Parents Fighting For Law-Backed Right to Take Over Compton Elementary School Take Cause to Sacramento

Parent Trigger proponents head to Sacramento.

The parent troops in Southern California who have been trying, so far unsuccessfully, to remake a Compton campus into a charter school under state law are headed to Sacramento to let their voices be heard on the matter Wednesday.

The so-called Parent Trigger law sounds awesome in theory: It allows parents with enough signatures and a crappy enough school to sign up to turn things around, charter-style. Except that the Compton Unified School District is doing everything it can -- including suggesting that some of the signatories are illegal aliens -- to prevent the community from getting their school, McKinley Elementary, back.

And so ...

... off they go to Sacto, more than 100 parents, by bus, to testify before the State Board of Education (1430 N St.) at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

They're gathering tonight starting at 10 p.m. at Church of the Redeemer, 900 E. Rosecrans Ave., near Compton, before getting on buses.

The parents want their voices heard as the Board of Education considers permanent Parent Trigger rules and procedures that will replace emergency ones set to expire March 15.

"These parents' rights need to be set in stone," Parent Revolution spokeswoman Linda M. Serrato tells the Weekly.

Update: Organizers of the trip claimed victory Thursday, saying that the state Board of Education agreed to extend emergency regulations that place the Compton parents in the right, call a special meeting April 21 to finalize permanent rules, and eschew "clean up" regs that parents feared would water down their ability to do this takeover .

First posted at 3:39 p.m. on Tuesday.