Welcome to Unravelling Education, the podcast that's part storytelling, part information and part whodunnit. We'll be investigating the underlying issues harming the public education system and identifying the key players involved.
Hi there. I'm Danielle Ford, former trustee of the Clark County School District, which includes Las Vegas, Nevada. CCSD is the fifth largest district in the nation, with a student population of 300,000 and a workforce of 40,000. During my four years on the Board of Trustees, I witnessed the spending of over $20 billion. Yes, that is billion with a B of taxpayer money.
I had a front row seat into the complex power plays, the manipulative strategies and the entrenched corruption that is happening not only in Clark County, but is prevalent in school districts nationwide. And that's why I decided to launch this podcast.
Unraveling education is designed for residents of Clark County who are scratching their heads with questions about the state of our schools, asking, “Where are the teachers going? Where's the missing money, and why are we always on the bottom of every education list?’ Anyone who's curious about the big picture of education, or who might be wondering if there could be anything sinister lurking in their school districts. And of course, the unsung heroes of education: the teachers, principals and support staff who are in schools every day with our children and who deserve to know the “why” behind the policies impacting their daily work.
The primary goal of Unraveling Education is to expose the covert operations happening within the Clark County School District. Now we will be pulling one thread at a time, but be prepared- there is an intricate web of threads that cross and intertwine into one colossal, tangled mess.
Some episodes will feature my personal narratives, where I will explain my learning curve, share my discoveries, and outline the reasons behind my viewpoints. Other segments will offer educational content, deep dives into individual topics, and insights from industry experts.
My hope is for each episode to trigger some aha moments, to spark your curiosity and empower you to confidently add your distinct voice into the dialogue. The best place for these informed conversations to happen are in the YouTube comments. Feel free to ask questions, contribute your research and insights, brainstorm collectively or suggest topics for future episodes.
Please note that we will be covering some pretty heavy topics like governance, obscured funding, elections, CRT, sex ed, social emotional learning, and more. So while we appreciate diverse opinions, any comments or reviews that contain harassment or hate speech directed towards anybody will be promptly removed.
As you tune in to the next episodes. I encourage you to do your own research, create your own narratives, repurpose our content if you’d like. Just do anything you can to bring attention to these critical issues.
Lastly, the production, operation, and growth of Unraveling Education are supported by contributions and sponsorships. I would like to take a moment to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the founding sponsors, whose support fueled the launch of this podcast: Robert Coles, Jenna Robertson, Anna Binder, Lisa Guzman, Jane Audette, Andrea Cole, Chris Guinchilliani, Ramona Esparza, Karlana Kulseth, Sarah Comroe, Linda Cavazos, Robert Speciale, Tony Ho, Vicki Kreidel, Ruben Murillo, Daniel Ibarra, Jenny Tiftt- Ochoa, Akiko Cooks, Ryan Fromoltz,, Elena Fabunan, Jen Hanna, Kathy Sweet, Cecia Alvarado, Elizabeth Campbell, Doug Staton, Michael Ingli, Carrie Kaufman, Carmen Andrews, Adam Trujillo, Chris Baker, Fernando Romero, Jshauntae Marshall, Anthony Pulido, four anonymous individuals, two anonymous principals, and one anonymous Nevada legislator.
You'll find those founding sponsors listed on the sponsor page at Unraveling Education.com/Sponsor. If you would like to help support Unraveling Education, there are various opportunities to do so, either by making a general contribution or by sponsoring an individual episode.
Thank you so much for tuning in today. Before you go, please take a moment to subscribe so that you get notified as soon as the next episode drops.
That's all for now. A happy unraveling. Ready, set, unravel. Yeah, and that's just how the cookie unravels. All right. The closing catchphrase is a work in progress. Okay, goodbye.
