Síndico, Area de Síndico 3 — Oceanside Unified School District

I am a National Board Certified Teacher with over 25 years of experience in public education. I have been a classroom special education teacher in Oceanside Unified, a University Professor and I currently work for California Teachers Association. In my current position, I support labor management relations in 13 school districts in San Diego County. In this rewarding profession, I advocate for students, conduct trainings, research and analyze district finances, special education, and curriculum.  As a staff person with the California Teachers Association, I am skilled at negotiations and follow the Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA). The most important part of the process is communication and dialogue to establish common interests and mutual trust. As a schoolboard member, I will be directing the district bargaining team and overseeing the negotiations to ensure the management is bargaining in good faith and being transparent with labor groups both the Oceanside Teachers Association and CSEA.  

My experience as a classroom teacher and background in education has resulted in dedication to high expectations for all students.  As a classroom teacher I learned that the key to student success is collaboration between the district, teachers, staff and parents.

I am also a proud parent of a 5^th grade student enrolled in the only dual language immersion program in Oceanside Unified. I am committed to this school district and the success of ALL students. 

Unfortunately, there has been a clear disconnect in our district and lack of authentic collaboration. I was motivated to run by my recent experience advocating with other parents for the expansion of the Dual language program into middle and high schools. My experience with school district leadership and the school board was frustrating and unnecessarily challenging. That experience led to me to connect with other parents in our community.

I have been successful in reinventing our parent committees and creating meaningful opportunities for parent engagement. Over the last three years, I worked with the district to improve our District Parent Advisory Committee – including designing the agendas, coordinating locations, and worked with the Oceanside Teachers to provide food and childcare for our meetings. These improvements led to a significant increase in committee attendance.  Parents now provide critical input for our local control accountability plan. As a school board member, I am committed to actively engaging parents, families and teachers in conversations and decision making; I will bring citizen groups together on matters critical to student success.  

Oceanside is struggling with finances and with recent contract negotiations with the teachers has alienated parents and staff. It is time to rebuild our relationships and focus on student success. I strongly believe in an accountability driven district that makes informed decisions about educational programs, staffing and resources.  I will work with trustees to set clear priorities, sensibly allocate funding, collect data, and achieve OUSD goals.

I am an advocate for public education. Our public schools are the heart of the communities they serve and do so much more than just teach our children. Our Oceanside schools host continuing education courses for adults, extracurricular activities, sporting events, academic clubs and invite the community for local events.

I also support the addressing of climate change through education and policy in schools. There is a need for comprehensive climate literacy policy in OUSD and school districts throughout this country. As a school board member, I can work collaboratively with management, other board members, labor, and parents to look at implementing a district policy and access to curriculum that supports climate justice.

From school board member and educator perspective, I believe it is important that the School District understands how today’s immigration policies impact learning and achievement to properly in order to respond to them. I am against the current immigration crackdowns and the repeal of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) which are undoing decades of progress. As a schoolboard member I would work with other board members, district administration, teachers and families to make Oceanside schools a place where students feel safe and can focus on learning, not deportation. We need to ensure our Oceanside schools are welcoming for immigrant families by enforcing current immigration law, advocate for funding, and support to educators, school leaders, and counselors in schools.

       Ann’s commitment to Oceanside Unified students began in 1973 at Ditmar Elementary School, and continued at South Oceanside Elementary and Martin Luther King Middle School until her retirement in 2006. A graduate of San Diego State University at the age of 21, she spent her first three years teaching in El Centro, her hometown, in the same school as her mother, a teacher for 24 years.

        Her master teaching skills were developed in the classroom, as a head teacher, and as a reading resource teacher.  An A.V.I.D.  (a program which targets underserved students of our community and prepares them for college) teacher and Coordinator, she led King Middle School AVID program to becoming a National Demonstration School. She became a National trainer for AVID International. Ann mentored beginning teachers, served on many district committees, and has evaluated school programs throughout San Diego County.

                After retiring from OUSD, she accepted a position at nearby St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School in Vista where she spent six additional years teaching. In 2014, Ann successfully campaigned for Oceanside Unified School Board Trustee. She has served on the school board for the past 4 years and is currently serving as president. 

Actions speak louder than words. A brief overview of accomplishments:

Due spotty financial support from Sacramento and declining enrollment, the board recognized that the financial condition in the next few years might put OUSD in the red. To ensure that doesn’t happen, she led the way in offering a retirement incentive which avoided employee layoffs, saved our district 8 million dollars and allowed us to offer well-deserved employee raises.

While recognizing the financial difficulties ahead, Ann continues to work hard to find solutions with every part of the budget being scrutinized. One of the areas that is potentially a savings is average daily attendance. Oceanside has an attendance rate of 94% consistency. If that rate can be improved just 1%, that saves the district $2 million dollars. Under Ann’s leadership, a plan which involves students reaching out to students to get them back to school has been implemented, and it is working.

Student safety and well-being are a top priority for Ann. She serves on the safety/security committee and is committed to anti-bullying education for all students. During her tenure on the school board, OUSD is unique among school districts in bringing 24/7 mentoring services to our students and families in crisis. Through grants and Medicare funding, the mentors support students struggling with attendance, academic challenges, hunger, abuse, and homelessness by finding the resources available in the community and connecting those in need. Safe havens for our LGBTQ students are available in every middle and high school and each of our schools now has an active Gay Student Alliance club.

Committed to preparing every graduate with the skills needed to move successfully on to college or career, Ann has actively supported an increase in College/Career Pathways in our high schools. Students can currently pursue college and career pathways in public service such as nursing, paramedic, policing, teaching, and firefighting; Environmental Science and Engineering; Arts/Digital Media and Design; and Business Innovation and Global Entrepreneurship.

In the interest of parents and students seeking home school and independent study opportunities, Ann has  supported the development of the Oceanside Unified Schools Independent Study Program. Parents of elementary students work in conjunction with our home school program teachers to develop individual plans while giving the parents flexibility in their schedules. Older students can take advantage of the Independent study program offering individualized scheduling and staff support.