I’m running to restore true, useful transparency to District operations. Every parent should know how to find information on curriculum, testing, childcare, athletics, Special Education, GATE, and more. We should all know how our budget dollars are being spent, and whether unrestricted funds can be shifted to areas of greatest need.

While I am grateful that the combination of state and federal Covid relief money paid for Chromebooks for every child, I wonder why GUSD did not have enough Chromebooks to begin with in 2020 when this all started!

I plan to meet families where they are - at school sites, in parks, at athletic events - to match them with services and information they may need. This is where my background and experience in social work will be put to good use.

GUSD must follow K-12 safety guidelines set by the LA County Public Health Dept. Vaccine requirements are established by the state. Focusing on excellence means that District leadership does not get bogged down in debates that are beyond our District’s control.

What GUSD leadership can control is supporting existing programs with enough teachers, nurses and counselors to provide care and support to our students, who have been through a lot during the pandemic.

We can also treat each other with respect and model the type of behavior we want our children to learn, whether we like the state and county guidelines or not.

As a public school district, Glendale Unified must adhere to the California Department of Education’s State Standards, which include teaching age-appropriate lessons about a wide range of topics from fractions to climate change. I encourage parents to get involved with textbook adoption processes and work groups that are open to all District stakeholders.

I believe concerns about curriculum can easily be resolved with more guidance, including featuring lessons and teachers that our excellent educators are using each and every day. Every family should know how to log into Clever and Google Classroom so they can see what their children are studying. Parents should understand what standards-based grading is and how to support their child’s learning.

I have a reputation for collaborating with and trusting teachers, and I’m proud to have earned their endorsement as a first-time candidate. Working together with the people who run our schools day in and day out is what I’ve done in my own children’s schools as a volunteer and parent, and it’s what needs to be done across GUSD.