Becoming a parent was, without doubt, the most humbling experience of my life. As a young educator, I found it surprisingly easy to dispense advice about other people’s children, a practice in which I blithely engaged with a self-appointed sense of authority. As if to exact a measure of compensation for bestowing the title…

During the course of a November 2, 2021 Zoom meeting with private school leaders, SSPI Thurmond committed to the creation of an advisory council on private education. Offering few details about the body’s composition and purposes, Mr. Thurmond hinted that its members would be drawn from both the private and public education sectors, and…

On May 12, 2021, private schools throughout California received word, via an email sent from the California Department of Education, that their applications for federal Emergency Assistance to Non-Public Schools (EANS) funding had been approved. The notifications also revealed the amount of funding each school was eligible to receive in the form of services…

Yes, that’s a loaded title, and lest it overly prejudice an open-minded reading of what follows, let me begin by offering credit where credit is due, and recognizing the good.  The California Department of Education does not lack for outstanding talent, leadership, and dedication. CDE staff are hard working public servants, seasoned educators and…