Stanford University professor emeritus and one of the nation’s most prominent education researchers, Linda Darling-Hammond, is to head California’s State Board of Education. Darling-Hammond recently served as the Co-Chair of the National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development which released the Nation at Hope report and the supporting brief, Building Partnerships in Support of Where, When, & How Learning Happens, that focuses on positive youth development. Darling-Hammond is also the founding president of the Learning Policy Institute and other past work includes participation on the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.