Though there have been new policy initiatives working toward educational equity in California, disparities still remain among students of different ethnic groups, according to a report released last week by the Public Policy Institute of California The report found that while four-year college completion rates increased for all ethnic groups from 1990 to 2000 in California, white and Asian students experienced a much higher increase than other underrepresented groups. Read more...

Greg Martayan said he doesn’t think he’s done enough for Los Angeles, even though at 21, he’s already put in several years of public service on commissions and boards that focus on issues ranging from crime prevention to education. Read more...

Sheathed in baggy jeans and puff-coat sweatshirts, some of the loiterers outside of many alcohol retail stores in Westwood may have more authority than their casual appearance suggests. Read more...

The students asked him about Sudan. They asked him about ethnic studies research centers. They asked him about the nuclear laboratory in Los Alamos. They even asked him if he listened to UCLAradio.com or owned an iPod. Read more...

Chances are you’ve never heard of him, but Walter Moore has no doubt that he will be the next mayor of Los Angeles. Though most news organizations rarely bother to cover the nearly anonymous candidate’s campaign and often exclude the trial lawyer’s candidacy in polls, Moore believes that he has 20 percent of the vote, putting him neck and neck with current frontrunner Antonio Villaraigosa. Read more...

Both measures on the March 8 city election ballot propose to amend the City Charter rules governing the fire and police departments pension plans. Charter Amendment 1 seeks to include port police officers in the same pension plans the Los Angeles Fire Department and the Los Angeles Police Department uses. Read more...

Michelle Garakian passes out campaign signs and speaks to Los Angeles residents and business owners for about 20 hours each week without pay. She says it’s fun. Read more...