Standing Watch

Standing Watch: Russlynn Ali wasn’t quite sure what to expect when President Obama appointed her civil rights chief for the Department of Education. After all, the once high-profile agency had more recently been in a low-profile mode when the president took office in 2009. Ali was a passionate activist in California helping champion educational equity for minorities.

Today, as Ali approaches her third year working as assistant secretary for civil rights, she says she’s found Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan supportive of her efforts to recharge the agenda of the Office of Civil Rights.