LVJUSD is a great school district with great potential.
But in recent years, it’s traveled a rough road, going through multiple superintendents and repeated budgetary challenges. The next few years will be critical in getting our district back on track and rebuilding broken trust with the community so that together we can put students first.
Let’s talk about MY roadmap!
Where do I stand?
Confusion about who’s in the driver’s seat and where they’re headed has hurt our district.
Our School Board exists to serve the public and our students, not district administration. Trustees are responsible for setting priorities and policies; administration’s job is to carry them out.
As a Trustee, I would strive to:
Collaborate with other Trustees and administration, drawing upon our diverse backgrounds and skills to set a positive tone for our district
Set measurable goals for the district and track progress toward them
Establish clear expectations for administration and follow through to ensure accountability
Build enhanced communication channels to promote greater transparency and responsiveness to the community
If I see our school district veering off course, you can count on me to ask tough questions, say no when necessary, and step up before challenges turn into crises.
Leadership Starting at the Top
Sound Financial Stewardship
Last year, our prior superintendent left amid a budgetary crisis that resulted in severe cuts and outcry from staff and the community. Stronger oversight could have helped prevent our district from reaching this point.
Among our School Board’s most important responsibilities is to ensure sound stewardship of our district’s financial resources at all times. Financial stability is a prerequisite for earning our community’s trust and allowing our staff to focus their full energies on our students.
School district budgets are complicated. My MBA in accounting and my professional work as a finance consultant equip me to read financial worksheets, ask administration the right questions, and insist on answers. My service on the district’s LCAP and Budget Committees has given me a head start in understanding the specifics of our district’s financial situation.
As a Trustee, I would make it my priority to:
Set and enforce clear expectations for administration around reserve requirements
Ensure all potential new programs are scrutinized for short- and long-term measures of effectiveness and financial sustainability before being adopted
Foster ongoing communications between administration, labor organizations, and the community so budgetary challenges can be addressed proactively, collaboratively, and transparently
Explore new revenue sources to provide funding for items beyond the basics covered by the core budget
With better financial stewardship, our district can reach for its full potential instead of putting out fires.
Sensible Use of Technology
Technology can be a valuable educational tool if deployed in a deliberate, age-appropriate manner. Our district has already taken steps to find a better balance when it comes to technology use in our classrooms and on our school campuses, but our School Board and administration must continue to engage with this issue.
As a Trustee, I would work to:
Continue the district’s path toward reduced elementary classroom technology use by ending one-to-one Chromebook-per-student assignments
Based on the latest data, set sensible, age-appropriate classroom screen time limits for all students across the district, from elementary school through high school
Establish uniform personal technology guidelines at the district level to promote greater clarity and parity across school sites and reduce burden on site administrators
Implement strict procedures for reviewing any student-facing artificial intelligence (AI) tools before introduction, taking into account privacy, safety, and educational value, and including family notification requirements
The condition of our school facilities sends a message to our kids about how much we value them and their education. Research also shows that school facilities have a meaningful impact on students’ ability to learn and thus on their futures and ours.
Many of LVJUSD’s facilities suffer from significant plumbing, HVAC, roofing, and other deficiencies after years of deferred maintenance. Some school sites are in much worse shape than others, meaning students have very different educational experiences depending on where in our district they go to school. During the 2024-2025 school year, parents and students from my school, Junction Avenue, told the School Board and administration that kids avoided going to the bathroom during the school day due to poor conditions.
Our last bond attempt, Measure G, failed in 2022. Since then, the district has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on bond consultants and polling. What it’s failed to do is make a serious effort to build community support.
It has now been nearly a decade since our district passed a facility bond. As a result, we missed out on getting Proposition 2 matching funds and aren’t in line for the next statewide school facility bond.
As a Trustee, I would make it my goal to:
Engage with the community about its facility needs and priorities
Oversee development of a comprehensive facility master plan so resources can be strategically aligned with district priorities and areas of greatest need
Build broad community support for investment in our schools
Strengthen our district’s financial accountability to promote the confidence needed for a successful bond measure
Our students and teachers deserve healthy, up-to-date schools that support learning and are a source of pride in our community.