Dive Brief:

• California's charter schools are embattled in political fights across the state with unions squaring off against school choice advocates, including in Los Angeles and in Oakland, where the district's superintendent has supported moving students into charters.
• The battles around charters can be seen as a proxy for a larger and divisive discussion about school reform in the state, the Fresno Bee reports.
• State politicians are also divided on the issue, with California Gov. Jerry Brown supporting charters while other legislators who side with unions have presented legislative proposals that would bring greater scrutiny to charters.

Dive Insight:

The Los Angeles Unified School District perhaps best exemplifies the charter debate. There, the LAUSD school board has sided primarily with unions, yet they're up against private funders and organizations that are extremely wealthy and powerful. The Broad Foundation had proposed spending more than $490 million in an attempt to enroll half of the district’s students in 260 charters over the next eight years.

For her part, recently-appointed LAUSD Superintendent Michelle King has said she's not for or against the Broad proposal. "I do not believe this has to be an either/or conversation," she told Education Dive in an interview. "There are amazing things happening instructionally across our district, in charter schools and traditional schools alike."

Charter expansions in Los Angeles and elsewhere have proven controversial, prompting considerable pushback from local communities. Results from the schools have been mixed: New Orleans students are performing better than they did before the entire district was turned over to charters, but many say that doesn't capture the whole picture.