'Stand and Deliver' school failing

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 25 (UPI) -- The Los Angeles high school that inspired a movie about inner-city kids excelling in math is failing and will be targeted for takeover, a district source said.

Garfield High, known as the "Stand and Deliver" school after the book and movie about 1980s math teacher Jamie Escalante who took dozens of students each year to a passing grade on the Advanced Placement calculus test, is one of 12 LA public schools being put out for bid, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The board of education of the nation's second-largest school system passed a resolution to invite proposals for operation of several district schools, including the 4,600-student Garfield.

The district source cited Jefferson, Lincoln and Maywood Academy high schools and Burbank Middle School as possibly also on the takeover list.

The schools up for bid consistently failed to meet federal benchmarks for three or more years. The names of the schools are to be released as soon as all senior district officials have been notified.