1. Miguel Angel Cardona was born on July 11,1975 and is an American educator who served as the 12th United States secretary of education under President Joe Biden from March 2,2021 to January 20,2025.
17 Facts About Miguel Cardona
1. 2.
Miguel Cardona was born on July 11,1975, in Meriden, Connecticut, to Puerto Rican parents.
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Miguel Cardona grew up speaking Spanish as his first language and started to learn English when entering kindergarten.
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Miguel Cardona's father is a retired police officer in Meriden.
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Miguel Cardona earned a Bachelor of Science in education from Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, CT in 1997.
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Miguel Cardona obtained a Master of Science in bilingual and bicultural education at University of Connecticut in 2001.
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Miguel Cardona's dissertation, titled Sharpening the Focus of Political Will to Address Achievement Disparities, studied the gaps between English-language learners and their classmates.
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Miguel Cardona began his career as a fourth-grade teacher at Israel Putnam Elementary School in Meriden, Connecticut.
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From 2015 to 2019, Miguel Cardona served as assistant superintendent for teaching and learning in his home town.
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Miguel Cardona was an adjunct professor of education in the University of Connecticut's Department of Educational Leadership.
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In December 2020, Miguel Cardona emerged as a candidate for United States secretary of education in Joe Biden's cabinet.
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Miguel Cardona was brought to the attention of Biden by Linda Darling-Hammond, the leader of the transition's education secretary search efforts, a role she filled for Barack Obama in 2008.
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Miguel Cardona appeared before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on February 3,2021.
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Miguel Cardona took his oath of office on March 1,2021, and was ceremonially sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris on March 2,2021.
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Since the Biden v Nebraska decision, Cardona has announced a series of smaller and more targeted student loan forgiveness programs, and the Department of Education has reemphasized the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to reduce the student debt of people working full-time in public service.
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In December 2023, Miguel Cardona announced that the administration had forgiven about $132 billion of student debt in its first three years.
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At President Joe Biden's 2024 State of The Union, Miguel Cardona was the designated survivor.