Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:

Living Black History Webinar with California Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber and Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown on February 13, 2026

I would like to invite you and your students to join me for a new ongoing webinar series in recognition of Black History Month. In this webinar series, I will interview Black civic leaders whose work is a testament to the contributions of Black Californians to the history of our state and our nation.

These conversations are designed as an educational resource for teachers to view with their students, and there will be opportunities for students to submit questions in advance. This series supports my ongoing efforts to elevate oral history and highlight the contributions of distinguished Californians as a meaningful component of classroom instruction.

The series continues Friday, February 13, 2026, at 10 a.m. with an interview featuring Dr. Shirley Weber, California’s first Black Secretary of State and only the fifth African American to serve as a state constitutional officer in California’s 175-year history. The doubleheader continues at 10:30 a.m. with an interview with Willie Brown, former San Francisco Mayor and the first Black Speaker of the California State Assembly.

Teachers may register their classrooms to participate via Zoom at:

• Secretary Weber: https://tinyurl.com/CDE-SWeber
• Mayor Brown: https://tinyurl.com/CDE-WBrown

Members of the public may view each session through the California Department of Education Facebook Live page at https://www.facebook.com/CAEducation.

I encourage educators to teach about the lives and accomplishments of Secretary Weber and Mayor Brown. If students would like to suggest questions for me to ask, they may submit those questions by Thursday, February 12, at 4 p.m., using the following links:

• Secretary Weber via https://tinyurl.com/AskQ-SWeber
• Mayor Brown via https://tinyurl.com/AskQ-Brown

I look forward to seeing you via Zoom or Facebook Live on February 13!

Sincerely,

Tony Thurmond
State Superintendent of Public Instruction