Host Sophia Layne sits down with Susan Alvaro at the Half Moon Bay Library for a wide-ranging conversation about the inner workings of public education, the power of literacy, and the many ways community members can get involved locally. This episode weaves together a fascinating tour of how public education is structured from classroom to federal level, how early literacy gaps can harden into lifelong disadvantage, the unglamorous work that rarely makes the news but shapes everything — and a touching visit to a bilingual storytime in progress.

Susan Alvaro has served on the San Mateo County Board of Education for 32 years, representing the Coastside as well as a number of Bayside communities, and advocating across all of San Mateo County. She has deep experience in literac ...