2 holdovers on Brown’s State Board of Education
Discussion of conditional NCLB waivers expected at Nov. 9-10 meeting
Published: November 1, 2011
Seven members of the California State Board of Education nominated by Gov. Jerry Brown were confirmed by the state Senate in September. Two members appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger continue to serve; one position remains vacant.
The board, which also includes the state superintendent of public instruction as a nonvoting secretary and executive officer, as well as a student member with full voting rights who generally changes annually, is the governing and policymaking body of the California Department of Education. It is charged with adopting rules and regulations for K-12 education in the areas of academic standards, instructional materials, assessment and accountability. The board also adopts textbooks for grades K-8 and has authority to grant waivers of the state Education Code.
The State Board meets at CDE headquarters in Sacramento. Its next meeting will be Nov. 9-10, when issues are expected to include the Obama administration’s offer of conditional waivers from requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act.
Following are brief profiles of the appointed members, drawn from biographical sketches posted on the State Board’s website and other sources.
Michael Kirst, president (term expires 2014): A Stanford University education professor emeritus and Harvard graduate who has held several federal government education posts, Kirst and State Board Executive Director Sue Burr are the governor’s chief education advisers.
Kirst also presided over the board during Brown’s 1970s governorship. The State Board’s role has shifted since then, Kirst recently told the independent education research organization EdSource, “from being a wholesale policy organization, to being what I call a retail organization. We’re making decisions on specific schools, and specific districts, and this gives us less time and energy to focus on broad policy. I am worried that we will lose the broad policy focus, which is the board’s essential rationale in the state’s constitution.”
Trish Boyd Williams, vice president (term expires 2015): Williams comes to the board following her retirement after 19 years as the executive director of EdSource. Previously, she served in at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C., and as a consultant to the director of the Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth. Williams holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature and a master’s degree in urban studies and public policy from the University of Tulsa.
James D. Aschwanden (term expires 2012): One of the two Schwarzenegger appointees Brown chose not to replace, Aschwanden is the executive director of the California Agricultural Teachers’ Association and taught high school agriculture classes for 17 years; he’s also served as a local school board member. Aschwanden holds a degree in agricultural business management from California State University, Fresno, and a master’s degree in education from the University of California, Davis.
Yvonne Chan (term expires 2012): The other remaining Schwarzenegger appointee, Chan is the principal of the Vaughn Next Century Learning Center, a Los Angeles charter school. She is a first-generation Chinese immigrant who completed her undergraduate studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, and earned a master’s in special education from California State University, Northridge, and a doctorate in education from UCLA; she’s also pursued post-doctoral studies in computer science at UCLA and speaks four languages.
Carl A. Cohn (term expires 2014): Cohn is perhaps best known as a former superintendent of the Long Beach and San Diego unified school districts. He’s now co-director of the Urban Leadership Program and a clinical professor in the School of Educational Studies at Claremont Graduate University. Cohn earned a doctorate in education at UCLA and has been a faculty adviser for the Broad Superintendents Academy and the Harvard Urban Superintendents Program. He serves on the boards of American College Testing Inc., the Center for Reform of School Systems and EdSource, along with other national school reform organizations.
Aida Molina (term expires 2015): A former teacher and school principal, Molina has been director of academic improvement and accountability for the Bakersfield City School District since 2005. Previously, she was a commissioner with the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and a principal in several different school districts. A member of the Association of California School Administrators and the California Association of Bilingual Educators, she is pursuing a doctorate from Claremont Graduate University’s School of Educational Studies.
James Ramos (term expires 2013): Ramos is the first Native American to serve on the State Board and is currently chairman of the San Manuel Band of Serrano Mission Indians. He has served on the San Bernardino Community College Board of Trustees since 2005. A restaurateur and civic leader in the San Bernardino area, he was awarded an honorary doctorate in humane letters from Northern Arizona University. He earned a bachelor’s degree from California State University, San Bernardino, and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Redlands.
Patricia Ann Rucker (term expires 2014): Rucker is a legislative advocate for the California Teachers Association. She taught for 15 years, both at the K-12 level and at California State University, Sacramento, and served as a professional development consultant for CTA from 1997 to 2008. She’s regarded as an expert in state and federal education issues. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English from the University of California, Davis, and a master’s in education and curriculum instruction from CSU Sacramento.
Ilene Straus (term expires 2013): Straus is an assistant superintendent for the Beverly Hills Unified School District and has served as a teacher and principal. She earned a bachelor’s degree and elementary teaching credential from UCLA, a master’s degree in educational administration from California State University, Northridge, and a doctorate in educational leadership from University of Southern California. Straus was named the California Secondary Principal of the Year in 1991.
Caitlin Snell, student member (term expires 2012): Snell, 17, is a senior at Point Loma High School in San Diego. She plays varsity volleyball and is president of her school’s student mentor program, helping new students adapt. Snell is vice-chair of the San Diego Youth Commission and an alumnus of the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Organization. The student member functions as a regular voting member of the State Board.
Easylinks:
• The State Board Nov. 9-10 agenda
• State Board meetings online
• State Board committee assignments
• Kirst’s EdSource interview