The Los Angeles Board of Education signed off on a parent-led plan to turn a failing public school over to a private charter company this week -- the city's first use of the controversial "parent trigger" law.

The 5-1 vote granted parents in downtown Los Angeles final approval to convert 24th Street Elementary School into a charter school. The new school will be better equipped to handle demographic changes to the area, parents said.

The parents held after-school meetings at each others' houses for more than a year in order to craft a worthwhile charter proposal.

"It's been very hard and a challenge, because education is something that is so personal to everyone and yet it's a universal issue," said Chinmaya Misra, one of the parent leaders, in a statement.

The Los Angeles-area teachers union, which strongly opposes parent trigger, released a statement criticizing the board's decision.

"We believe parents do not want a private charter corporation to take over 24th Street Elementary, which is exactly what is happening ... as a result of Parent Trigger," the statement read.

The board also authorized an expansion of an already existing charter school in Los Angeles.

READ FULL SOURCE ARTICLE: 02/15/2013