Former Trustee Caprice Young to Lead Charter School Group

Former Los Angeles school board president Caprice Young will head a newly formed organization that seeks to support the more than 400 charter schools in California and help others get started.

The organization, which has not yet been named, will merge several current groups, including the California Network of Education Charters, which now represents about 70% of the state’s charter schools. Charters are supported by tax money but are exempted from many state regulations.

Young, 37, who spent four years on the Los Angeles Board of Education, two of those as president, lost her bid for reelection in March. During her term, she supported the establishment of new charters in Los Angeles and the controversial conversion of Granada Hills High School into a charter campus.

“Charter schools are doing really exciting and innovative work, leading to huge gains in student achievement,” she said Monday.

She said she would remain in Los Angeles for the full-time position as chief executive of the new coalition.

Gary Larson, a spokesman for the California Network of Education Charters, said he was very pleased that Young took the job. “Caprice is far and away the best in terms of her skill sets and expertise, and she’s a big believer in setting a positive agenda for education reform,” he said.