Candidates vying for seats on the Santa Clara County Board of Education shared their priorities at a packed house on Thursday.
Hosted by the non-profit Rocketship Public Schools, the county’s charter school system, the Candidate Forum brought together more than 500 students, parents and elected officials. Candidates addressed issues ranging from mental health support in schools to the importance of working with underserved communities.
The Santa Clara County Department of Education oversees more than 30 school districts, delivers educational programs, and monitors school academic progress and finances. The school board includes seven of her members representing different areas of the county.
Four candidates are running for two vacant seats on the school board. Three of the four candidates were present, including Maimona Afzal Bertha, Magdalena Carrasco and Natalie Plechevsky. Raeena Lari was absent. Incumbent Tara Sreekrishnan also participated. She ran unopposed in the June primary to retain her seat.
As schools go beyond classrooms and become hubs of communities, families need to have their voices heard, said Yesenia Fernandez, event co-chair and Rocketship Parent Volunteer. Board leadership is especially important for charter schools where charters are renewed and approved by board members.
“Everything starts with education,” Fernandez told San José Spotlight. “I really hope that over the next four years, the members of this committee will seriously consider what our students really need.”
top priority
Franklin McKinley School District Board member Maimona Afzal Berta and outgoing District 5 San Jose City Council member Magdalena Carrasco are both in contention for Area 6 seats. It is held by Peter Ortiz, who is running for Congress. District 6 is based in East San Jose and includes Alum Rock Union School District, Franklin McKinley School District, Mount He Pleasant School District and parts thereof. He’s two in the East Side Union High School District and the San Jose Unified School District.
Bertha said her priorities include multiple pathways to ensuring equal access to resources and programs such as college and career readiness, early education and childcare. A recent report revealed that free public childcare will enable her more than 7,000 households in Santa Clara County, especially low-income families, to meet their basic needs without assistance. rice field.
“We are uniquely positioned to ensure the highest quality, excellence and equitable academic policy for everyone to learn,” said Berta.
Carrasco said the focus is on connecting students to mental health resources and families to early education and other tools.
“We want to make sure that our families and children have the opportunity to decide what they want to do with their future,” said Carrasco.
Charter Schools Foundation Secretary Natalie Plechevsky spoke with Santa Clara County Health Advisory Commissioner Laiena Lari for Area 7 seats, which include Evergreen School District, Morgan Hill Unified School District, Gilroy Unified School District, and parts of Oak Grove School District and the East Side. is confronting. Union High School District. Claudia Rossi currently holds the seat and she does not plan to run for re-election because she failed to bid for a seat on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors in District 1.
Lari has refused to participate in the forum.
Prcevski said the priorities are addressing the mental health of students, strengthening the relationship between the school and the community, and closing the academic achievement gap. State and county efforts have expanded access to early education for children under the age of five.
“I am running because I want to improve the academic performance of all students in the county and learners at all levels,” Plechevsky said.
Incumbent Tara Sree Krishnan represents Area 2, which includes Los Gatos Saratoga Joint Union School District, Cupertino Union School District, Lakeside Joint Union School District, Loma Prieta Joint Union School District, Los Gatos Union School District, and Saratoga Union School District. The area also includes part of the Santa Clara Unified School District.
Sree Krishnan said her ongoing goals include early education and student mental health. The county is also committed to expanding climate change education and environmental literacy, she said.
Policymaking in education
Candidates were asked how they would prioritize education over politics. They were asked about academic policies regarding charter school renewal and school funding.
All candidates said families should have the say in where their children go to school. The women also agreed that board review of charter school renewals and funding should be evaluated on the same basis as traditional public schools.
On the question of what to prioritize, Berta said her focus is based on equity and includes organizing at the community level to address issues such as the digital divide. In Silicon Valley, the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed disparities in the number of students struggling to access digital resources such as WiFi and online learning devices.
“We have the potential to remain focused on equity issues that are actually impacting our children, students and our communities, but it requires that mutual cooperation.” said Bertha.
Separating politics from education includes partnerships between schools and underserved communities like East San Jose, Carrasco said.
“Underserved neighborhoods for generations, not decades, are leading to poverty and resource-poor families desperate to break out of that vicious cycle. We need to do better,” Carrasco said.
Prcevski said policymaking requires innovative ideas and ensuring that families’ voices are heard.
“It is important that county-level boards are balanced and made up of people from different backgrounds, different professions, including parents of students who participate in today’s system,” Prcevski said. I got
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