April 5, 2013

Hon. Marguerite Lamotte, District 1 Hon. Mnica Garca, District 2 Hon. Tamar Galatzan, District 3 Hon. Steve Zimmer, District 4 Hon. Bennett Kayser, District 5 Hon. Nury Martinez, District 6 Hon. Dr. Richard Vladovic, District 7 333 S. Beaudry Avenue, 24th Floor Los Angeles, CA 90017 Dear School Board Members, We as civic and business leaders in Los Angeles are strongly committed to ensuring that all Los Angeles students have the opportunity to graduate college and career ready. In order to see significant improvement in nations second largest school district, we must support and retain education leaders who are willing to put students first and guide our schools in the right direction. At this very time teachers are being asked to divert their attention away from the students they serve and take a contentious and unnecessary vote-of-no-confidence regarding Superintendent Dr. John Deasy. We the undersigned take this opportunity to support the work of Dr. John Deasy, his leadership team as well as the District. Although we have a long journey ahead of us, we believe that LAUSD leadership is taking the appropriate and productive steps to achieve success for all of its students. During his tenure Dr. Deasy has proven himself a more than capable leader of the Los Angeles Unified School District. Within his short two year tenure weve seen advancement in a number of areas that benefit students. Over the past two years weve seen a 9% increase in graduation rates and 17,000 fewer days lost to suspensions. Today, more students are enrolled in Advance Placement (AP) classes and took AP exams than in the past five years. More students are also passing the CAHSEE quicker. Weve also witnessed a significant rise in the enrollment of students-of-color taking the high school courses necessary for entrance into four-year universities. Our education stakeholders are also increasingly more engaged. Today teachers have the opportunity to be school leaders through teacher-led school designs like the current pilot school model. Hundreds of teachers participated in the creation of the teacher evaluation and support system. Parents have more choice for the schools they send their children to. Students have more access to technology in both the classroom and at home. Dr. Deasy has also brought new resources and partnerships to the District. Through his leadership the District has won grants like the Teacher Incentive Fund which has brought millions of dollars to schools that desperately need additional resources. Business partners have also supported hundreds of teacher-inspired and school-based projects and are committed to investing more in the effort to improve educational outcomes of students. We ask you to place the interest of LAUSDs children and their future ahead of special interests intent on putting politics before progress.

Sincerely,

Ed Avila
President, Alliance For A Better Community*

Elise Buik
President and CEO, United Way of Greater Los Angeles*

James Cuno
President and Chief Executive Officer, The J. Paul Getty Trust*

John Emerson David Fleming

Of Counsel, Latham & Watkins, LLP* Founding Chair, Los Angeles County Business Federation*

Kathay Feng
Executive Director, California Common Cause*

Ron Gastelum Antonia Hernandez

President and CEO, California Community Foundation*

Russell Goldsmith
Chairman and CEO, City National Bank*

Mickey Kantor
Partner, Mayer Brown LLP*

George David Kieffer

Partner, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP*

Andy Lipkis
President, TreePeople*

Monica Lozano
Publisher and CEO, La Opinin*

Cindy Miscikowski
President, Board of Harbor Commissioners, Port of Los Angeles*

Thomas M. Priselac
President and CEO, Cedars-Sinai Health System*

Robert K. Ross, M.D.

President and CEO, The California Endowment*

John H. Semcken III

Senior Vice President, Majestic Realty Co.*

Robert Simonds Gary Toebben

President and CEO, Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce*

Steven L. Soboroff
Soboroff Partners*

Matthew A. Toledo
CEO and Publisher, Los Angeles Business Journal*

Geoffrey Cowan
University Professor, University of Southern California*; President, The Annenberg Retreat at Sunnylands*

*Organizations have been listed for identification purposes only. 2