Speakers

Sharon Balmer Cartagena, Directing Attorney‚ Child‚ Youth & Family Advocacy – Public Counsel

Sharon Balmer Cartagena (she/her) is the Directing Attorney of Public Counsel’s Child Youth & Family Advocacy Project. Growing up in Reading, PA, infamous for being the poorest city in the United States, Sharon saw up close how income equity, housing and school segregation, school-based criminalization, and racial disparities in child welfare devastate generations of children, youth, and families.

Since graduating from law and social work school in 2007, Sharon has represented children, youth, and families on a variety of legal issues, including family law, probate guardianships, access to public benefits, education rights, and other legal issues that destabilize families and push them toward the door of child welfare. Sharon is a 2007 graduate of Fordham University School of Law and a 2006 graduate of Fordham University Graduate School of Social Work.

Kevin Gordon, President and Partner, Capitol Advisors

Widely viewed among the top education advocates in California, Kevin is the President and a founding Partner of Capitol Advisors Group. Kevin was the longtime Executive Director of the California Association of School Business Officials (CASBO), and previously served as the Chief Lobbyist and Assistant Executive Director of the California School Boards Association (CSBA). He also served as Chief of Staff to Congressman Robert T. Matsui and as a legislative advocate for the California Building Industry Association (CBIA). He holds a master’s degree in public administration from the University of San Francisco. Prior to that, while completing his undergraduate degree in communication studies at University of California, Davis, he was recruited by the IBM Corporation and served three years in its national marketing division for large systems.

Kelly Hardy, Senior Managing Director, Health & Research, Children Now

Kelly Hardy directs and supervises the organization’s health policy and research projects, including the California Children’s Report Card and California County Scorecard of Children’s Well-Being.

Ms. Hardy has worked in health policy at the federal, state and county levels, focusing on Medi-Cal and the uninsured. In Washington, D.C., she advocated for reproductive rights and on behalf of breast cancer organizations as a member of government relations firm Bass and Howes, Inc. In Sacramento, Ms. Hardy worked directly with the California Health and Human Services Agency’s Assistant Secretary on Medi-Cal; she also analyzed state health policies and budgets for the government relations firm Hyde, Miller, Owen & Trost. Afterwards, she oversaw the Medi-Cal, CalWORKS, and food stamp budgets for the Alameda County Social Services Agency.

Ms. Hardy earned her MPP and MPH at University of California, Berkeley and a B.A. in psychology with a minor in women’s studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Ken Kapphahn, Principal Fiscal & Policy Analyst, California Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO)

Visit lao.ca.gov to learn more about the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO).

Ken Kapphahn is the Principal Fiscal and Policy Analyst for the California Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO), where he specializes in Proposition 98, school district budgets, and school transportation. Recognized as the state’s leading expert on Proposition 98, Kapphahn provides nonpartisan fiscal and policy analysis to the California Legislature on K-12 education funding issues. He regularly testifies before legislative budget committees on education budget proposals and has extensive expertise in California’s complex school finance system.

Debbie Look, Principal Consultant, California Assembly Education Committee

Debbie has been involved in education policy and advocacy work for over 35 years. She currently serves as a Principal Consultant with the Assembly Education Committee in Sacramento. Prior to joining the committee in January of 2017, she served as the Senior Legislative Advisor to Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom Torlakson, at the California Department of Education for two years. Debbie got her start in the education field through her involvement in parent organizations at her children’s schools, both in Canada and here in California. She rose to leadership positions, serving as the President of the British Columbia Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils and some years later, as the Director of Legislation of the California State PTA.  Debbie has experience with a wide variety of education issues at both the K-12 and early education levels.

Sarah Matsumoto, Director of Policy and Government Affairs, Green Schoolyards America

As Director of Policy and Government Affairs, Sarah Matsumoto works to advance equitable policies in environment, education and health. Through strategic partnerships with key officials, community leaders and partner organizations, she helps to build the collective power and impact of the Green Schoolyards movement. Sarah is excited to work to transform our systems so that they benefit children, communities and nature.

Sarah brings over 25 years of nonprofit advocacy, campaign and program management experience to her work at Green Schoolyards America. Most recently, she was the Organizing Director for the Sierra Club, working to build a multi-generational and multi-racial majority for environmental and climate justice. She has also served as the Deputy Director of the Endangered Species Coalition, a national coalition with over 400 scientific, educational, conservation, religious, sporting, business and community organizations. She helped launch Defenders of Wildlife’s State program, working with state legislators and partners to pass strong environmental laws and policies.

Sarah has a passion for connecting people with nature and engaging people in programs to protect the environment and public health. She believes deeply in nurturing transformational relationships, centering equity and justice and the building power through organizing and advocacy to change the world. Sarah is a graduate of Green Corps, a field school for environmental organizers and studied Anthropology at Pomona College, in Claremont, CA.

Jamie Nunez, Senior Manager, Outreach & Training Common Sense Media

Jamie Nunez, supports school districts and state education agencies across the country in integrating practical digital literacy skills into classrooms. With over 25 years of experience in education, as a classroom teacher, school administrator, and executive at an education nonprofit, he brings a deep understanding of both the challenges and opportunities that technology presents for students and families.Jamie is a frequent consultant, speaker, and contributor on education technology issues, leading professional learning for educators. He is passionate about simplifying tech use and addressing digital misuses to help schools create engaging learning environments.Jamie has written about tech distractions, has authored a book on post-traumatic stress and its impact on engagement, and recently partnered with OpenAI to create a suite of courses designed to help educators rethink how they use AI. When not working, Jamie can often be found in the cold San Francisco ocean, swimming with his 10-year-old daughter, a wonderful reminder, he says, to “seek playful discomforts” outside of our screens.

Christine Olmstead, Ed.D., Senior Advisor, California Collaborative for Educational Excellence (CCEE)

Dr. Christine Olmstead is a Senior Advisor for the Secondary School Redesign Pilot at the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence through  partnership agreement with the Orange County Department of Education. With over 25 years of experience, she has led large-scale initiatives to improve student achievement, collective efficacy, and continuous improvement.

Dr. Olmstead has played a key role in scaling California’s Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) framework, co-developing the state’s Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) guidance, and serving on statewide committees for inclusive schooling and behavioral health.

Dr. Lisa Harshad Patel, Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Stanford Children’s Health Executive Director, Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health

Lisa Patel is the Executive Director of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health, and Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Stanford School of Medicine. She is also a member of the Executive Committee for the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Environmental Health and Climate Change. Lisa received her BS in Biology from Stanford University, her Master’s in Environmental Sciences from the Yale School of the Environment, her medical degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and completed her training in pediatrics at UCSF. She is a former Presidential Management Fellow for the Environmental Protection Agency.

Megan Potente, State Director, Decoding Dyslexia CA

Megan has been active in DDCA leadership for over 4 years. She is also a Co-Leader of DDCA’s San Francisco Support Group and serves as DDCA’s Regional Leader for San Francisco/Peninsula Region. Megan is a former 20-year elementary educator with experience as a classroom teacher, literacy specialist, literacy coach, special education teacher, and educational therapist in private practice. She has a BA from University of Michigan and MEd from DePaul University. A graduate of University of California Berkeley’s Educational Therapy program, Megan has extensive structured literacy experience, including expertise in the Slingerland Approach. Megan has been featured on KQED and also moderates the California: Science of Reading–What I Should Have Learned in College Facebook group. She has a son, brother, and a nephew with dyslexia.

Mitch Steiger, Legislative Representative, California Federation of Teachers (CFT)

Mitch Steiger is a Legislative Representative for the California Federation of Teachers (CFT). Representing over 120,000 education workers statewide, CFT fights to defend and improve members’ wages, benefits, and working conditions, with an equally determined focus on education quality and student wellbeing. Mitch’s role is to advocate across various worker issues as well as green schools and climate change. Mitch has worked in the labor movement for 26 years, serving as a legislative advocate for various organizations. He is a member of the Field Representatives Union (FRU) and the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW).

Leib Sutcher, Advisor, California Collaborative for Educational Excellence (CCEE)

Leib Sutcher is an advisor to the Secondary School Redesign Pilot at the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence (through a professional services agreement). His work centers on supporting networks engaged in high school redesign and helping the Pilot surface lessons, successes, and implementation barriers that can inform statewide policy, practice, and momentum for lasting systems change. 

Prior to this role, Leib was a high school teacher at Highline Big Picture School in Highline Public Schools and a mathematics teacher at the STEM Academy of Hollywood in the Los Angeles Unified School District. He began his career as a researcher with the Learning Policy Institute (LPI).

Marshall Tuck, CEO, EdVoice

Marshall is CEO of EdVoice and EdVoice Institute, where he has helped advance major statewide literacy policy changes, including universal K–2 screening for reading difficulties and the adoption of K-8 evidence-based reading materials. He previously served as founding CEO of the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, opened 10 new charter schools in Los Angeles as President of Green Dot Public Schools, and helped launch the Los Angeles Education Recovery Fund as head of Education Recovery at Great Public Schools Now. A former candidate for State Superintendent who earned 5.2 million votes, Marshall holds degrees from UCLA and Harvard Business School and lives in Los Angeles with his family.

Jeremiah Whitten, Ed.D., Program Specialist, Charter SELPA El Dorado County Office of Education

Jeremiah Whitten has worked in the field of Special Education for 15 years as a teacher, charter school special education director and regional program specialist for the El Dorado County Office of Education. He produces and hosts several podcasts for the county office, most notably the statewide Bright Spots in Education Podcast. He also has a professional passion for education technology, program-based literacy development, and supporting children with behavioral challenges. A San Diego native, Jeremiah enjoys sunny weather, boating, fishing, and international travel. Jeremiah’s greatest professional passion is helping all children access the education and resources necessary to soar beyond obstacles and expectations!