An East Los Angeles school known for its mariachi program will remain open following a 4-3 vote by the Board of Education. Karma Dickerson reports for the NBC4 News at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 1, 2025.
East Los Angeles charter school KIPP Sol Academy will stay open after a 4-3 vote by the Board of Education Tuesday evening.
Hundreds of students, parents and staff made a Hail Mary pitch in Downey Tuesday evening to keep the school alive. The school provided buses to take families to the vote.
Help us save KIPP Sol 📣 Next Tuesday, the LA County Office of Education will vote on our charter renewal, and we need to show up in full force to protect our school community. ✊🏽
— KIPP SoCal Public Schools (@KIPPSoCal) March 25, 2025
📍 9300 Imperial Hwy., Downey, CA
🗓 Tuesday, April 1 at 3 PM
➡️ RSVP: https://t.co/LlTDh98sbm pic.twitter.com/spkRK3TT1e
“By them trying to close down the school is them trying to close down my home,” said 5th grader Monique Velasquez.
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It’s known for unique extracurricular programs such as mariachi and Folklórico dance.
According to a report filed by LAUSD in January, the school failed to meet or make sufficient progress toward meeting district standards, failed to make measurable increases in schoolwide academic achievement, and is unlikely to successfully execute the proposed petition program.
School leaders reiterated they are committed to improving the school, attributing the decline in performance as the long-lasting residual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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“We won the California Distinguished School award,” said Angella Martinez, CEO of KIPP SoCal Public Schools. “We’ve increased our results and to have the school closed based upon a couple of years of decline post-pandemic is in my opinion is irresponsible.”
The school was able to overcome the odds thanks to the Board of Education's vote.
"We’re looking forward to working collaboratively with the superintendent’s office to make sure we are very clear with expectations for us and for our partnerships so that we can assure that our kids get the best education that they deserve," Martinez said.
With the vote in its favor, the school will renew its charter but instead of being under the Los Angeles Unified School District, it'll operate under the Los Angeles County Office of Education. Its charter status will remain for five years.
