Theodore R. Mitchell, President | Ruth Bloom, Vice President
Kenneth Noonan |
Alan Bersin | Yvonne Chan | Donald G. Fisher |
Gregory W. Jones
Johnathan Williams |
David Lopez | James D. Aschwanden | Monica Liu
Mr. Theodore R. Mitchell
State Board President
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-319- 0827
Took Office: March 20, 2007
Term Expires: January 15, 2011
Ted Mitchell is President and CEO of NewSchools Venture Fund, a venture philanthropy firm focused on transforming public education for underserved children.
Prior to joining NewSchools, Mitchell served as president of Occidental College. He also served as deputy to the president at Stanford and Dean of the School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA. Mitchell is a national leader in the effort to provide high-quality education for all students and has long been active in California and Los Angeles educational reform initiatives. He currently chairs the Governor’s Committee on Educational Excellence, charged with making recommendations to improve California’s system of K-12 finance and governance.
Mitchell received his BA in History and Economics, his MA in History, and his Ph.D. in the History of American Education all from Stanford. Mitchell also served as a member of the Stanford Board of Trustees from 1985-1990.
Mitchell is married to Christine Beckman, Professor of Organizational Behavior and Strategy at the Paul Merage School of Business at UCI. They have two children, Caroline (7) and Theo (5).
Ms. Ruth Bloom
State Board Vice President
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, California 95814
916-319-0827
Took Office: February 12, 2007
Term Expires: January 15, 2011
Ruth Bloom, MA, has been a public school teacher, arts educator, and arts advocate for over 30 years. She is a collector, a former gallerist, and has helped develop major collections for many corporations and private collectors. She has developed and taught courses on contemporary art history at the college level and has been a parenting specialist. Her lifelong concerns have been in education and the arts. She is currently a member of the board of trustees of the Museum of Contemporary Arts in Los Angeles; chair and founder of the Photography Acquisition Committee; and Teach for America. She is also an advisory board member of the CineVegas Film Festival and the Boise Art Museum.
Mr. Kenneth Noonan
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, California 95814
916-319-0827
Took Office: May 15, 2005
Term Expires: January 15, 2009
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Ken Noonan to the California State Board of Education in April 2005. Recognized in 2003 as Superintendent of the Year by the Association of California School Administrators, Ken has served as superintendent of the Oceanside Unified School District since February 1997. He was California’s nominee in New Orleans, LA, for 2003 National Superintendent of the Year.
During his early career, Ken taught English and Shakespeare at the high school level and later taught bilingual classes at the junior high level where he became the director of a large bilingual program. He was appointed Director of Secondary Education with responsibility for several schools. He also served as superintendent for Corcoran Joint Unified School District and Gilroy Unified School District. In Gilroy, he developed and administered a program of School of Choice and began programs to combat violence, gang problems, and a high dropout rate.
Ken graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Studies and English from California State University, Los Angeles in 1967. He later earned a Masters Degree in Education from Whittier College, with a concentration in Bilingual Education, and his Administrative Credential at Claremont Graduate School.
Mr. Alan Bersin
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, California 95814
916-319-0827
Took Office: February 22, 2006
Term Expires: January 15, 2010
Alan Bersin was appointed California’s Secretary of Education on July 1, 2005 by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Immediately prior to his appointment by the Governor, he was Superintendent of Public Education in San Diego City Schools. Prior to becoming superintendent, Mr. Bersin served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of California for nearly five years. As such, he was the chief federal law enforcement officer in San Diego and Imperial counties, appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Mr. Bersin also served as the Attorney General’s Southwest Border Representative, responsible for coordinating federal law enforcement activities on the U. S./Mexico border.
Mr. Bersin previously was a senior partner in the Los Angeles law firm of Munger, Tolles & Olson where he specialized in complex RICO, securities, commercial and insurance litigation before state and federal trial and appellate courts. He is a member of the California and Alaska bars.
Other professional experience includes employment as Special Counsel to the Los Angeles Police Commission, as visiting professor of law at the University of San Diego’s School of Law and as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Southern California Law Center.
Mr. Bersin received his A.B. in government from Harvard University (magna cum laude). He attended Balliol College at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. He received his J.D. degree from the Yale Law School. Mr. Bersin was awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws (Honorary) by the University of San Diego, by California Western School of Law and by the Thomas Jefferson School of Law.
Ms. Yvonne Chan
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, California 95814
916-319-0827
Took Office: April 15, 2005
Term Expires: January 15, 2008
Dr. Yvonne Chan is the principal of the Vaughn Next Century Learning Center in Los Angeles which serves 1,900 pre-school through 10th grade students living in poverty. As one of the most successful urban public schools and conversion charter schools in the nation, Vaughn serves as a model which has solved many public education challenges. Vaughn was named a 1995 California Distinguished School and a 1996 National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education.
In addition to being a school principal, Dr. Chan is also an adjunct professor at UCLA. She is a commissioner of the Los Angeles City Commission for Children Youth and Families. Dr. Chan also serves on the Board of Public/Private Venture in Philadelphia , the California State University Advisory Board, and the Consortium for Policy Research in Education. Her degrees include a B.A. in foreign languages from UCLA, a M.A. in special education from California State University, Northridge, a doctorate in education from UCLA, and post-doctoral in computer science.
Mr. Donald G. Fisher
photo unavailable
Contact:
2 Folsom Street
15th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
Took Office: March 15, 2005
Term Expires: January 15, 2009
Donald G. Fisher, founder and chairman emeritus of Gap Inc., is a visionary in specialty retailing. Since its beginnings in 1969 as a jeans-only store in San Francisco, the company he started with his wife, Doris, has grown and expanded to become one of the greatest successes in retailing history.
In addition to his contributions to the dramatic growth and expansion of Gap Inc. into a multi-billion dollar international corporation, Mr. Fisher has long been a community leader and philanthropist as well. He serves on the board of trustees of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; is a director of the Boys and Girls Club of San Francisco and a governor of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America; and serves as a director on the boards of EdVoice, KIPP and Teach for America.
He received three presidential appointments to the Advisory Council for U.S. Trade Representatives, and was named to the Presidio Trust board of directors by President Clinton in 1997 and President Bush in 2001. He is a member and former chairman of the University of California’s Haas School of Business Advisory Council, and had served on Princeton University’s Board of Trustees.
Board Liaison Assignments: High School Exit Examination; and California School Information System.
Gregory W. Jones
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, California 95814
916-319-0827
Took Office:
March 12, 2008
Term Expires: January 15, 2012
Gregory Jones is the Senior Vice President and member of the Chairman’s Council for State Farm Mutual Insurance Companies and past President and Chief Executive Officer of State Farm General Insurance Company.
Mr. Jones started his State Farm career in 1968 in the companies’ Ohio Regional Office. Following a number of promotions in all facets of the insurance business, he was named division manager in the Pennsylvania Region in 1983, executive assistant in the President’s Office in 1985, deputy regional vice president in the Northern California Region in 1988, and regional vice president in the South Coast Region in 1993. He became President and Chief Executive Officer of State Farm General Company in 1998 and was appointed Senior Vice President to State Farm Mutual Companies in 2001.
Mr. Jones currently serves on the Board of Directors for State Farm General Insurance Company, the California Chamber of Commerce, Operation Hope, and Coalition for Access to Education Resources. He is chairman of the board of the California Business Roundtable and the California Business for Education Excellence Foundation, as well as, past chairman of the Junior Achievement of Southern California and the Los Angeles Urban League. In 2008, he was appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger to the State Board of Education. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of Franklin University and the National Urban League. He received the Empowerment Achievement Award in 1995, Dollars and Sense Magazine’s Corporate Trailblazer Award in 1997, and the Anti-Defamation League’s World of Difference Award in 1999. Mr. Jones was the 1999 honoree of the Watt’s Health Foundation and was the 2000 honoree of the Insurance Industry Charitable Fund. In 2003, he was chosen as the National Honorary member to the Delta Sigma Pi Business Fraternity. In 2006, he was named Executive of the Year by the Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Jones holds a bachelor’s degree from Franklin University and master degree from Hood College and attended the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Business School. In 2006, he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Franklin University.
Mr. Johnathan Xavier Williams
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, California 95814
916-319-0827
Took Office: March 12, 2007
Term Expires: January 15, 2011
Johnathan Williams is Founder and Co-Director of The Accelerated School (TAS), a model public/private partnership charter school organization in South Central Los Angeles, where he has dramatically begun to change the academic achievement of the students and the surrounding community. The school was named TIME Magazine’s “Elementary School of Year” in 2001 for “having found the most promising approaches to the most pressing challenges in education.” The Accelerated School serves 1,200 Latino and African American students, pre-Kindergarten through high school, and has a waiting list of over 4,500 children.
The Accelerated School network has grown to include 3 charter schools and a preschool. The network includes: The Accelerated School (K-8); the dual language Accelerated Charter Elementary School (K-5); and the Wallis Annenberg High School (formerly Accelerated Charter High School).
In developing effective management of the Schools, Johnathan assembled a strong Board of Trustees and Advisors from the corporate, education and non-profit sectors. With his leadership, The Accelerated School, in partnership with the business sector, the Los Angeles Unified School District and California State University Los Angeles(LAUSD), has secured more than $50 million from public and private sources in order to construct a comprehensive pre-K-12th grade school complex and community service facility.
Johnathan’s leadership and commitment to improving public education have earned him election to the boards of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS), the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) and the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO). In 2004, he was appointed to the California State Board of Education by Governor Schwarzenegger.
Johnathan earned his Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). He and his daughter live in Los Angeles.
Other Board/Commission Service includes:
- Education Sector, Treasurer
- City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Commission
- Joint Presidents’ Commission on LAUSD Governance
- California Science Center School Advisory Board
- Multiple Measures for Assessing Charter Schools (USC)
- Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s Education Leaders Council
Dr. David P. Lopez
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-319-0827
Took Office: July 11, 2006
Term Expires: January 15, 2010
Dr. David P. Lopez assumed the post of President of The National Hispanic University in September, 2003. The NHU was established over twenty years ago to provide accessible and affordable quality education for Hispanics and other economically marginalized, underserved, and underutilized students.
Dr. Lopez is a graduate of the University of New Mexico, where he majored in Elementary Education. He earned an M.A. in Educational Administration from New Mexico Highlands University and a Doctorate in Education from New Mexico State University with a concentration on Curriculum and Instruction.
Concurrent with teaching at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces and later at California State University, Fresno, Dr. Lopez served as a consultant in the private sector helping to establish collaborative relationships between the corporate and education communities.
His recent awards and affiliations include Affiliate Member, National Council of La Raza; Member of the Board of Directors, United Way of Silicon Valley; 2004 American Diabetes Father’s Day Council/Father of the Year Award; 2004 New Mexico State University Distinguished Alumnus for the College of Education; and 2005 Hispanic Net Educator of the Year Award.
Mr. James D. Aschwanden
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, CA 95814
Took Office: October 31, 2006
Term Expires: January 15, 2008
Jim Aschwanden has served as the Executive Director of the California Agricultural Teachers’ Association since 1993. Prior to that, he taught at the high school level for 17 years, predominately in the areas of Agricultural Science and Agricultural Economics.
A native of the Central Valley, he graduated from Fresno State University in 1975 with a B.S. in Agricultural Business Management, and later received a Masters in Education from the University of California, Davis. During his teaching tenure, he served on the Steering Committee for the State Agricultural Education Curriculum Project, was the primary author of the Agribusiness Management Cluster Course Project, and in 1991 was selected as the National Agri-Science Teacher of the Year by the National FFA Organization.
He has also served on the Dean’s Advisory Committee for the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at the University of California, Davis, the California State Plan for Vocational and Technical Education Advisory Committee, the Community College Chancellor’s Office Agricultural Education Advisory Committee, and has served two terms as a member of his local High School Governing Board. He currently serves on advisory councils for Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo and Chico State University.
In addition, he has served as Vice-Chair of the Vocational Alliance, a consortium of educational organizations supporting Career and Technical Education, for the past several years. In September 2006, he was appointed to the State Board of Education by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
He and his wife Cathy, a first grade teacher, reside in rural South Sacramento County. Their son Danny, 24, is employed as a teacher at Petaluma High School and daughter Karin, 20, is a student at Chico State University.
Ms. Monica Liu
Contact:
State Board of Education
1430 N Street, Room 5111
Sacramento, CA 95814
Took Office: July 31, 2007
Term Expires: July 31, 2008
Monica Liu is a senior at Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, where she maintains a 5.0 weighted GPA. As a volunteer researcher at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, she takes pleasure in utilizing molecular techniques to investigate scientific problems. She recently developed an enhanced method to detect melanoma, a finding which was published in The Journal of Investigative Dermatology (Nature Publishing Group) and honored with 2nd place at the Department of Defense-sponsored National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama. As an avid student of classical Latin, Monica has earned four consecutive gold medals on the National Latin Exam and was named the state champion in the overall (academics, arts, and athletics combined) category at the 2005 California Junior Classical League State Convention. She is also a recipient of the Harvard University Book Award from the Harvard-Radcliffe Club of Southern California and a National Merit Semifinalist.
Monica’s interest in youth leadership has led her to hold positions of leadership in her high school’s Junior Classical League, symphonic orchestra, Tri-M (Modern Music Masters) Music Honor Society, and a performing arts service club she founded during her freshman year. She is a member of the National Honor Society, National Junior Classical Honor Society, California Scholarship Federation, Tri-M Music Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta Mathematics Honor Society, and the California Association of Student Councils.
Monica has had a passion for piano performance since she began her studies twelve years ago. She has enjoyed performing as a concerto soloist with four orchestras and competing as a finalist in the international piano competition at the International Institute for Young Musicians in Lawrence, Kansas, where she practiced alongside many talented peers. She also engages in flute and voice studies.
As a student who respects and values the public education system, Monica is extremely excited to represent the students of California on the Board. She hopes to accurately convey the collective student voice to the Board by synthesizing student feedback through online surveys of district student board members.
