California State Schools chief to visit Caldor Fire, highlight fundraising for impacted schools/teachers

Tony Thurmond, California State Superintendent of Public Instruction, will join El Dorado County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ed Manansala on Wednesday at the Calder Fire. They will be there to gain a first-hand perspective of how the fire is impacting schools in the area and to offer support to displaced residents, as provided by the California Department of Education Foundation’s (CDEF) Emergency Response Fund.

At the Placerville Library, Thurmond will share donations of books and gift cards for families affected by the wildfire and program staff will showcase the family supports and student tutoring services offered to those displaced by the closure of seven school districts in the county. The El Dorado County Community Hub program, a partnership among First 5 El Dorado, the County Library and the El Dorado County Office of Education, provides these offerings thanks to the support of volunteer educators and leadership of EDCOE’s Elizabeth Blakemore, Director of Early Learning and Family Support, and Jesus Cordova, Bilingual Family Engagement Specialist.

Superintendent Thurmond will visit Caldor Fire Incident Command at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds to receive a briefing from Incident Commander Jeff Veik of Cal Fire before joining a meeting of the superintendents of El Dorado County’s 15 school districts at the El Dorado County Office of Education. The gathering of district leaders will provide Thurmond with updates and first-hand accounts of fire-related school closures and evacuations, as well as a COVID-19 briefing from El Dorado County Public Health Officer Dr. Nancy Williams.

Donations to CDEF disaster relief can be made to the CDEF GoFundMe page. To support El Dorado County educators who have been impacted by the Caldor Fire, visit the Emergency Assistance for EDC Educators Fund which has been established by the El Dorado Community Foundation.