CLU Among Universities to Help Inner–city Los Angeles Schools

(THOUSAND OAKS, CA– November 2005) – California Lutheran University’s School of Education has collaborated with a team of Southern California universities to put a $400,000 grant to use in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).

Teamed with faculty from University of Southern California and Loyola Marymount University, CLU School of Education faculty will focus on three inner–city schools in Los Angeles during the initial portion of the project. “We wanted to come together with this project to create a formidable team rather than compete,” said Terry Cannings, Ed.D., Dean of the School of Education at CLU.

The grant, funded by LAUSD, will be used to provide small learning communities within Locke High School, Markham Middle School and Gompers Middle School in the Watts District 7 area. After observing each school’s culture, classrooms and curriculum, the team will implement an action plan to create the learning communities that will result in better educational opportunities for the students.

The teams will begin observing the schools this month and continue through December. The teams of CLU professors include Cannings, James Valadez, Ph.D., Mike McCambridge, Ed.D., and Randy Lindsey, Ph.D.

MEDIA NOTE: For more information, please contact the Media Relations Office at
(805) 493–3151. To speak with Dr. Cannings about the project, please call (805) 493–3422.