José Magaña

My name is José Magaña and I am running for re-election for Area 2 Trustee of the San José Unified School Board of Education. As an educator, I have dedicated over a decade working to make sure that every child, including my daughters, receive a world class education. We have made great progress these last four years, but have more work to do.

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Growing up as the son of an incarcerated father, a teen mom, and in a Spanish speaking family, my family instilled in me the importance of getting an education, but it wasn’t always easy. Luckily, I had amazing teachers who cared for, challenged, and helped me grow to become a hard-working person of integrity, dedicated to serving those around me. Through them I learned what it meant to be confident, advocate for myself and others, and the transformational power a community has to come together to support a child. These experiences led me to the be the first male in my family to graduate from college. 

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I am the ONLY educator in this race. I have the relevant professional experience that is needed to be a champion for our children. I moved to San José to be a kindergarten teacher to provide students with an equitable start to their educational journeys. Working towards equity took me from my own classroom to hundreds of classrooms across the country when I worked as a coach for mathematics and literacy. My passion for service continued as a senior leader at an education non-profit that ran after-school programs in the city of San José. Now, I collaborate with foundations, government entities, and private funders to ensure that all students receive personalized, high-impact academic tutoring.

 

As trustee these last four years, I put my Certificate in Education Finance, experience as a teacher, and a proven track record in education to work. When re-elected, I will continue to do more to ensure that our students can thrive. Whether it is going to college, going to trade school, the military, or starting a business, I will continue to fight to ensure that our students can thrive in our city. And just like a great teacher, I will listen to our community on how to best serve.

 

This work is personal. I want to make sure that all schools can prepare all our students, including my own,  for their futures. Our students deserve an experienced educator on the Board of Education. Our community deserves experience not EXTREMISM. I humbly ask for your vote this November. Please join our fight to provide all students with the engaging, high quality education they deserve. -José Magaña, Vice President, SJUSD