Gov. Jerry Brown named six people Tuesday to the troubled Commission on Teacher Credentialing, fulfilling a vow to bring new leadership to a board whose teacher disciplinary practices were roundly criticized by a state audit.
Brown's six additions bring to eight the number of commissioners his office has appointed to the panel this year, giving the Democratic governor's appointees a majority of the 15 voting seats.
"Our office had stated that it was committed to finding new, capable, experienced and dedicated leaders -- and today's appointments will fulfill that commitment," said Evan Westrup, a spokesman for Brown.
Three of the new appointees will fill vacancies on the board, while the other three will replace members who were named by Arnold Schwarzenegger as he left office in January but had not yet been confirmed by the Senate. Commission members are not paid a salary.
Brown's six new appointees are:
• Erick Casallas, a 31-year-old teacher at Emerson Middle School in the Bakersfield City School District. Casallas, a Democrat, will serve a term ending in November 2013.
• Eddie Cuevas, a 40-year-old teacher of government and economics at West Adams Preparatory High School in Los Angeles. Cuevas, a Democrat, will serve a term expiring in November 2015.
• Linda Darling-Hammond, 59, has served as an education professor at Stanford University since 1998. Darling-Hammond, a Democrat, will serve a term expiring in November 2013.
• Kathleen Harris, 52, of Sebastopol, has taught in the Piner-Olivet Union School District since 1986. Harris, a Democrat, will serve a term expiring in November 2013.
• Alicia Hinde, 33, of Los Gatos, has taught at Bagby Elementary School in the Cambrian School District since 2001. Hinde, a Democrat, will serve a term expiring in November 2012.
• Louise Stymeist, 55, of Granite Bay, has served in the Sacramento City Unified School District as a coordinator in career technical preparation. She is an independent voter and will serve a term expiring in November 2012.
The commission is scheduled to meet Thursday and Friday in Sacramento. It recently named a new interim director, Elizabeth L. Graybill, in the wake of the blistering audit that cited lapses in launching investigations, updating files, gathering facts, tracking cases and revoking credentials in teacher misconduct cases.
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