By the way, the student rep on the Santa Rosa School Board, Montgomery High senior Rena Wang, is scheduled to get feted by the State Board of Education in Sacramento Thursday.

Readers will likely remember Wang from a story I wrote on Dec. 30 about her myriad political and academic accomplishments. (Read story here: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20091229/ARTICLES/912299969 and blog item here http://extracredit.blogs.pressdemocrat.com/11556/more-from-montgomery-highs-rena-wang/

The latest is her being named to the U.S. Senate Youth program. That is what she is going to Sacramento Thursday for – a celebratory event to congratulate the two picks and two alternates for the program.

But when I talked with Wang after Wednesday’s special school board meeting, she said that sure, while the event Thursday is supposed to be sweetness and light, she has some deep concerns not only about lawmakers’ funding of education but the latest debate about California’s application for Race to the Top money.

I interviewed enough people for the story on Wang to know that State Schools Chief Jack O’Connell might want to bone up on his stats before he gets to chatting with Wang.