{"id":492785,"date":"2026-10-11T17:10:14","date_gmt":"2026-10-11T17:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/492785\/"},"modified":"2026-10-11T17:10:14","modified_gmt":"2026-10-11T17:10:14","slug":"becerra-hasnt-made-education-a-priority-california-education-leaders-arent-worried","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/492785\/","title":{"rendered":"Becerra hasn’t made education a priority. California education leaders aren’t worried"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article first appeared in EdSource.<\/a><\/p>\n

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra has not laid out a detailed plan for improving California schools, leaving education leaders to piece together what his administration might mean for the state\u2019s nearly 6 million public school students.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a very thoughtful person,\u201d said Jack O\u2019Connell, a former superintendent of public instruction who served in the state Assembly with Becerra in the early 1990s. \u201cHe\u2019s not going to make a flip comment just to get headlines for the day. I\u2019m sure his proposals will be well thought out, based on research and data and study.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becerra has said his cautious approach to campaigning comes from years of political experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can make some really big promises. But that doesn\u2019t get us anywhere \u2014 it may get us elected, but I would prefer not to run on inflated promises that I can\u2019t deliver on,\u201d Becerra told Politico<\/a> in August.<\/p>\n

His Republican opponent, Steve Hilton,<\/a> in contrast, has disclosed a long list of significant changes he would like to make in California schools, if elected. He supports cellphone bans for young children, firing underperforming teachers and principals, giving parents school choice, halting funding for community schools and holding children back in the third grade until they can read at grade level.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Becerra has focused primarily on tuition-free community colleges, investing in early childhood education, protecting students in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals<\/a> program and supporting teachers when he has talked about education during the campaign.<\/p>\n

Continuity is a selling point<\/p>\n

Becerra is well known in California political circles, having served as the state\u2019s deputy attorney general from 1987 to 1990, a member of the state Assembly from 1990 to 1992, a U.S. representative for California from 1993 to 2017 and state attorney general from 2017 to 2021. He was confirmed as U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services in 2021, a position he held until 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Becerra\u2019s appeal to the political establishment in Sacramento, and voters, is that he will bring continuity and no big surprises, said Dan Schnur, a political analyst and strategist who served as press secretary for Gov. Pete Wilson.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe and his team have correctly figured out that while Californians might want forward progress on any number of fronts, including education, they\u2019re willing to settle for the status quo if the alternative is a Trumpian candidate like Hilton,\u201d Schnur said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Becerra is campaigning, in part, on a promise to fight back against Trump administration policies. He filed 122 lawsuits<\/a> against the administration when he was California attorney general, including one that resulted in the Supreme Court overturning an attempt to rescind DACA.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Unlike Hilton, Becerra has not made himself available for many media interviews since the primary election in June, including one for this article.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThat innate caution is intensified by the fact that he\u2019s such a strong front-runner,\u201d Schnur said. \u201cAt this point, he\u2019s a quarterback with a three-touchdown lead late in the fourth quarter. He doesn\u2019t want to throw any interceptions, so he runs the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becerra has a large lead over Hilton, according to recent polls. A September poll by Berkeley IGS<\/a> found that Becerra had the support of 58% of the state\u2019s likely voters, while Hilton had 33%.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Difficult education decisions await<\/p>\n

Becerra will prioritize<\/a> healthcare, housing, the economy, oversight of AI, clean energy, disaster preparedness, homelessness and fighting Donald Trump if elected governor, according to his campaign website.<\/p>\n

But if he is elected, Becerra will also face decisions about school funding, college affordability and major changes in the California Department of Education. One of his first tasks is likely to be the appointment of an education commissioner who will oversee the CDE.<\/p>\n

But state education leaders interviewed by EdSource say they\u2019re not concerned that Becerra does not seem to have a comprehensive plan for education.<\/p>\n

\u201cEducation has not been his main focus in his previous jobs,\u201d said California State Board of Education President Linda Darling-Hammond,<\/a> who said she has spoken to the candidate about the state\u2019s education landscape. \u201cHe does care a lot about kids and their learning. He really cares about early childhood. \u2026 I think he\u2019ll be looking at childcare and preschool in the years prior to TK, as well to try to give kids a really good start in other ways,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Former State Board of Education President Michael Kirst<\/a> calls Becerra\u2019s education policy \u201ca work in progress and not far developed at this point.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMy impression is that he hasn\u2019t even focused deeply on the subject,\u201d Kirst said. \u201cHe will get through this time. I\u2019m not criticizing it. He hasn\u2019t even been elected, so he\u2019s proceeding in his style, which is a deliberative style, talking with many people, thinking about it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

What does Becerra say about education?<\/p>\n

Although Becerra hasn\u2019t revealed a comprehensive plan to improve education in the state, he has expressed his thoughts on some issues during interviews and on social media.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we want kids ready for college and careers, we can\u2019t wait until high school to start helping them succeed,\u201d Becerra posted on X<\/a> in February. \u201cThat means investing in early childhood education, preparing kids before kindergarten and reducing class sizes, so every student gets the attention they deserve. The California Dream starts in the classroom.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

In May, Becerra posted on X<\/a> that \u201cthe community college system is the gateway to higher education. It is the way that so many people ultimately become the Ph.D.s, the M.D.s, the lawyers, the teachers. We should make sure community colleges are not exclusive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becerra also has expressed interest in the emerging high-tech economy and the need to prepare people for those jobs, Darling-Hammond said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he will be very supportive of the college and career pathways that are emerging in California that are really trying to enable young people to be in the STEM fields, the green technology fields,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

A California story<\/p>\n

Becerra, a son of Mexican immigrants, often tells the story of his parents arriving in the U.S. with only $12 in their pockets. His father \u2014 a union man \u2014 and mother worked hard to ensure their children had an education. Becerra graduated with a law degree from Stanford in 1984.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lupita Cortez Alcal\u00e1, executive director of the nonprofit Policy Analysis for California Education, said that Becerra\u2019s background and family struggles are familiar to many Californians. She heard him speak recently at a Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project event.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was the first in his family to attend college, and he\u2019s talked about Stanford opening his eyes to the real opportunity,\u201d Cortez Alcal\u00e1 said. \u201cHaving that background and understanding about the importance of access to opportunity and how much it matters to students and their families, it resonates with me and my family and my experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Becerra backs teachers<\/p>\n

Becerra defended teachers during a recent CNN debate<\/a>, after Hilton argued they should be held accountable for student academic outcomes and condemned the California Teachers Association.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe that the people who are supposed to train our kids should be treated like professionals,\u201d Becerra said. \u201cThey are underpaid compared to professionals with similar education levels. He attacks them. He says they\u2019re doing the wrong thing for our kids.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although Becerra is endorsed by the CTA, the powerful teachers union may not hold much sway over him because they first chose to endorse former U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell<\/a> and later recommended billionaire businessman Tom Steyer for the job<\/a>, Kirst said.<\/p>\n

Kirst said he can\u2019t remember a primary where the Democratic candidate who won did not have the support of the CTA.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, he\u2019s not as affiliated and therefore has, at least in my view, more running room to push back,\u201d Kirst said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

CTA President David Goldberg couldn\u2019t say why the union\u2019s 700 delegates didn\u2019t endorse Becerra initially.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he\u2019s our choice now,\u201d Goldberg said, adding that the gubernatorial field was replete with good candidates. \u201cI can tell you that Xavier really resonated with our interview committee in a lot of deep and meaningful ways. So I think it wasn\u2019t like we plugged our noses and did it. People had strong feelings about him as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

The CTA had donated $39,200 to Becerra\u2019s campaign by Oct. 1. Some of the union\u2019s 300,000 members have also canvassed neighborhoods for Becerra\u2019s campaign. Goldberg indicated that the CTA political action committee could decide to invest more in the campaign if needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur initial thing is to get folks elected,\u201d Goldberg said. \u201cThat\u2019s our goal. He looks like he is well on his way to doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0EdSource<\/a> is California\u2019s largest independent newsroom focused on education.<\/p>\n