Carl J. Petersen
Bio
Carl Petersen is a former Green Party candidate for the LAUSD School Board and a longtime advocate for public education and special needs families. Now based in Washington State, he writes about politics, culture, and their intersections.
Stories (328)
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Failing Charter School Will Continue To Operate
“Closure of the charter school is in the best interest of pupils.” – LACOE Staff Going into the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) Board meeting on April 1, 2025, the KIPP chain of publicly funded private schools already had three strikes in its attempt to renew the charter of KIPP Sol. First, the Charter School Division of the LAUSD had looked at the school’s declining results and recommended that it be closed. In January, the LAUSD Board voted to approve this recommendation. The chain quickly appealed to the County and, upon review of the data, concluded that “KIPP Sol failed to meet or make sufficient progress toward meeting standards that provide a benefit to pupils of the school.”
By Carl J. Petersen12 months ago in The Swamp
Your Taxes At Work
“We had -- had already taken -- Joe [Wyatt], being one of them, was already broken down. He was already taken out. So the next step was the easy one. Once Brad got these pictures, Billy was next in line.” – From the deposition of Sukhbir Dhillon
By Carl J. Petersen12 months ago in The Swamp
Is The Resistance Dead?
“Democracy dies in the dark” – Masthead of the newspaper that turned off the lights Republicans govern with audacity. Whatever levers of power they control are declared to be the most representative of the people, an assessment that shifts with election results. They declare mandates when none exist. When reality does not fit their needs, they create a new one.
By Carl J. Petersenabout a year ago in The Swamp
Who’s In Charge?
“The door was opened. That’s why I thought I could go certainly into it.” – LAUSD Board Member Karla Griego As Dr. Rocio Rivas, Chairperson of the Committee of the Whole, prepared to move on to the next item on the agenda she was interrupted by LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. Rocked by the recent scandal of being sued by his predecessor for allegedly misspending PROP-28 funds earmarked for expanding arts programs, Carvalho sought to use the appearance of the District’s auditor to try to repair his image. Most importantly, he wished to challenge the allegation that he had used these funds to pay for programs that existed before voters passed the proposition.
By Carl J. Petersenabout a year ago in The Swamp
The LAUSD School Board Drops The Ball Again
The Watts Learning Center “did not consistently attain measurable increases in academic achievement in all academic performance indicators schoolwide and for all numerically significant student groups between 2022 and 2023 and between 2023 and 2024 based on California School Dashboard data.” – LAUSD Charter School Division
By Carl J. Petersenabout a year ago in The Swamp
The Future Is Put On Hold
“Future is Now Schools-Los Angeles’ failure to timely comply with the reporting requirements that apply to nonprofit corporations raises concerns that the Petitioner chose not to comply with, or is unfamiliar with, specified legal requirements.” – LAUSD Charter School Division
By Carl J. Petersenabout a year ago in The Swamp
