zones. CCSA officials said it鈥檚 not yet clear if the policy is already being enforced. 

The new regulations provide an exemption for charter colocations, but only if there are no changes to those charter programs. Depending on how this point is enforced, more or fewer schools could be impacted, charter operators and the CCSA officials said.

Did you use this article in your work?

We鈥檇 love to hear how 蜜桃影视鈥檚 reporting is helping educators, researchers, and policymakers.