Shade and greening at a school is not a privilege, it is a right for all children everywhere.  Any bureaucratic pushback about Carthay having more green space than most other schools is not a defensible position.  Is LAUSD interested in protecting the health of its students or diminishing it?

About Carthay Environmental Studies Magnet
Carthay Environmental Studies Magnet is a Title 1, TK-5th grade public school and the only STEM-certified elementary school in the Los Angeles Unified School District that combines garden sciences in an educational program centered on society and the environment. The school's edible garden, which began in 2006, is an integral part of our environmental studies program.

Carthay Elementary first opened its doors in 1924 to serve the immediate neighborhood. Today, Carthay's students travel from neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles, including underserved areas, to participate in our environmental studies program. The families represent the diversity of Los Angeles and speak over a dozen different languages from around the world: Spanish, Punjabi, Filipino, Russian, Farsi, Hindi, Japanese, Amharic, Armenian, German, Korean, Hebrew and Rumanian. Latest publicly reported student demographics: Hispanic/Latinx 44% of students; Black/African American 24%; White 17%; Asian or Pacific Islander 9%; two or more races 5%. More than half, 62%, of Carthay students qualify for free/reduced lunch and 18% are English learners.

Greening At Carthay
Carthay Environmental Studies Magnet has benefited from decades of partnerships between community and nonprofit organizations, LAUSD, parent volunteers, and student-led environmental activism. From the edible garden and outdoor classroom to the drought-tolerant front native habitat, the campus boasts beautiful green spaces that are often featured in LAUSD's greening presentations. However, these green spaces are not accessible to students for daily recess. The main play yard (which serves Kindergarten-5th grade daily) is asphalt with shade trees present along the perimeter of the yard. The exception is one shade tree near the play apparatus and two mature oak trees near the southeast corner of the yard.

Students deserve access to shade during recess and lunch play, which is typically the hottest part of the day. #SaveCarthayTrees is to protect this important shade as well as to protect these important life-giving trees. 

From LAUSD's website about Carthay's Environmental Studies program:

Carthay School of Environmental Studies Magnet is the only ETK-5th grade magnet elementary school in the LAUSD that combines the sciences and the humanities in an educational program centered on society and the environment. Environmental Studies is a broad, comprehensive field of study that engages students in real life explorations and gives them the skills and abilities they need to be active participants in improving quality of life for themselves and future generations.