LAUSD Board Vote Settles Charter Facilities Lawsuits

Action by District Could Result in Charter School Students
Receiving Better Treatment
LOS ANGELES--(Business Wire)--
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board of Education
today approved a Proposition 39 facilities lawsuit settlement
proposal. The action lays the groundwork towards providing all of the
district's charter public school students with an offer of
district-provided facilities under Proposition 39.

The proposal, when fully implemented, would mean that every single
charter school that applies to the district for facilities in a manner
that is in compliant with state law would receive an offer of space at
a district site. The settlement will end two lawsuits brought by the
California Charter Schools Association and two charter management
organizations operating in LAUSD, Green Dot Public Schools and
Partnerships to Uplift Communities ("PUC" charter schools).

At issue in these lawsuits has been access to facilities granted
by Proposition 39, a state ballot measure passed by California voters
in 2000. The law mandates that school districts share public school
facilities fairly among all public school students, including those
attending charter public schools.

"We are grateful to move forward with California Charter Schools
Association on creating new opportunities for all public school
students while respecting the continuing crisis of student
overcrowding in Los Angeles Unified," said Monica Garcia, President of
the Los Angeles Board of Education.

"The California Charter Schools Association is pleased with Los
Angeles Unified's action today, which means that soon, students in
charter schools can expect to be housed in safe, adequate classrooms,"
said Caprice Young, president and CEO of the California Charter
Schools Association. "We look forward to working with Los Angeles
Unified as partners."

A charter school coalition consisting of Green Dot Public Schools
and PUC (Partnerships to Uplift Communities) Schools, parents and the
California Charter Schools Association filed two separate lawsuits in
the Los Angeles Superior Court against LAUSD last May over the
District's failure to provide charter school students with facilities
as required by state law.

The court ordered the parties to pursue a resolution process last
July. Today's vote is a culmination of discussions among LAUSD, school
plaintiffs and the California Charter Schools Association.

The proposal is subject to approval by the boards of the
California Charter Schools Association, Green Dot Public School, PUC
Schools and charter parents who were parties to the lawsuit.

About the California Charter Schools Association

The California Charter Schools Association is the membership and
professional organization serving 687 charter public schools that
serve an estimated 240,000 charter school students in the state of
California. The Association's mission is to improve student
achievement by supporting and expanding California's quality charter
public school movement.

California Charter Schools Association
Gary L. Larson, 415-722-0127
or
LAUSD Office of Communications
Susan Cox, 213-241-6766

Copyright Business Wire 2008