Schools Writer

No service that government provides is more important than public schools — a fact that was brought home powerfully during the coronavirus pandemic, when remote learning drove an even deeper wedge between advantaged and disadvantaged students. We’re looking for a reporter with the smarts and passion to dig into the critical issues confronting youth in the Bay Area and California as our schools reestablish classroom learning, striving to meet and manage expectations in a changing world. In an area with hundreds of school districts — a situation that makes effective education all the more challenging — this reporter will focus on the half-dozen largest, ranging from struggling Oakland Unified to high-achieving Fremont. You’ll plumb the clashes between charter and conventional schools, the flight to private schools, and the factors that drive inequities, from disproportionate discipline to dropout rates. You’ll gauge the power of parent’s groups and teacher’s unions. And you’ll tie all of these issues to the most important question: What sort of schools keep our kids down, and what lifts them up? Intelligent data analysis is a key component to success at this beat, as is the ability to connect with children, parents and teachers in ways that make their challenges and successes resonate with our audience.