A second high-ranking California Department of Education official has resigned because she lives out of state.
Pamela Kadakia is based in Texas but served as a CDE equity project manager.
Her departure follows the departure of Daniel Lee, a Philadelphia-based psychologist, life coach and long-time acquaintance of California schools chief Tony Thurmond, who was involved in Lee's hiring. Lee was the state's first superintendent of equity and earned more than $161,000 annually.
POLITICO reported that Lee's appointment may have violated state policy that requires state employees to live in California unless their jobs require them to live elsewhere.
CDE confirmed Kadakia's departure. The department wanted to make sure that all their personnel were in line with the new guidance. We accepted Ms. Kadakia's resignation.
Kadakia pursued her doctorate in education at Texas A&M University. She taught at a college in Dallas, Texas for more than four years.
Kadakia and her husband purchased a home in the Dallas area. She graduated from a Los Angeles County high school and earned her bachelor's and master's degrees from a California university.
California state employees are not allowed to live out of state and are banned from traveling to Texas and 17 other states that have discrimination laws.
Kadakia's profile says she started working at the agency in January, but CDE said she worked for a month and earned $10,400. The state Department of Education has used its nonprofit affiliates to hire top aides in the past, as was the case with Lee. It's not clear if that happened in Kadakia's case.
Kadakia did not reply to the email.
Lee's resignation caused a stir in the state because of concerns that his hiring process was unfair and that he should not have been hired.
Lee was initially hired in 2020 by the California Department of Education's nonprofit affiliate, but moved into a department position this summer with a salary range between $161,400 and $179,832.
CDE told POLITICO that it never posted Lee's position publicly. Thurmond and Lee were social workers in Philadelphia and have known each other for nearly 30 years, and Lee was in Thurmond's wedding party.
Students of color and those from low-income households suffer from an achievement gap in California schools, which is why Lee was hired to help address it. Black and Latino students have been disproportionately impacted by the state's disproportionate discipline practices.
Lee had no prior experience in California schools or relationships with school districts in his 18-page resume.
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