Most voters will never attend a Kern County Board of Education meeting. Many probably couldn’t tell you what the board actually does.

But the decisions made there can reach students across Kern County — particularly students navigating expulsion appeals, interdistrict transfers, county-run programs, special education, homelessness, transportation barriers, and other challenges that can push families deeper into the education system.

In this episode of Flor Unmuted, I sit down with Anastasia Hopper, candidate for Kern County Board of Education Trustee Area 3.

We talk about what the county board actually oversees, who trustees are ultimately responsible to, the growing influence of national culture-war politics on local education boards, special education, literacy, attendance, transportation, and the fin ...