Trinity Street celebrates victory over school closure

The Trinity Street School community held a block party this week to celebrate their victory in keeping their beloved school open.

Last summer, LAUSD announced plans to permanently close the 118-year-old school in Central LA and hand the building to Gabriella Charter. UTLA members at Trinity sprang into action and organized parents, community members, and members from surrounding schools to fight back. The organizing worked, and LAUSD has announced that Trinity will stay open and become a Community School next year. The Trinity community is still organizing against the takeover of classrooms by Gabriella Charter, which currently co-locates there.

“We are so proud to become a Community School and remain open,” Trinity Co-chair Sandra Bañuelos said. “We stopped the district from closing our school because of the organizing of union members at Trinity, union members from surrounding schools, our school board member, supporters, and most importantly, parents and our community. Although we’ve succeeded, the fight to take back our school continues. We must not let down our guard. We are Trinity!”

The fight goes on to save Pio Pico Middle School from LAUSD’s plan for a “phased in” closure of the school over a period of years. Staff and parents continue to organize to keep the school open and protect their uniquely Special Education-accessible campus with strong instructional programs and a dedicated staff.

UTLA’s Beyond Recovery platform includes contract demands to prevent school closures, expand the Community Schools model, and build fully resourced schools in every neighborhood.