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The 74 Interview

The 74 interviews the top thinkers, policymakers and leaders in American education

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74 Interview: ‘Newcomers’ Author Helen Thorpe on a Year in the Life of America’s Refugee Students — and Why Public-Private Partnerships Are Essential

Conor Williams

The 74 Interview: Olympian Alex Rigsby on Winning Gold, Learning Through Sports, and Mentoring 4 Classrooms of Kids

Andrew J. Rotherham

The 74 Interview: Teacher of the Year and Gun Owner Nate Bowling on Arming Teachers & Keeping Kids Safe in School

Andrew J. Rotherham

74 Interview: Sal Khan on Personalized Learning, a Global Diploma, and How He’d Spend $100 million

Romy Drucker

74 Interview: Joel Rose on Personalized Learning’s ‘Overdue Transition,’ Building Better Tests — and Meeting Kids Where They Are

Laura Fay

74 Interview: Allan Golston on Network Schools, Scaling Solutions to Inequity, and Why Curriculum Matters — and Luck Shouldn’t

Kate Stringer

74 Interview: Richard Culatta on How to Do Personalized Learning Well — and Why It Could Be the Key to Narrowing a School’s Equity Gap

Kate Stringer

74 Interview: Massachusetts Education Leader Russell Johnston on Poverty, Improving Special Education & Living Mitchell Chester’s Legacy

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Save the Children’s Mark Shriver on Creating a Powerhouse Lobby for the Powerless

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Two Texas Middle Schoolers on Ending Gun Violence, Seeing the Signs

Kei-Sygh Thomas

74 Interview: The Rigorous, Not-Easily-Defined Education Reform Philosophy of Harvard’s Jal Mehta

David Cantor

74 Interview: DACA-mented California Teacher on What Trump’s Immigration Policies Will Do to Undocumented Kids

Mark Keierleber

74 Interview: D.C. Schools Chancellor Antwan Wilson on Closing the City’s Achievement Gap and How His District Is Unlike Any Other in America

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Indiana Educator Earl Phalen on Innovating Classrooms for Low-Income Students of Color — and the NAACP’s ‘Phony’ Charter War

Emmeline Zhao

74 Interview: NOLA Schools Chief on Unifying City Schools and Differing With DeVos on Choice

Carolyn Phenicie

The 74 Interview: Councilman Vincent C. Gray on Charters, Pre-K, and Rising Tides in D.C. Schools

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Rory Kennedy’s New Documentary Delves Into Digital Divide Hurting America’s Poorest Students

Kathy Moore

74 Interview: Philly’s U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans on Charters, Trump, and School Revitalization

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: How Retired Football Player Wade Smith Has Dedicated His Post-NFL Career to Tackling Bullying and Illiteracy

Kate Stringer

The 74 Interview: Alexis Morin on Students For Education Reform, Youth Power & Achieving Educational Justice

Kate Stringer

74 Interview: David Hardy on Putting Purpose Before Politics and Kids Before Adults in Leading Ohio’s 2nd State-Takeover District

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Michael Lomax, CEO of the United Negro College Fund, on Guiding Low-Income Students Through College

Emmeline Zhao

The 74 Interview: You Don’t Think Your Child Is Average & Harvard’s Todd Rose Doesn’t Either

Romy Drucker

74 Interview: Rick Hess and His 21 Letters

David Cantor

74 Interview: Catherine Lhamon Takes On Trump With Probe Into Cutbacks on Student Civil Rights

Mark Keierleber

74 Interview: Rep. Virginia Foxx on Better Career and Technical Education, ‘An Idea Whose Time Has Come’

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Colorado Rep. (and Gov. Hopeful) Jared Polis on Denver Schools, ESSA & Special Education

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: IDEA Schools COO Irma Muñoz, on Being a Living ‘Proof Point’ for Undocumented Students

Mareesa Nicosia

74 Interview: Harvard’s Fernando Reimers on the Crucial Need to Teach Kids to Be Strong Global Citizens

Kate Stringer

Teacher of the Year Finalist Athanasia Kyriakakos on Cultivating Tomorrow’s Leaders Through the Arts

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Teacher of the Year Finalist Megan Gross on Embracing Students With Severe Disabilities

Carolyn Phenicie

The 74 Interview: Ulrich Boser on Understanding the Science of Learning

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: NY Education Chief MaryEllen Elia on ESSA, Undocumented Students & Turning Schools Around

Mareesa Nicosia

Teacher of the Year: The First-Ever Charter Honoree Talks Social Justice, Trauma, and Accountability

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Professor Cheryl Fields-Smith on Why More Black Families Are Homeschooling Their Kids

Naomi Nix

74 Interview: Anne Holton on Desegregation, Working the Clinton Campaign, and Fixing Virginia’s Schools

Mark Keierleber

74 Interview: Gail Saltz on the Connection Between Learning Disabilities and Genius

Emmeline Zhao

74 Interview: Max Eden, His Book About ESSA With Rick Hess, and the Ed Policy Rorschach Test

David Cantor

74 Interview: John King on His Year as Ed Secretary, the Trump Administration, His New Role at Ed Trust

Mark Keierleber

The 74 Interview: Houston Chronicle Reporter on How He Uncovered the Year’s Biggest Education Scandal

Matt Barnum

The 74 Interview: L.A. Education Activist Yolie Flores on Schools, Politics, and Why She’s Running for Congress

Conor Williams

The 74 Interview: Kirabo Jackson on the Importance of School Spending, ‘Soft Skills’ and Teacher Quality

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: New Mexico Education Secretary Hanna Skandera on How Her State Is Turning Around Schools

Kate Stringer

Korman: I Was a Lawyer Volunteer at Dulles Airport When Trump’s Immigration Ban Took Effect

Mark Keierleber

The 74 Interview: Denver Schools Chief Talks ‘Trump Effect,’ School Closures and Teacher Performance Pay

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: Condoleezza Rice on Education, National Security and Donald Trump

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: New Leaders Co-founder Benjamin Fenton on ESSA and How to Develop Better Principals

Naomi Nix

74 Interview: Louisiana Schools Chief John White on ESSA, School Closures and Local Control in NOLA

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: Tennis Great Andre Agassi Serves Up School Buildings to 69 Charters — and Counting

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Jeb Bush — Yes on Choice and Standards, No on Trump and Clinton

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: Obama’s Chief for Black Kids’ Education Reflects on Wins, Work Left Undone

Natasha S. Alford

74 Interview: Former L.A. Superintendent John Deasy Previews New Initiative to Rethink Juvenile Prisons

Matt Barnum

The 74 Interview: Harvard Education School Dean Jim Ryan Talks School Funding, Vergara and Ed Research

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: RePublic Schools’ Ravi Gupta on the Next Frontier of the Education Reform Wars

Richard Whitmire

74 Interview: Researcher Susan Dynarski on Boston Charters, Student Poverty, and Data in Education

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: Early Ed Expert Ruby Takanishi on Why K-12 Doesn’t Work Without Pre-K

Conor Williams

74 Q&A: ‘Clock Boy’ Ahmed Mohamed Talks About His Arrest, How It Factors Into School Discipline Debate

Mark Keierleber

74 Interview: Prof. Chris Emdin Busts Classroom Myths, Talks ‘White Teachers in the Hood’

Natasha S. Alford

74 Interview: Senator Lamar Alexander on Keeping ESSA From Becoming The Next Obamacare

Carolyn Phenicie

The 74 Interview: Former Asst. U.S. Education Commish on Race, Reform and Saving Schools

Mareesa Nicosia

74 Interview: Communities In Schools’ Retiring Prez on Helping At-Risk Kids with Love — and Data

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Education Advocate Myrna Castrejon on Building Great Schools for LA’s Poorest Kids

Sarah Favot

74 Interview: Julio Fuentes on Empowering Hispanic Communities to Demand, and Attract, Better Schools

Romy Drucker

The 74 Interview: Prof. Matt Delmont on How Northern Whites Used Busing to Derail School Integration

Matt Barnum

The 74 Interview: DeRay Mckesson, Baltimore Mayoral Candidate and Black Lives Matter Leader

Carolyn Phenicie

74 Interview: Nate Bowling, WA’s Teacher of the Year, on the Surprising Reaction to His ‘Conversation’ Essay

Matt Barnum

74 Interview: Denver’s Mayor on Testing, Hillary Clinton and America’s Fastest-Growing Urban School District

Matt Barnum

The 74 Interview: Arne Duncan Grades Himself — and Sees Failures on Pre-K, Safety, Desegregation

Carolyn Phenicie

Q&A: Former Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa Talks L.A. Charter Expansion, the Friedrichs Case at the Supreme Court — and a Possible Run for Governor

Naomi Nix

Exclusive Video: Rubio Says Clinton ‘Owned’ By Unions, Decries System Where Only Rich Choose Schools

Carolyn Phenicie

Cami Anderson Talks Ed Reform, Facebook and What ‘The Prize’ Left Out About Newark

Naomi Nix

Shavar Jeffries’ Breakthrough: What Newark Politics Taught Him About Taking Ed Reform National

Naomi Nix