The Annenberg Learner Podcast

Bruce Fuller is a professor of Education and Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley. He recently released When Schools Work, a book that looks at why student achievement climbed in Los Angeles between 2002-2019, and how a variety of reforms across the city were initiated by local civic activists.

Chheav Em joined the Best Buy Social Impact team. Now as Best Buy Los Angeles Community Impact Hub Manager, Chheav thrives to cultivate the relationships needed in Los Angeles County to develop tangible pathways into the creative economy for young people in disinvested communities.he majority of the 20 years Chheav has committed to youth work were spent at Bresee Foundation where she provided over half a million dollars in scholarships, established a robust college access retention program, expanded the workforce development programs available to young people, and supported the build out of Los Angeles’ first Best Buy Teen Tech Center.

Elmer Roldan is Executive Director of Communities in Schools Los Angeles (CISLA). Roldan is responsible for overseeing implementation of CISLA’s strategic direction and annual goals, collaborating with CIS national and CISLA board to ensure CISLA’s success, raising the annual operating budget, managing organization-wide budget, finances, and external relationships and partnerships. Mr. Roldan most recently served as Director of Civic Engagement in the Office of the Superintendent at LAUSD and brings experience from United Way of Greater Los Angeles, where he served as an Education Program Officer before being promoted to Director of Education, Programs, and Policy.

Haydee Rodriguez is a National Board-Certified teacher, and bilingual and bicultural high school teacher who received her Bachelor's in History from San Diego State University and earned a graduate degree in Education from Stanford University. As a graduate student at Stanford, she participated in the founding of East Palo Alto High School, an urban college prep student-centered, teacher-led school. In 2014, Rodriguez was appointed by Governor Brown to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, where she chaired the Educator Preparation Committee and served as a liaison to the Committee on Accreditation. She also served on the national board for professional teaching standards from 2009 until 2017. Haydee received various awards and fellowships and in 2016 she was named Stanford GSE Alumni of Excellence. She was also named Woman of the Year by assembly member, Eduardo Garcia and State Senator Ben Hueso for her commitment to equity access and social justice in education.

Rafael Cruz is a Los Angeles Unified School District Teacher at Hollenbeck Middle School and 2021-2022 Los Angeles County Teacher of the Year. Rafael has over 16 years of teaching experience and currently teaches STEM courses.

In 2020, a group of over 30 STEM organizations came together to provide coordinated learning opportunities for Los Angeles students. Over 80,000 and counting K-8 students have participated in live, online and in-person programs that engage students in STEM learning opportunities. We're honored to welcome Ben Dickow, the President and Executive Director of Columbia Memorial Space Center and Leader of Expand LA. Ben led the strategic vision, operations, and sustainability plan of the nonprofit space museum and hands-on STEM learning center to ignite a community of creative and critical thinkers.

Susanna Loeb is Director of the Annenberg Institute at Brown University, where she is also Professor of Education and Professor of International and Public Affairs. Her work has addressed issues of educator career choices, and professional development of school finance and governance, and of early childhood systems. She is the founder and acting Executive Director of the National Student Support Accelerator. Before moving to Brown, Susanna was the Barnett Family Professor of Education at Stanford University. She was the founding Director of the Center for Education Policy at Stanford and Co-Director of Policy Analysis for California Education.

Step Up Tutoring is a non-profit organization formed during the pandemic to deliver free, online tutoring. Since inception, Step Up Tutoring has served over 800 students and received over 3,000 tutor volunteer applications. Step Up Tutoring’s mission is to innovate and scale free online tutoring for families who cannot afford private tutoring, while providing mentorship and emotional support for students.

In March 2020, Annenberg Learner partnered with Two Bit Circus to provide FREE STEAM-based online projects for K-12 students. The Annenberg Learner site contains over 150 hands-on science, arts, and tech projects designed for educators, parents, and children across the country and around the world. Two Bit Circus Foundation serves children in all economic situations by creating learning experiences to inspire entrepreneurship, encourage young inventors, and instill environmental stewardship.