Michael Kirst, professor emeritus of education and business administration, begins his term as a member of the California State Board of Education today. Appointed by Gov. Jerry Brown last Wednesday, Kirst returns to a post he held once before, from 1975 to 1982. Before taking the oath of office, he spoke with The Daily by phone to discuss his views on state education policy. An edited excerpt is below.
Stanford Daily (SD): What made you decide to return to the Board of Education?
Michael Kirst (MK): I just felt, when I reflected on my whole career…that the thing I enjoyed the most was actually having a position in government where you could be part of a group that made decisions that really made a difference for children.
It’s one thing to be out there writing about it, doing research and consulting. You are always trying to influence the policymakers. But I found I enjoyed being the policymaker more than just advising them.
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