Educational leaders across the country are navigating a storm of uncertainty as the Trump administration unleashes a barrage of executive orders targeting public schools. What began with a minimal education focus during the Presidential campaign has morphed into a centerpiece of the Trump administration's agenda. In this conversation with noted education scholar and advocate Pedro Noguera, we explore how school leaders are responding to this treacherous landscape while continuing to serve studen...
May 09, 2025•22 min
School districts around the nation are struggling to fend off threats from the Trump administration on multiple fronts. In addition to trying to protect students whose families may face a threat of deportation, they also face a looming April 24 deadline to certify that they have eliminated all so-called diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and numerous other programs Trump says violate a 2023 Supreme Court ruling banning affirmative action in college admissions. Los Angeles Unified and th...
Apr 22, 2025•35 min
Higher education in America stands at a critical juncture as unprecedented political attacks threaten to erode academic freedom, and upend longstanding relationships between the federal government and both private and public colleges and universities. In this urgent and timely conversation, hosted by Lande Ajose, former Skidmore College President Jamie Studley brings her perspective as a college administrator, Obama-era deputy undersecretary of education, and head of a major accreditation commis...
Apr 01, 2025•28 min
What could be the impact of a torrent of Trump Administration initiatives targeting higher education, and how should education leaders and students respond? In this episode, we focus on the potential fallout of dismantling the the U.S. Department of Education, the far-reaching efforts to banish diversity, equity and inclusion programs in both K-12 and higher education, and what might we expect when it comes to college affordability and student loan debt in the coming years. In this episode, host...
Mar 11, 2025•26 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Even as public schools enter a period of extreme uncertainty, there are exciting developments underway to rethink the school day and to develop new ways to measure what students are learning. Listening to a stimulating conversation about new directions in education with Timothy Knowles, president of the Carnege Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching , and Laura Slover, managing director of Skills for the Future , a joint initiative of ETS and the Carnegie Foundation. The foundation is now at...
Feb 13, 2025•30 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Listen to this important discussion on rethinking the basic structure of the school day to enhance learning and make schools more rewarding for students whose learning styles don't necessarily match the century-old division of learning into hourly periods, multiple times a day, five days a week. Working with school districts and charter schools, Big Picture Learning is implementing an exciting approach which includes students spending time during the school day in internships. In this episode, c...
Jan 15, 2025•24 min
In this episode of Sparking Equity, host Lande Ajose explores the critical role higher education can play in addressing the climate crisis while advancing equity. Joined by Eloy Ortiz Oakley, President and CEO of the College Futures Foundation, and Jamie Marisotis, President and CEO of the Lumina Foundation, this thought-provoking discussion delves into actionable strategies for colleges and universities to empower underserved communities, foster climate literacy, and turn knowledge into meaning...
Dec 18, 2024•28 min
The November 5th elections are expected to have an impact on almost every aspect of government and public policy, including education. In this episode, hosts Pedro Noguera and Louis Freedberg take a deeper dive into what promises President-elect Trump and the GOP have made regarding both pre K through 12 education and post secondary education. Our guests are conservative scholar and analyst Frederick Hess, director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, and co-author w...
Nov 25, 2024•28 min
The youngest voters in the U.S. have historically turned out in lower numbers than any other age group. And unfortunately analyses of the Nov. 5 elections suggest that they turned out in lower numbers than in the 2020 elections. One reason that many educators point to i that traditional civics and American government classes typically fail to engage young people in the democratic process. That is especially the case for students of color and low-income students. However, exciting new approaches ...
Oct 30, 2024•25 min
One of the most formidable challenges in education is how to reverse the disproportionately low representation of Black and Latino students in STEM courses and careers. Remarkably, Compton Unified in Los Angeles County, a district that two decades ago was under state control, is showing how that can be done. In this podcast, the second in a two-part series, our host, renowned educator and scholar Pedro Noguera, Dean of the Rossier USC School of Education, and veteran journalist Louis Freedberg l...
Sep 05, 2024•22 min
Ben Herald, a former reporter at Education Week, set out across America to document what is happening in school districts located in once largely white suburban communities. His book Disillusioned: Five Families and the Unraveling of America's Suburbs documents his disturbing findings. When he got to Compton, he found a rare example of a school district in a formerly all white suburb that is offering hope to students of color and their families. Under the leadership of Superintendent Darin Brawl...
Jun 14, 2024•21 min
In many school districts around the country, just the term "equity" can arouse passion and conflict. Too often there is a mistaken belief is that achieving equity for all kids means some kids have to give up something so that others can benefit. That's not the case in the Hacienda La Puente School District, where the district under the leadership of Superintendent Dr. Alfonso Jimenez has implemented a comprehensive equity strategy -- and is getting results, and without any conflict to boot. Four...
Apr 10, 2024•22 min
What is Education Equity? In this episode of "Sparking Equity," host Pedro Noguera talks with his son Joaquín Noguera to demystify a term that has become hugely, and unnecessarily, controversial in numerous school districts throughout the nation. In some school districts, superintendents have become fearful for even using the term for fear of inviting blowback or fierce criticism Pedro Noguera is dean of the USC Rossier School of Education in Los Angeles while Joaquín is a professor of education...
Jan 05, 2024•18 min
One positive development that emerged from the pandemic is that it focused attention on the mental health challenges many students face -- and how these are a major determinant of college success. There is also greater awareness that low-income students and students of color have greater unmet mental health needs compared with many of their peers. Too often they attend campuses that are least equipped to offer them the support and services they need. In this episode, host Lande Ajose talks with ...
Nov 23, 2023•30 min
In this episode of "Sparking Equity, " host Pedro Noguera, dean of the USC Rossier School of Education, focuses on attacks on schools around issues such as mask mandates and critical race theory -- and how parents and caregivers can be involved in schools in positive ways that contribute to their children's success. Pedro talks with Carl Cohn, esteemed educator and former member of the California State Board of Education and Joann Mickens, executive director of Parents for Public Schools, a nati...
Nov 10, 2023•36 min
Last June, the U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to the hopes of tens of millions of students and former students hoping to have their college loans cancelled or reduced when the court rejected President Biden’s debt relief program. In this episode of Sparking Equity, Lande Ajose, managing director of the Waverley Street Foundation and a champion of college access for all, talks with students about how college debt can have an impact on major life decisions. But all is not lost. President Biden ha...
Oct 19, 2023•30 min
Over many decades, the school curriculum has been whittled down to focus on core academic subjects, often at the expense of arts and music education. The shift has been most pronounced in schools serving low-income students and students of color. In this pilot episode, education leader Pedro Noguera , Dean of the USC Rossier School of Education, makes the case for a robust arts and music curriculum. He talks to renowned actor John Lithgow and "Hamilton" star Daveed Diggs about the impact arts ed...
Sep 13, 2023•43 min
