Mary Nicely confirmed as second in command at California Department of Education

The State Board of Education on Thursday swore in two board members and confirmed the appointment of a new chief deputy superintendent of the California Department of Education. It is the second-highest position next to State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and entails overseeing the daily operation of the department.

Mary Nicely becomes the third chief deputy superintendent under Thurmond. Nicely was Thumond’s chief of staff during his last term in the state Assembly. More recently she was deputy superintendent of technology at the Department of Education and a senior adviser to Thurmond, focusing on the recruitment and retention of teachers of color and public/private partnerships.

Before that she was president and CEO of Nicely Done Solutions, Inc., a custom database development company headquartered in Berkeley that she founded in 1994. She also worked for Apple for 13 years, where she was the Western U.S. K-12 service and support manager.

Thurmond described Nicely as a “compassionate leader who is detail-oriented” in introducing her to the state board.

The newest state board member is Francisco Escobedo, whom Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed last week to replace Matt Navo, who resigned from the board to become the new executive director of the California Collaborative for Educational Reform, the state agency that oversees school improvement. Escobedo retired after the last school year from his position as superintendent of the Chula Vista Elementary School District, the largest K-6 district in the state. He became executive director of the National Center of Urban School Transformation at San Diego State University, where Escobedo is an adjunct professor of educational administration.  The center was founded in 2005 to play a constructive leadership role around urban education.

Thursday was also start of the one-year term of the student board member, Rana Banankhah, a senior at Modesto High School in the International Baccalaureate program. Banankhah, who is a voting member of the state board, also serves as the student board member to Modesto City Schools, made up of the elementary and high school districts serving Modesto. Banankhah also serves on the board of directors of GENup, a California-based, nationwide social activism organization, and writes about issues relevant to young people for the Modesto Bee.

Newsom appointed her from nominees recommended by the state board.

Thurmond’s predecessor, Tom Torlakson, also appointed Richard Zeiger, his chief of staff during his last term in the Assembly, as his chief deputy superintendent. Zeiger had been a journalist.