Síndico, Area de Síndico C — Distrito Escolar Unificado de San Diego

 I support Measure H because it was a compromise solution recommended by (1) an Election Review Committee made up of a broad-based group of community members and key stakeholders across the district, (2) the San Diego Unified School District, and (3) the San Diego City Council, who were responding to community concerns and a report issued by the San Diego County Grand Jury.  In general, however, I believe in the democratic process and feel that voters are the best determiners of who should serve and for how long. 

This and other issues raised by the San Diego County Grand Jury and a number of concerned citizens need to be carefully examined after the 2020 census, when we know the demographic distribution of our population and can take a more comprehensive review of the impact a change would have on district governance and the educational program for student.  However, we currently have trustee-only-area elections for the primary.  The current election process ensures that each district has an opportunity to select the top two vote getters in their trustee area and then allows all voters across the district the opportunity to elect the best of the two candidates.  Trustee-area-only voting for the general election would disenfranchise parents of students, who have chosen to attend schools outside of the voting district where they live (approximately half of our students), and thereby, losing their political voice and preventing them from receiving constituent services in the area where their children are attending school.

This is current law, which clearly establishes criteria for approving or disapproving new charter petitions.  As a member of the Board of the San Diego Unified School District, I continue to support existing law and ensure that all students have quality educational programs that meet their needs regardless of the school they choose to attend.  SDUSD has the second highest number of district authorized charter schools in California, and many of these are recognized as being the best schools in California and the United States.  The US News and World Report ranked 19 San Diego Unified School District high schools (10 district managed high schools and 9 charter managed high schools) among the best high schools (Top 13%) out of 20,500 high schools in the United States.

Because Politics Science is the study of decision making and school boards are engaged in the decision making process, school board members are by necessity involved in political issues. However, the school board is a non-partisan board that establishes public education policy (direction, structure, support, oversight, and advocacy) for all students and their families, who reside in their district attendance areas. When issues (immigration and gun control for example) directly impact the education or safety of school employees, students, their families, community partners, and the neighborhoods in which they live or attend school, then board members should weigh in to the degree that the issue is education related. Board members, when acting as a board member or on behalf of the board of education, should not weigh in on purely partisan issues or political issues that have no direct connection with education.

The district can do both, maintain the current school choice option and develop quality schools in every neighborhood. This is an important issue that will be examined during a January 29, 2019, SDUSD School Board Workshop that will include public participation.  Currently, the school choice system allows all students within the school district to choose to attend any school in the district so long as there are seats available. The obligation of the district is to develop high quality schools in every neighborhood so that students will be inclined to attend their neighborhood schools. However, a student should have the option to attend a school outside of their neighborhood, if they believe a different school or cluster of schools would more adequately match their educational needs and aspirations, such as selecting a school or cluster that has a particular career or academic pathway, such as VAPA (Visual and Performing Arts), STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics), medical or health sciences, IB or AP courses, a particular world language, etc.  

No.  The Grand Jury provided a report suggesting (2) 4-year term limits. 5 Town hall meetings were condueted to get public input.  A majority of respondents supported (2) 4 year term limits.  The Board of Trustees approved (3) 4 year term limits which would start in 2020.  Current incumbents would then be able to serve an additional 12 years which would allow some current board members to have served a total of 24 years or 2 generations.  

Voters should be represented by representatives from their own district.  SDUSd is very diverse and each dictrict has their own unique issues and challenges.  The demographics of each district are also different so each district is better served by having representation from their respective neighborhoods.

Parents are seeking better choices for their children's education and charter schools are smaller and can offer more specific options to parents.

No.  Politics should be kept to a minimum in our schools

The District complains that charter schools are taking away students from the public schools.  The reality is that if the public schools met the needs of the students, parents would not be seeking other options.  It is very difficult and stressful for parents to have to make the decision to pull their children out of their local, neighborhood school and drive them to another school.  Pulling a child out of their neighborhood school where their friends also go to school is very difficult for the child as they are no longer attending a school where their friends and neighbors attend.