L.A. County court’s teacher tenure ruling can change face of education nationally

The striking down of California's public school teachers' tenure and other job protections by a Los Angeles County court judge would likely change the face of education in the Golden State as well as the entire nation, students' attorney Theodore Boutrous Jr. said.

L. A. County Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu on Tuesday ruled that tenure and other job protections for teachers of the state's public schools were unconstitutional. In the ruling the judge also said that those laws saddle students with bad teachers who could not be fired.

The ruling in the case, which involves more than six million students from kindergarten to 12th grade, welcomed by Boutrous Jr., the students' attorney.

Hailing the ruling, Boutrous said, "It's powerful. It's a landmark decision that can change the face of education in California and nationally."

U. S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan also welcomed the ruling, saying it would likely bring an opportunity to California as well as the whole nation to build a new framework for the teaching profession.

However, the California Teachers Association condemned the ruling, arguing that it would harm students. Describing the ruling as "anti-public education," it added alleged that the lawsuit was engineered by Silicon Valley billionaires to undermine the teaching profession. It may be noted here that Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, insurance entrepreneur Eli Broad and many other billionaires have been pushing for public schools to be run more like businesses.

The California Teachers Association, the biggest teacher union of the state, has vowed to appeal the ruling.