After a relatively smooth confirmation process for U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, President Joe Biden鈥檚 pick to help lead the Education Department may face stronger headwinds.
San Diego Unified Superintendent Cindy Marten has seen support from prominent national education leaders. But she鈥檚 also faced criticism from charter school advocates, parent activists, and the San Diego chapter of the NAACP.
Chief among the critics鈥� concerns is one of the most divisive issues in Biden鈥檚 education platform: charter schools.
Groups like the Center for Education Reform and the Powerful Parent Movement have singled out Marten鈥檚 criticism of charter school policy in California and her work on a task force that supported changes to the state鈥檚 authorizing laws.
If Marten is confirmed 鈥渨e risk reverting to an Education Department that serves the system and not the students and parents striving to succeed within it,鈥� said a statement from the Powerful Parent Movement which confronted 2020 Democratic presidential candidates about their positions on school choice.
But Marten鈥檚 nomination has also . The Learning Policy Institute, an organization founded by Linda Darling-Hammond, who led the Biden transition team鈥檚 education efforts, labeled San Diego a in California under Marten鈥檚 leadership, citing efforts to improve academic equity. University of Southern California Education Dean Pedro Noguera said he was happy with the choice.
Michael Casserly, executive director of the Council of the Great City Schools, a coalition of large urban public school systems, offered the organization鈥檚 for Marten after the choice was announced in January.
鈥淐indy Marten will be the perfect complement鈥� to Cardona, he said in a statement. 鈥淏oth have been school-level leaders and thoroughly understand the complexities of public education at the state and local levels like few other leadership teams in the department鈥檚 history.鈥�
While their confirmation hearings typically receive less attention from the general public, deputy education secretaries play a key role in the Education Department. They help set policy and lead major initiatives, and they are next in line to take over agency leadership if the secretary leaves.
It鈥檚 unclear if the criticisms, or the praise, will affect senators鈥� support of Marten.
鈥淪enator Murray is committed to working with Secretary Cardona to make sure every single student can recover from this pandemic and that we address the longstanding inequities in our education system,鈥� said an aide to Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat and chairwoman of the Senate education committee. 鈥淟ike all of President Biden鈥檚 qualified nominees, Senator Murray looks forward to hearing from Cindy Marten about how she would work to address systemic racism in our education system as part of Secretary Cardona鈥檚 team.鈥�
Representatives for the White House and for Republican leadership on the Senate education committee did not respond to questions.
Positions on charter schools
Charter school supporters who鈥檝e criticized Marten zero in on her past assertions that the publicly funded, independently managed schools draw money away from traditional public school districts.
California has the second-oldest charter school law in the country, and it has a much larger and more-complex charter school sector than other states.
In 2019, Marten served on a state task force that , including a recommendation that school districts should be allowed to consider the 鈥渇iscal impact鈥� of a new charter school in the authorization process. Those recommendations informed a contentious debate that led to new state laws following compromise discussions between teachers鈥� unions and .
Maureen Magee, a spokesperson for the San Diego district, noted that, at the local level, the school system has approved five out of six charter renewal applications for the current school year, and a sixth one is pending. The district has also sought input from charter operators on its policies and set aside money for charter facilities in public bond issues, she said.
The San Diego NAACP, which criticized Marten, notably broke from the national NAACP in 2019 when it opposed a national call for a moratorium on charter schools. Several 2020 Democratic presidential candidates cited that national NAACP position when they called for new limits on charter schools.
The national NAACP has also split with its San Diego branch on Marten鈥檚 nomination. National NAACP President Derrick Johnson called her 鈥渁 great pick鈥� by Biden.
But, in a joint statement, the National Charter Collaborative and the Freedom Coalition for Charter Schools for her support of 鈥渆xtreme anti-charter school restrictions,鈥� saying her selection nullifies the goodwill Biden earned by selecting Cardona.
Cardona won support from education groups across the ideological spectrum when he took a relatively neutral posture on charter schools, in part because the charter sector in his home state of Connecticut is smaller and less controversial. Even so, some GOP senators who voted against his confirmation cited Biden鈥檚 positions on charters and school choice, not Cardona鈥檚.
While the U.S. Department of Education administers a grant program for charter schools, most decisions about governance are made at the state and local levels. Biden has pledged not to provide federal funding to 鈥渇or-profit鈥� charter schools and has said most of his education department鈥檚 efforts will focus on the 鈥渘eighborhood public schools鈥� that a majority of students attend.
Confronting disparities in school discipline
San Diego media outlets and local activists have flagged some other criticisms of Marten鈥檚 tenure.
The local NAACP focused most of its statement on disproportionately high rates of discipline for Black students in San Diego schools, a persistent problem at school systems around the country.
In 2019-20, Black students in San Diego Unified represented 7.5 percent of total enrollment and 17.9 percent of students suspended, Latino students made up 44.3 percent of enrollment and 53.3 percent of students suspended, while white students made up 23.9 percent of students and 13.8 percent of those suspended.
Statewide, Black students made up 5.4 percent of California鈥檚 enrollment and 15 percent of students suspended in 2019-2020, the data show.
The Learning Policy Institute report noted the district鈥檚 work to reduce discipline disparities by eliminating zero-tolerance policies and promoting restorative practices as an alternative to suspensions. And it noted that the district鈥檚 suspension rates were lower than some other large California districts鈥�.
The district has also narrowed its list of expellable offenses in recent years.
The local NAACP noted voluntary racial equity training in the district.
鈥淲hile this is commendable, it does not erase the fact that SDUSD has a history of harming our children, families, staff, and educators,鈥� Katrina Hasan Hamilton, education chair of the San Diego branch, said
The challenge of reopening schools
Much of Cardona鈥檚 confirmation hearing focused on his positions on coronavirus-related school closures and how federal officials can encourage schools to safely reopen.
The Biden administration has promised more guidance for schools about how to offer in-person learning or, for districts operating in a hybrid mode, to expand the amount of time students are taught in-person.
The president鈥檚 relief bill, which passed Congressthis week, also includes funding for testing, virus mitigation, and ongoing recovery efforts as schools help students rebound from interrupted education.
Much of that strategy aligns with Marten鈥檚. In November, Marten wrote a letter to Biden鈥檚 transition team outlining how she鈥檇 worked with local scientists to design a COVID-19 testing and mitigation plan for her schools. She said equity should be a key focus in schools鈥� response efforts.
A majority of the district鈥檚 students have remained in remote learning as it waited to clear state virus rate thresholds required for reopening. San Diego Unified plans to reopen schools April 12.
