People: Kyle Spencer Is Everywhere

Freelance journalist Kyle Spencer speaks quickly, is relentlessly curious (and deeply skeptical) about claims people make about education, and has a lot on her plate. This include a piece of some kind on former Newark superintendent Cami Anderson (probably for the NYT) and a big new video project she can’t talk about timed for the 2016 Presidential election.

I had the chance to talk with her last week and wanted to share some more about her somewhat unusual path into education journalism, her diverse writings on education over the past few years, her strongly-held views on what makes for compelling education journalism, and what comes next in terms of new projects.

Like me, you may know Spencer more for her work than by name. She’s written for Slate, the New York Times, and the Hechinger Report. I’ve been sharing out her pieces more and more in recent months, including Louisiana’s Common Core Debacle (Politico), At New York Private Schools, Challenging White Privilege From the Inside (Sunday NYT Magazine), Some Parents Oppose Standardized Testing on Principle, but Not in Practice (NYT), Can You Steal An Education? (Hechinger Report), Can an Oakland charter chain ditch tough discipline and retain its high ranking? (Hechinger Report), An Experiment in Whether Gentrification Can Spur Racial Integration at Schools (The Atlantic).