I will bring better guidance to our GUSD community.

It’s okay not to know how to do something. We all start somewhere.

Watching as your child walks off into school for the first time starts a new chapter for your family. Each new chapter brings new moments of happiness and new challenges we face. New and veteran teachers still get butterflies before the first day of school. We have more in common than we think.

What should never happen is feeling helpless or overwhelmed when it comes to navigating our school system. If it’s out of reach, it’s NOT a resource.

I promise to do better supporting students and families with useful guidance. I want you to know where to turn when you need help, especially with Special Education. Parents should know what their school offers in terms of IEPs or 504s (and just what those letters and numbers mean). I will work to make the process of gathering resources clearer and more accessible to parents who are not education experts (which is most of us!).

I will work with our teachers and principals and staff: what are the obstacles to excellence at your school and how can I, as a Board Member, help remove them? I want to address the counseling shortage that is affecting our kids’ ability to make informed career and college decisions, and increase the number of school nurses and social workers within GUSD. I will make sure our incredible teachers have adequate training and support to work with new curriculum materials.

As a former member of School Site Council for one of GUSD’s elementary schools, I know how individual schools allocate their financial resources. I would love to apply the knowledge I gained from that to help the District in its financial planning. I have had an up-close view on what the schools and teachers themselves need, and I will use my position as a Board member to ensure they get those needs met.

I know that each school has both basic and unique needs. I will make sure our Board needs to work with the superintendent, principals, and teachers to make sure the money gets where it is needed most. We know our FLAG programs require materials and support that differ from those for Special Education. I’m not only a parent who has been through the process with my own kids, but I also hold a Master’s in social work. And I know what a challenge it has been for myself and many others, despite my expertise. I will make sure that there are clearer paths for getting help through IEPs and 504 plans.

I will ask how we are supporting our students who might be struggling but who don’t technically meet the thresholds for official intervention services or those who are thriving but may not have the “right” test scores for gifted and talented programs? Our children are so much more than their test scores. It will be my job to ensure that we are providing the best possible education and experience for all GUSD students, whether Gifted and Talented, Special Education, or in need of other intervention services, counseling, or support.