Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/939681
guarantee that ever y student who has ever been in foster care has the money to go to college — the Chafee Grant . I'm convening with stakeholders now about closing the gap. How do we interpret the data? What are the best practices other districts use to help kids? To close the gap, educators, administrators, classified staff, parents and community members must work together, instead of blaming each other. Can technology help? Yes! STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) is a great equalizer. There should be maker spaces in every single school. What better way to help to develop critical thinkers than giving our kids the ability to see themselves as inventors and entrepreneurs? Some kids don't have access to the Internet at school; their only access to Wi-Fi is if a truck pulls up and provides a hot spot. California is the cradle of modern technology, and we can do better. We should offer every K-12 student access to computer science courses. Career technical education helps prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow — and these kids might just come up with the next inno- vation to save our lives. The school-to-prison pipeline? We have a great opportunity to change the pipeline. Unfortunately, we spend so much money on prisons and incar- ceration and very little on programs like universal preschool to prevent it. I founded a nonprofit for students who have been incarcerated, and I teach a civics course to high school students detained in juvenile camp in Alameda County. My students are honest about the lack of support services upon re-entering the community, which is why we have a high rate of recidivism. AB 1488, a two-year bill I introduced in 2017 based on my students' obser- vations, would expand wraparound re-entry support services such as hous- ing, substance abuse counseling and career training to help them succeed. I used this as a civics lesson about how a bill becomes law and invited students to the Capitol, so they could under- stand civic responsibility. Thoughts on school privatization? I don't think education should ever be based on competition. We've got for-profit schools traded on the New York Stock E xchange. I think that is a twisted approach. Public education is just that. For that reason, I'm proud to be co-author of legislation that would ban for-profit char ter schools in our state. Schools aren't busi- nesses. They are environments for learning and innovation. What about bilingual education? I support bilingual education. We should also be creating more dual-im- mersion programs to develop the global leaders of tomorrow. In other countries, students are provided the opportunity to learn multiple languages. We need to do more of that here. Why do parents and community matter so much? We must make parents and community members our partners when it comes to educating kids. Schools should be at the center of the community and a place where parents feel comfortable and supported, especially if English isn't their first language. With schools facing so many challenges, the more partners the better. Frankly, it's an all- hands-on-deck situation. We should all be working together. You have been recommended by CTA and others. I am honored to be supported by groups like CTA, the California Federa- tion of Teachers, the California Faculty Association, Equality California (which addresses bullying in schools), and Planned Parenthood (which provides students with accurate sex education and how they can be safe from STDs). I'm supported by a very broad coali- tion of educators, public officials and legislators, such as current SPI Tom Torlakson, U.S. Senator Kamala Harris, Congresswoman Karen Bass in Los Angeles, and Congresswoman Barbara Lee in the Bay Area. I'm very proud of the coalition we have. If we don't have any movie stars, that's OK. I want hard- working people who care and believe in public education. How do you differ from your opponents? I have a track record as a legislator and public official of bringing dollars to systems that need change, tackling challenges some said were impossi- ble, and working with stakeholders to get the job done. I have relationships with 120 legislators, our governor and communities to promote wide-scale change. I have served on a school board, city council and state Legisla- ture, making things better for students. I have served as a social worker and taught at the university level. This is not a political decision for me. People ask me, "Why are you running?" I am giving up a so-called safe seat in the Legislature because so much is at stake. For me, it's all about the kids in California. I'm all in because of them! See video clips of CTA's interview with Tony Thurmond, as well as clips from Thurmond's speech to State Council in January, at tinyurl.com/TonyThurmondCTA. 34 cta.org