Dr. Carl Cohn

Executive Director
California Collaborative for Educational Excellence

Carl A. Cohn is on leave from Claremont Graduate University to direct the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence, a new state agency established by Governor Brown and the State Legislature to advise and assist school districts on their academic performance. Before his tenure at Claremont, he served as superintendent of schools in the San Diego Unified School District. Prior to that, he worked as a professor at the University of Southern California, and a federal court monitor for the specialeducation consent decree in the Los Angeles school system. From 1992 to 2002, he was superintendent of the Long Beach Unified School District. His tenure at Long Beach culminated with him winning the McGraw Prize in 2002, and the district winning the Broad Prize in 2003.

Cohn has worked as a faculty advisor for both the Broad Superintendents Academy and the Harvard Urban Superintendents Program. He also serves on the boards of the Spencer Foundation, Teaching Works at the University of Michigan and St. Mary’s Academy. He recently completed service on the California State Board of Education and ACT, Inc. Earlier this year, he completed the long-term evaluation of the DC Public Schools for the National Research Council. Among his many publications, Cohn co-edited the 2004 Teachers College Press publication, Partnering to Lead Educational Renewal: High Quality Teachers, High Quality Schools.