Meet the State Superintendent candidates: Nichelle Henderson, educator and community college trustee

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Nichelle Henderson has spent more than two decades in education, from classroom teacher to union organizer to board member of California’s largest community college district.

Now, she’s looking to become the state’s next superintendent of public instruction.

Henderson, whose top priorities as superintendent include reforming standardized testing and expanding dual enrollment, started her career as a middle school teacher in the Compton Unified School District, where she taught mathematics for seven years. She is a faculty adviser in the California State University system and has worked as a union leader, participating in bargaining for the California Faculty Association, which represents faculty and staff.

She also serves as a trustee for the Los Angeles Community College District, which has nine campuses across Los Angeles County. Henderson was first elected in 2020 and reelected in 2024.

“I’m the only candidate with K-12, community college and university experience,” she said. “That’s important because you have students that are graduating high school, that are going into the workforce, going to higher education, and having a deep understanding of what that transition looks like and what preparation looks like is pivotal.”

Henderson said her experience as a union leader at CSU and as a community college trustee, which requires her to help the district make decisions when bargaining with faculty, gives her a “perspective from both sides” of the bargaining process.

As superintendent, Henderson said she would “make sure that all parties walk away feeling heard, but also feeling that they’re getting what they wanted” to avoid teacher strikes.

Since announcing her candidacy for the superintendent role, Henderson has raised about $73,000 in campaign contributions. She has received endorsements from groups including the California Legislative Black Caucus and the California Legislative Women’s Caucus.

Henderson has also been endorsed by a number of elected officials as well as current and former colleagues, including Gabriel Buelna, who serves on the Los Angeles Community College District board with Henderson.

Buelna said that Henderson advocated for Assembly Bill 1096, a 2023 legislation that allows community colleges to offer courses in languages other than English without requiring students to enroll in English as a Second Language courses. The idea was to make it easier for prospective students who speak languages other than English to access college.

The bill was supported by the Los Angeles Community College District. Buelna remembers looking for support on the board and finding an ally in Henderson.

“Linguistic policy diversity probably wasn’t the first thing on her mind, but immediately, she got it,” Buelna said. “She said, ‘That means a lot of people aren’t coming to college because they don’t speak English. We need to have access, let’s do it.’ ”

Since the bill took effect, an additional 10,000 students have taken classes in the Los Angeles district, according to Buelna, who added that Henderson’s support of the bill shows her commitment to diversity and access.

“And I think that she will look at as many policies as possible to improve access in her position as superintendent,” he added.

If elected, Henderson said she would change how the state uses standardized tests. As a sixth-grade teacher, she often had students who entered with fourth-grade level math and reading skills.

She said earlier exams should better identify where students are academically, which would “allow the teacher to target those specific areas.”

“Because now you’d be providing targeted support,” she added. “So when they move on to the next grade level, now they’re not two grade levels behind. They might be one grade level behind. So now they move on to the next grade level, and every year the teachers are able to fill the gaps.”

Henderson also wants to expand dual enrollment in high schools. Sonya Christian, the chancellor of the state’s system of 116 community colleges, has said she wants to enroll every ninth grader in community college courses. Henderson supports that idea, adding that giving students an early look at college will help them think more deeply about their futures.

“I believe that the earlier we start to create pathways and prepare students for their future, the better off they are,” she said. “They should be leaving high school knowing that they’re going to have a job doing a particular thing or working towards a career.”