Tani Cantil-Sakauye is president and CEO of the Public Policy Institute of California, where she holds the Walter and Esther Hewlett Chair in Understanding California’s Future. From 2011 to 2022, she served as the 28th Chief Justice of California and led the judiciary as the chair of the Judicial Council—the constitutional policy and rule making body of the judicial branch—the first person of color and the second woman to do so. Before she was elected statewide as the Chief Justice of California, she served more than 20 years on California appellate and trial courts and was appointed or elevated to higher office by three governors. Earlier in her career she served as a deputy district attorney for the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office and on the senior staff of Governor Deukmejian, first as deputy legal affairs secretary and later as a deputy legislative secretary. She holds a BA and a JD from the University of California, Davis.

Ben Chida is chief deputy cabinet secretary and senior advisor for Cradle to Career in the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom, which he joined after serving on the governor’s transition in 2018. Prior to joining the governor’s office, he served as attorney-advisor in the executive office of then-Attorney General Kamala D. Harris, as a judicial law clerk to federal judges in California and on the DC circuit, and as a third-grade teacher in New York City. His educational journey includes dropping out of high school, attending Orange Coast College, receiving a BA from University of California, Berkeley, and a JD from Harvard Law School.

Josh Hoover is California State Assemblymember for District 7 in Sacramento County. He serves as the vice chair of the Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economic Development, and the Economy, where he works to support small businesses and bring great jobs to our region. He also serves on the Assembly Select Committee on Serving Students with Disabilities. Prior to his election to the Assembly, he served on the school board in the Folsom Cordova Unified School District (FCUSD). He led the fight to reopen schools in his community, and as a result, FCUSD was the first district in Sacramento County to bring students back for in-person instruction. He also worked to balance the budget, protect taxpayers, expand mental health services, support school police officers, and improve student achievement. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and public policy from University of California, Los Angeles and a master’s degree in public administration from University of Southern California.

Julien Lafortune is a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, where he specializes in education and economics. He is also a member of the PPIC Economic Policy Center. His primary areas of focus include K–12 education finance, school infrastructure, human capital, and labor market policy. He has authored policy reports, briefs, presentations, and blogs on a variety of policy topics, including K–12 education, labor market issues, demographics, and housing markets. He has published academic research papers on school finance reforms and school capital investments in the American Economic Journal: Applied Economics and the American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings. He holds a PhD in economics from the University of California, Berkeley. 

Cassandra Walker Pye is president for Lucas Public Affairs (LPA), a Sacramento-based public affairs consultancy. For just over 40 years, she has enjoyed a successful career in communications, government, politics, and advocacy for corporate interests in global, national, state, and local arenas. She joined PPIC’s board of directors in 2021, having previously served on the PPIC Statewide Leadership Council. In 2014, she launched 3.14 Communications, LLC. Previously, she was senior vice president for APCO Worldwide, a global strategic communications consultancy. In 2003, she was appointed deputy chief of staff to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and served on his transition team. She has served as corporate affairs vice president and political director for the California Chamber of Commerce, executive director for JobsPAC, director of public affairs for the California Retailers Association, director of governmental relations for the California Grocers Association, and state relations manager for the Food Marketing Institute. In 2018, she was named to a panel of California Influencers: 76 Californians selected by the Sacramento Bee and other McClatchy newspapers to offer their views on important issues facing the state in the lead up to the 2018 election; in 2019 she was again named to the panel. She is a prior state board president for California Women Lead and chairs the organization’s Advisory Council. She currently serves as Sacramento board chair for Street Soccer USA and sits on the national board for SSUSA. She is an American Leadership Forum senior fellow.

Tony Thurmond is State Superintendent of Public Instruction, responsible for the largest public school system in the nation, with nearly 6 million students and over 10,000 schools. Since taking office in 2019, he has created and championed historic initiatives to close the achievement gap, support student mental health, and improve equity, access, and opportunity for all of California’s public school students. He has integrated new programs and strategies into K-12 public schools, including securing a historic $4.13 billion investment in community schools to ensure an equity-driven approach to public education; supporting teachers through a $1.5 billion investment in professional learning for educators; championing the $2.7 billion Universal Transitional Kindergarten program to expand quality preschool; and fighting to increase Expanded Learning funding to $4 billion ongoing to add opportunities for students throughout the summer. He is a graduate of Temple University, and he holds dual master’s degrees in law and social policy and social work from Bryn Mawr College.