State Rejects Lomita’s Bid to Leave School District

LOMITA —  The state Board of Education on Wednesday voted down a request by the city of Lomita to break away from the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The 7-4 vote dealt a serious blow to several groups trying to leave the nation’s second-largest school district.

The Committee to Unify Lomita Schools has made two major efforts since 1985 to carve out its own district, which would have three schools and 2,000 students. On March 11, the Board of Education voted against the most recent request, but because several board members were not present, the group was given one more chance.

“I’m really disappointed that they didn’t give the people the right to decide whether they wanted their own district or not,” said Cindy Grant, one of three petitioners on the Lomita committee. “We are in a democracy.”

She said the group would consider new options, including trying to form a larger district or charter schools.

The effort in Lomita is the first of such breakaway efforts to reach the board, and was opposed by a broad range of Los Angeles civic and education leaders who are trying to keep the district together. In March, all four board appointees of Gov. Gray Davis voted no.

“The teachers union is against this and the Davis appointees won’t let this happen,” said Gary Thomas, vice chairman of Finally Restoring Excellence in Education, a group seeking to create two school districts in the San Fernando Valley.

Thomas’s group wants to create two 100,000-student districts but is still in the signature-gathering phase and has not gone before the state board. Thomas said he is disappointed but not discouraged by Wednesday’s vote.

“Our group is larger and more politically difficult to turn down,” he said.