PLATFORM
"This work is personal and I am here to work. My life story has served as an example of the power of a public education system that prepares our students academically, and to be productive members of society. As a child of a teen mom and incarcerated father, education was my gateway. And this is why my wife and I have each dedicated over a decade of service in our education system. I have been a teacher, teacher mentor, education non-profit senior leader, and education policy/finance expert. Our children, staff, and community deserve a school board trustee who understands our education system and who has done the work. My daughter starts school in San José Unified next school year, and she and her classmates deserve a trustee who is committed to our children, and not EXTREMIST politics. I know what it takes to run effective school systems and I have what it takes to find tangible solutions, bring resources to our district, and improve student outcomes. We need EXPERIENCE not MAGA EXTREMISM. Let's get to work TOGETHER.
LIST OF ISSUES
Academic Success
Since 2011, I have worked diligently to improve our education system, and practices to set-up our students for success. Since 2018, I have championed the expansion of library cards to all students, increase of academic tutoring, expansion of Transitional Kindergarten, increase of teacher training, and emphasis on individualized/small group instruction for all grade levels. As Trustee, I will continue to use my experience in education to ensure our students can thrive after the difficulty of the pandemic. We will continue to invest in early education, reading, math, ethnic studies, special education, and high-impact tutoring. I will continue to build city, county, state, and national partnerships that will enable our district to have the resources to lead our students to success. I am the only candidate who has worked as a teacher, consistently been to board meetings, and knows how to get students to high academic outcomes.
Employee Retention
Our country is seeing an education hiring and retention crisis. Teachers and other crucial staff members are leaving education while the pipeline of future educators continues to shrink. From my experience, teaching is an extremely difficult job. As Trustee, I will continue to invest in our employees to keep them in our district and our community. I used my Certificate in Education Finace to help us provide much earned raises to our employees, while maintaining a budget surplus. We will continue to invest in our employees but increasing training, exploring employee housing, and employee child care opportunities for our staff. I will collaborate with our city, county, state, and national leaders to ensure our employees have what they need to teach and thrive in our city. I am the only candidate who understands these experiences as a teacher and educator.
Student Safety
Students must feel safe and be safe while on campus and during any school event. As a parent and former teacher, I know that if a student does not feel safe, then it makes learning extremely difficult. As your Trustee, I will continue to invest in student mental health resources like counselors and Wellness Centers. We will continue to invest in training for staff and families, through our Family Liaisons, to better understand student mental health to provide early interventions to our students. I will continue to champion resolutions like our Gun Storage Safety Resolution that provides safe gun storage guidance to families in our handbooks to reduce gun violence. I am the only candidate who has experience regarding school safety in schools through my work as a teacher and in education policy.
Arts, STEM and Extended School Day
As a student, I was blessed with opportunities to participate in the arts, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), and other activities that extended my school day. These opportunities helped me stay engaged, excited, and wanting to go to school. In addition, these activities helped prepare me for college and beyond. As Trustee, I will continue to use my education background to invest and expand these types of programs for our students. I will use my experience in the classroom, after school program, and high-impact tutoring to ensure our programs meet the individual needs of ALL our students. I commit to collaborating with our education partners to ensure that every child has access to the arts, STEM, and after school programs where academic programming occurs. I am the only candidate who has done this work and knows how to do this work successfully.
More Resources for Students
As an expert in education finance, I know what it takes to have the needed resources to meet the needs of our students. There are many opportunities for collaboration here in San José, the capital of the Silicon Valley. I am proud to have co-founded the Digital Equity Coalition in response to COVID-19 to address the digital divide. Our advocacy secured over $11.2 million to purchase devices and hotspots for 15,000 residents and students in our city and county. As Trustee, I will continue to bring additional resources into our district to make sure ALL our students have access to high-quality performing arts, sports, college preparation, and other academic services. I am the only candidate who has experience raising funds and bringing in additional resources for our students and community.