LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT - Announces an Outstanding Career Opportunity as LAUSD's General Counsel - Ralph Andersen ...

LOS ANGELES
  UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
         Announces an Outstanding
Career Opportunity as LAUSD’s General Counsel
   Annual Compensation - $300,000 plus executive benefits

     Recruitment Services Provided by Ralph Andersen & Associates

A Remarkable Legal Opportunity
This is a remarkable opportunity for an experienced senior-level legal professional to join the Los
Angeles Unified School District. Serving as the General Counsel, this top individual will be an
exceptional communicator and thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced, and high-performance office.
The Office of General Counsel has a staff of about 145 (including 46 licensed attorneys) working
in areas covering legal services, labor relations, ethics, and student safety investigations.

The General Counsel will also have a collaborative style that supports transparency, innovation,
and timely response. Specific experience in K-12 education is not required although familiarity
with the California Education Code is beneficial. Highly skilled executive-level legal professionals
are strongly encouraged to submit credentials for consideration.

The Region
Los Angeles County is the nation’s most populous county with over 10 million residents spread over 88 incorporated
municipalities and 4,083 square miles. Its population is larger than 41 U.S. States and has a larger economy than
Belgium, Norway, or Taiwan. Its population diversity is matched only by its geographic diversity – from Santa Catalina
Island, to world-famous beach communities, the glamor of Hollywood, the serene deserts, and snow-capped 10,000-
foot mountains. The greater Los Angeles area boasts some of the most extensive recreation, dining, shopping,
sporting, and cultural amenities available anywhere. From an entertainment point of view, Los Angeles produces
much of the culture that the rest of the world consumes, and that vibrancy is evident everywhere. Three of the top
25 universities in the annual US News and World Report rankings are in Los Angeles. Professional Baseball, Football,
Basketball, Hockey, and Soccer teams all call Los Angeles home. With a mild, Mediterranean Climate, Los Angeles
offers literally something for everyone.

Overview of the District
The Los Angeles Unified School District serves one of the most diverse communities in the nation and is the second-
largest school district. The District, which includes over 1,380 sites, covers an area totaling 710 square miles which
encompasses most of the City of Los Angeles, along with portions of 26 cities and unincorporated areas of Los
Angeles County. Approximately 4.8 million people live within these boundaries.

The District has the second largest student population in the country. The total K-12 enrollment exceeds 557,000
students; more than 113,000 additional students attend community adult schools, occupational centers, and
children’s centers. Over 123,000 students are learning English as a second language. Nearly 80% of the students
qualify for free or reduced cost lunches. During the last school year with on-campus attendance, the District served
over 129 million breakfast, lunch, and supper meals. LAUSD offers nearly 300 magnet programs which focus on special
areas of study including Business, Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math; additionally, the District offers
dual-language programs in six languages. Due to the current COVID pandemic, the District is educating students
using a distance learning model. Distance learning is anticipated to continue through the end of this year and may
extend into 2021.

To serve the students, there are over 66,000 total employees; nearly 33,000 of those are certified employees, including
teachers, counselors, librarians, nurses, school psychologists, and school and central administrators. Additionally,
there are nearly 30,000 classified employees working in diverse business roles, and more than 3,500 teaching and
instructional assistants supporting our schools and students.

There are twelve bargaining units representing employees, the largest two, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) and
Service Employees International Union Local 99 (SEIU 99), represent teachers and classified employees respectively.

Overview of the District cont’d
 The District’s seven-member elected School
 Board has the overall responsibility for making
 policy, establishing and reviewing educational
 programs, and deciding budget matters for
 the District as a whole. Each of the seven Board
 Members is elected by voters of the geographic
 district he or she serves.

 The School Board appoints the Superintendent.
 The current Superintendent, Austin Beutner, was
 selected in May 2018. Prior to his selection, he
 served as First Deputy Mayor of the City of Los
 Angeles, Publisher of the Los Angeles Times, Co-
 Chair of the LA 2020 Commission and the L.A.
 Unified Advisory Task Force, and founder of Vision
 To Learn.

 Over 85% of the District’s General Fund comes
 from the State. In the completed fiscal year
 2019/20, General Fund Expenditures were $7.87
 billion.

Overview of Responsibilities
The General Counsel reports to the elected body, the Board of
Education and the Superintendent of Schools, and receives day-to-
day direction from and has extensive interaction with the Superin-
tendent. As such, the General Counsel serves as the top advisor for all
legal affairs that impact the Board or the District, in any capacity.

Major over-arching responsibilities of the General Counsel include
coordinating all the District’s legal affairs, conducting litigation for
the District, and participating in trials related to matters of major
importance to LAUSD’s educational program. The General Counsel
is expected to operate in a public sector environment that demands
timeliness and appropriate transparency.

Other key responsibilities include:

■ Administer the preparation and conduct litigation authorized
  by the Board of Education, including the preparation of plead-
  ings and negotiations between parties, and authorize settle-
  ments within authority.
■ Represent the District in all certificated and classified
  disciplinary hearings.
■ Represent District employees at hearings where criminal or
  civil charges are sought against employees, when such charges
  arise out of the performance of the employee’s duties.
■ Prepare written opinions and conduct independent research
  concerning legal relationships, duties, obligations, and rights,
  and the policies, programs, and projects of the Board of Educa-
  tion and Office of the Superintendent.
■ Provide legal advice and assistance to the Superintendent
  in order that the responsibilities of the office may be legally
  carried out.

Overview of Responsibilities cont’d

■ Serve as a resource person to the Superintendent of Schools and division heads regarding changes in
  administrative policy and the reviewing, planning, development, appraisal, and interpretation of legally
  related aspects of new or special projects or programs.
■ Anticipate the legal effect of emerging programs and projects; provide legal support for both educational
  and administrative programs proposed by the Board of Education and by the Superintendent of Schools.
■ Supervise the conduct of investigations into charges that legal requirements or Rules of the Board of
  Education or the Personnel Commission have not been followed in connection with employer-employee
  relations.
■ Advise and assist the Board of Education and the Superintendent of Schools in the drafting of rules,
  regulations, resolutions, legal forms, and other documents.
■ Draft and prepare amendments to proposed and existing legislation.
■ Analyze legislative bills which affect the operation of the school system.
■ Prepare required reports and special reports as requested.
■ Attend Board meetings and closed sessions to support and advise the Board members.
■ Oversee and manage the Department’s budget.
■ Evaluate the performance of all legal and administrative support in the legal office.
■ Work with outside law firms, as the Gen-
  eral Counsel has full authority to confer
  and contract with outside legal counsel
  to augment in-house legal services.

       ACHIEVE.LAUSD.NET

The Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate will be an experienced senior-level legal professional whose
expertise prepares her or him to provide a full-range of legal advice, support, and
counsel to the Board of Education, Superintendent, and the LAUSD organization
on an array of activities, legal matters, and policy initiatives.

Additionally, this legal strategist will have a track record of success in managing
a legal office with all resources. The General Counsel will also have exceptional
communication and interpersonal skills and thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced, and
high-performance organization. The General Counsel will have a collaborative
style that supports transparency, innovation, and timely response. The top
candidate will demonstrate the ability to craft simple solutions that allow the LAUSD
leadership to move initiatives forward.

The General Counsel will be an inclusive and thoughtful legal advisor who listens first, seeks
input, and then consistently presents legal options for consideration, allowing for a thor-
ough analysis of all aspects of an issue. With broad legal experience, the ideal candidate will
be able to evaluate controversial situations and present options in a clear and concise fash-
ion. Other personal attributes include being approachable and having a can-do attitude
and customer service approach.

Personal traits and characteristics:
■ Confident and engaging professional with outstanding communication, interper-
  sonal, and leadership skills with a passion for public service and strong work ethic.
■ Embrace the core values of integrity, honesty, and leading by example.
■ A strategic and forward-thinking legal advisor who is able to operate at
  a high-level yet is very involved in providing advice and counsel on
  operational issues.
■ A leader who embraces equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace.
■ Able to successfully and efficiently guide the legal affairs of the
  organization.

Qualifications
Education: A bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university and a Juris Doctor degree or
equivalent from an American Bar Association accredited institution is required.

Experience: Ten (10) years of experience as a practicing member of the Bar. Specific experience in education law is
desirable but not required.

License: Active membership by the California State Bar Association required at time of application.

Compensation and Benefits
The base salary for this position is $300,000 annually.

Additionally, LAUSD offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes:

■ Employer-paid health insurance coverage with choice of several medical, dental, vision and life insurance plans
  with no employee premium sharing required for employee, spouse, domestic partner, or eligible dependents;
■ Health Flexible Spending Account;
■ Membership in California Public Employee Retirement System (CalPERS) with District contribution of 18% of
  salary;
■ Auto-enrollment in
  the 457(b) deferred
  compensation retirement
  saving plan;
■ Twelve (12) paid holidays;
■ Twenty-four (24) days of
  paid vacation;
■ Employee Assistance
  Program; and
■ Relocation Costs,
  negotiable.

Application and Selection Process – How to Apply
This position is posted as open until filled. Interested candidates should apply immediately by submitting a resume
and compelling cover letter of interest to apply@ralphandersen.com. Top candidates will be invited to present
qualifications via a preliminary video screening interview with Ralph Andersen & Associates beginning in mid-
December 2020. A final slate of highly qualified candidates will be presented to the Board of Education in January
2021 with detailed interviews anticipated to take place later in January 2021. Video interviews are anticipated for initial
interviews (Round #1) with the Board and the Superintendent. Ideally, in-person interviews will take place with social
distancing in place for the finalist candidates. Please note that a list of qualified candidates for this position will be
compiled; the list may be used to fill other vacancies within LAUSD’s classified service as well.

Candidates should be aware that this position and many other positions at LAUSD are considered “essential” although
much of the school district is working safely from home at present time. This situation will change based on future
public health directives and conditions in Los Angeles County.

Direct confidential inquiries to Ms. Heather Renschler, Ralph Andersen & Associates at (916) 630-4900 or schedule a
discussion by contacting scheduling@ralphandersen.com with LAUSD in the subject line.

             Los Angeles Unified School District is an Equal Opportunity Employer