March 03, 2022
By Cora Jackson-Fossett
Staff Writer
With confidence and determination, Alberto Carvalho, the newly appointed L.A. Unified superintendent, released his 100-day plan to begin improving aspects of the nation’s largest school district and expand high-quality academic opportunities for students.
Carvalho’s proposal contains four key components- learn, assess, communicate and act, which will lay the foundation for a forthcoming Strategic Plan to meet students’ needs over the next four years. Engaging these elements, he stated with conviction, should produce tangible results.
Explaining more about the plan, Carvalho said, “It is focused through a lens of equity that recognizes a lot of students have been in crisis during the pandemic. If we have to be honest, we have to recognize they were already in crisis prior to the pandemic.
They were in a social and emotional crisis, an economic crisis with many of them facing disabilities, parents who are overworked and not being able to provide the academic support that kids need.
“This plan seeks to inspire a new period of action that will turn these conditions into opportunities guided by core beliefs such as equity, empowerment and excellence,” said the superintendent.
The plan kicks off immediately with Carvalho visiting neighborhoods around the city to get input from parents and stakeholders detailing the changes they would like to see implemented. Comments from school administrators, teaching staff and support personnel will be solicited as well.
“I will be in the community – all zip codes and all communities - representing all races and all ethnicities, all walks of life and economic strata in our community to listen, learn and hear attentively the lived experiences of our students, the perspective of parents, perspective of the business community – to hear the good, the bad and indifferent,” he insisted.
“As a result of these conversations, we will deploy acceleration of learning opportunities, communicate back to the community and really take swift action to assign the greater support and budget to the community of students who have the greatest need.”
Carvalho expects 50% of the plan to result in programs, initiatives and resources being initiated during the time period. Also, a report will issued at the 50-day benchmark as well as at the end of the 100 days. He also aims to create focus groups, advisory boards, task forces and committees comprised of a wide spectrum of community members encompassing parent groups, faith-based organizations, social justice activists.
Some of the elements of the plan include academies to help parents and guardians navigate the school system and better advocate for their children, safeguarding children from a security perspective as they travel to-and-form school, and enhancing options for young people affected by food insecurity issues.
Stressing that he wants to extend early education opportunities for students in needy communities, Carvalho recognized, “You cannot do this without reducing class sizes in the highest need schools, bringing families into the conversation, exposing student – particularly in underserved communities - to the greater repertoire of arts and programming, addressing Black student achievement and the levels of math, literacy and graduation rates, and adjusting the existing plan to the current reality.”
School Board members were optimistic about Carvalho’s plan and pledged their support.
“Superintendent Carvalho's 100-Day Plan lays out an ambitious agenda, rooted in the voices of our community, toward realizing the promise of equitable and excellent public schools for all kids in Los Angeles,” Board President Kelly Gonez said.
“His plan will take the critical steps to evaluate the state of our district and build a collaborative vision of success to meet immediate challenges and long-term goals.”
“We look forward to the release of Superintendent Carvalho’s 100-Day Plan as he lays out the roadmap for his vision to lead our District,” Board Member Dr. George J. McKenna III said.
The 100-Day Plan can be viewed online at achieve.lausd.net/100dayplan.