L.A. Schools Could Lose Funds if Test Is Delayed

State Supt. of Public Instruction Bill Honig told the Los Angeles Unified School District on Tuesday that the state could withhold millions of dollars in special aid if the district does not give a statewide achievement test for high school seniors next month.

The district had asked the state’s permission to delay giving the California Assessment Program test of academic skills to 12th grade students because the teachers union, United Teachers-Los Angeles, which is locked in difficult negotiations with the district over a new contract, has refused to allow teachers to handle the exams.

District officials said they will meet with union representatives today to try to reach agreement on ways to give the test that will enhance security and protect teachers from accusations that they tampered with student answers.

Expresses Concern

State Department of Education spokeswoman Susie Lange said that Honig spoke by phone with district Supt. Leonard Britton and United Teachers-Los Angeles President Wayne Johnson on Tuesday to express his concern over delays in giving the state achievement test, which all high schools are required to give by Dec. 16.

“He told them that he very much intends to pursue having that test taken, that it is a state requirement and that it should not get caught up in local bargaining issues,” Lange said.

Teachers union officials told the district that teachers will not help give any standardized tests because they had been unjustly accused of changing student answers on the CAP test over the last three years. Evidence of tampering was found in about 40 schools statewide--including 18 in the Los Angeles district--and was divulged by state education officials last September.

The union also is using the testing boycott as a bargaining chip in contract talks with the district. Negotiations are deadlocked over pay raises, elimination of yard duties and broader decision-making powers for teachers.

Teachers usually give the exams or serve as proctors. District officials say they cannot give the test without the full cooperation of teachers.

Johnson could not be reached for comment late Tuesday. But Richard K. Mason, special counsel to Britton, said the district hand-delivered a letter to Johnson on Tuesday afternoon asking the union to help the district give the test “even though there may be other matters left unresolved between the two parties at the bargaining table.”

According to Mason, Honig mentioned that funds from Proposition 98, the school-funding initiative approved by voters in November, and state support for special programs could be among money that might be held back if the test is not administered on schedule.

Lange said the state also is exploring possible legal actions.