Marcia Aaron leads Charter School Growth Fund's investments across Texas, Arizona, Idaho, and Utah, and before that, she spent thirteen years building KIPP SoCal Public Schools from two schools to twenty-two as its founding CEO.
In this episode of The Stronger Podcast, Mike Montoya sits down with Marcia for a conversation about the three things she is most passionate about, and why each one connects to the others.
Marcia started talking to her board about succession seven years before she left KIPP SoCal. The plan was not an emergency document. It was a real assessment of the team, where it was strong, where it needed to grow, and the development plan for every individual on it. Her successor, Angela, started as a school leader and moved up through director of academics, CAO, and CEO. At CSGF, succession is now a milestone in every grant agreement, and the message Marcia is taking to the field is direct: succession is a verb.
Mike and Marcia also dig into why math has fallen behind, especially in schools serving low-income students. After COVID, schools poured energy into reading and let math facts and fluency slip. The result, in Texas, is portfolios sitting ten to fifteen points below pre-COVID proficiency. The fix is not new math. It is the boring work of direct instruction, automaticity, and Algebra one as the gateway to college and economic mobility.
The third thread is rural education. Half of Idaho's students are rural, and the lowest-performing schools in the state are rural. Marcia talks about traditional brick-and-mortar charters opening in towns of 6,500, online schools in the top 25 statewide, and micro schools partnering with D1 sports programs to reach kids who would otherwise lose access.
Tune in to hear why succession is the most overlooked responsibility in leadership and why building something strong in the moment is not enough if it does not last after you leave.
Chapters:
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01:51 From Wall Street to charter schools: Marcia Aaron's path to Park City and CSGF
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04:56 Building KIPP SoCal from 2 schools to 22, and the alumni who came through it
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10:13 What COVID did to math, and why Algebra I is still the gateway to college
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16:38 Rural education in Idaho: brick-and-mortar charters, online schools, and micro-schools in towns of 6,500
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23:32 Seven years of succession planning: succession is a verb
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36:22 Education leaders need to lock arms instead of getting peeled off one by one
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40:58 Stop grading charter schools on a curve: the case for measuring against the highest bar
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45:23 Aging better starts with putting the phone down and investing in social connection
Links:
Connect with Marcia on LinkedIn to follow her work, and visit Charter School Growth Fund to learn more about how CSGF is investing in charter networks across Texas, Arizona, Idaho, and Utah.
Stay strong.
Episode 26