Randy Ross, Director
His work in education has spanned from the boardroom to the classroom, from research to policy, and from policy to practice.
Those in Los Angeles Unified knew him as Director of Policy to the Board, where he recommended ways to manage teacher talent more deliberately, with evidence of results in hand. This work in 2008 and 2009 laid the groundwork for more enlightened policies in 2010, covering both teacher and principal evaluations.
In the 1990s, educators in Los Angeles may have met him when he helped Maria Casillas run the Los Angeles Area Annenberg Project (LAAMP), a hefty funder of school improvement.
Dr. Ross's ability to guide boards and cabinets toward wiser policy decisions was rooted in his research work, which began at RAND in the 1990s. His work with the New American Schools as an economist and policy analyst enabled him to observe what made districts tick. He is happiest at that point where policy meets the nuts-and-bolts of district operations.
From 1985 to 1992, he developed strategic plans for the board of LA Unified, centered on Curriculum and Instruction. This independent analysis work required a deep immersion in assessment, where he observed its uses and misuses up close. Prior to 1985, he served as Associate Director of Planning and Evaluation for the National Urban League.
He remains active today with the School Success Forum in Los Angeles, a regional reform organization. And he is author of many essays that have appeared in national publications including Education Week, School Administrator, and American School Board Journal. His book, Government and the Private Sector, was published in 1988. On a personal note, he is both a jazz musician and fiction writer.
