The Los Angeles Unified School District can move forward with two single-gender schools under a law recently signed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

The new law affects the district’s Girls Academic Leadership Academy, located on the campus of Los Angeles High School, which opened its doors last year, and the Boys Academic Leadership Academy, which welcomed its first class of students at the start of the current semester.  GALA, which is in Sen. Holly J. Mitchell’s 30th Senate District, is already proving to be an impactful leadership-development option for students districtwide, Mitchell said.

“As the chair of the Select Committee on Women and Inequality, I’ve heard countless testimonies and read numerous reports as to the negative effects of implicit bias against women, particularly in science, technology, engineering and mathematics related fields,” said Mitchell, who co-authored AB 23.

“Women and women of color aren’t targeted, steered or directed to technical internships, jobs or opportunities.”

AB 23 aligns California law with federal requirements and will examine the success of the schools for possible future expansion of public, single-gender schools. Mitchell said the schools promote leadership and an interest in technology-related fields.

“These academies provide a space where students have the resources and opportunities they need to thrive, particularly in fields where they can blaze a path for the future,” Mitchell added.