Phones rang nonstop Monday morning at LA United School District’s makeshift call center.

  • Strike Hotline is open 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday-Friday
  • Call 213-443-1300

The LAUSD set up a strike hotline last week as a place for parents to call and get answers to their questions. And they had a lot of them – placing about a thousand calls in the first few hours.

“It’s been pretty hectic," says Angie Cardenas, who normally works for the district in their Parent and Community Services office. For now, she’s one of a few dozen district employees taking those calls. 

She says a common question is “Will the absence count against the students?"

 

Monica Carazo is overseeing the call center, which began in one room but has already doubled in size. “This is a second room, the overflow room," she explains as she enters, "So in total we have 37 stations with 16 capable of taking Spanish phone calls.”

“We understand that a lot of people have questions, especially parents," she says. "A lot of mixed messages out there. You read something on one website, one party saying the other. So we get it. You want to find the right answer.”

Or just express an opinion. They get that a lot too. Parents calling to log their support for the teachers, which they document along with every other call. Sometimes, the teachers even call on their own.  

“I had a few teachers that are outside right now call and say Mr. Beutner has to decrease class size," Cardenas says. "That’s what they’re saying.”

And even though an occasional caller may be stressed or short with her, she takes it in stride.  She remains calm, tries to answer what she can, and hopefully put their minds a little more at ease.

“They understand. They understand that we are not the enemy. We’re just doing our best," she says.