State Superintendent Tony Thurmond Leads Charter Task Force in First Meeting

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond yesterday facilitated the first meeting of the Charter Task Force as requested by Governor Gavin Newsom. As Governor Newsom stated in his first budget proposal, rising charter school enrollments in some urban districts are having real impacts on those districts’ ability to provide essential support and services for their students. The Governor requested Superintendent Thurmond convene a group of experts to closely examine the impact of charter school growth on district budgets and to provide a report and recommendations to him by July 1, 2019.

Members of the Charter Task Force were selected by the California Department of Education, in consultation with the Governor’s Office. This week, that task force met for the first time in Sacramento, and will continue to meet regularly in order to meet the Governor’s July 1^st deadline. Thurmond will continue to lead and facilitate these meetings throughout the process.

“I am excited that we have this incredible assembly of experts from all sectors to help lead this charge, to take a deeper look at the impact of charter schools,” said Thurmond. “We plan to research data and facts, and will review the fiscal impact and authorization process of charter schools. But more importantly, we are going to do this with thoughtful intention and through the lens of identifying what is truly best for kids.”

Members of the task force (in alphabetical order) include:

1. Dr. Christina de Jesus, Green Dot Public Schools California, President and Chief Executive Officer
2. Dolores Duran, California School Employees Association
3. Margaret Fortune, California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) Board Chair; Fortune School of Education, President & CEO
4. Lester Garcia, SEIU Local 99, Political Director
5. Alia Griffing, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 57, Political Director
6. Beth Hunkapiller, Aspire Public Schools, Educator & Administrator
7. Erika Jones, California Teachers Association, Board of Directors
8. Ed Manansala, El Dorado County Superintendent; California County Superintendents Educational Services Association, Board President
9. Cindy Marten, San Diego Unified School District Superintendent
10. Gina Plate, California Charter Schools Association, Vice President of Special Education
11. Edgar Zazueta, Association of California School Administrators, Senior Director, Policy & Governmental Relations

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Tony Thurmond — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5602, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100