Susan Bragato

Age: 47

Summary: founder and former executive director of the California Network of Education Charters (precursor to the California Charter Schools Association) who helped found California's first charter school in 1994 (San Carlos Charter Learning Center), schools that operate independently of districts and do not have to follow many state regulations in her thinking, that students would perform better in non-traditional settings, and who saw her organization grow to education more than 180,000 students in 2004.

Cause of Death: Breast cancer

Born: August 25, 1957

Died: January 5, 2005

Location: San Carlos, California