CharterNation Podcast will feature interviews with education leaders, elected officials and highlight stories from educators, parents and students
SACRAMENTO, CA – The California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) will launch its first-ever podcast, CharterNation Podcast, on Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021. The podcast will focus on the policies and personalities that are shaping the public education landscape in California and across the nation.
“This is an unprecedented time for public education in California and CCSA’s CharterNation Podcast will reach a broad audience to tell the stories of educators and students and hear from local and state policy makers from both sides of the aisle, as well as researchers to better understand the challenges and opportunities to better serve our next generation of students,” said CCSA President and CEO Myrna Castrejón. “We are witnessing greater interest in the future of education as we navigate through the pandemic and CharterNation Podcast will both inspire and inform listeners about California’s public education system.”
The first episode (EP1 S1) features a special segment called Change Makers in which Castrejón interviews special guest Antonio Villaraigosa, former Assembly Speaker and Mayor of Los Angeles, who is credited with helping expand educational opportunities and school options statewide and in LAUSD, the second largest school district in the country.
Castrejón and Villaraigosa will discuss the state of public education today in California, the search for a new superintendent in LAUSD, and the Biden Administration’s stance on K-12 funding and policies thus far.
Change Makers will be a regular segment on the CharterNation Podcast and will feature Castrejón and various trailblazers and champions of educational equity across the ideological spectrum discussing current topics and trends that impact K-12 education.
Podcast episodes will be hosted by Ana Tintocalis, former K-12 education journalist and CCSA’s Director of Media Relations and Research, who will sift through charter school data and research with experts, as well as present uplifting stories of charter school educators, parents and students.
“Mainstream news outlets only cover a small fraction of what’s actually taking place on the ground level at charter public schools across the state, said Tintocalis. “I’m excited to uncover uplifting charter school stories that offer a more accurate picture of what is taking place and identify research and trends that help illuminate this often neglected or misunderstood sector of K-12 public education.”
CharterNation Podcast episodes will be released every other week.
A trailer for the CharterNation Podcast can be found here. Episodes will be distributed on all major podcast services, including Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify and Google Podcasts.