Newsom Announces New Appointments to State Board of Education
SACRAMENTO (CBS SF) -- Gov. Gavin Newsom announced two new, high profile appointments to the State Board of Education Wednesday.
The governor appointed two new policy advisors to the board, both with significant experience in the public sector: Brooks Allen, a long time legal counsel for the board; and Debra Brown, a former director of government affairs for the State Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Newsom appointed Allen, 45, to the Education Policy Advisor to the Governor position and nominated him to be the executive director of the board of education. Before working for the board, Allen spent years at the ACLU Foundation of Southern California, where he served as the director of education advocacy. Among his achievements at the ACLU included using the settlement in the case of Williams v. California to improve public education.
Before Newsom appointed her to the senior policy advisor position at the board of education, Brown, 47, was the senior managing director of education for the Oakland nonprofit Children Now.
Both appointees are Democrats and their positions do not require confirmation by the state senate. Allen's annual compensation is $217, 272; Brown's is $160,008.