Political Philosophy for Roy Russell

Candidate for
Governing Board Member; Santa Ana Unified School District

• English Language Skills for All Students: I believe all students must become fluent in the English Language. Proposition 227 is now California law. We must embrace our differences and provide multiple opportunities for our students to acquire English proficiency and the best education possible. Parents, teachers, and staff working together can implement new approaches that will help our students succeed in today's world.

• Safe, Clean Campuses: I have watched campus safety greatly improve through the "Zero Tolerance Policy", a tough, fair discipline policy as written in District policy; however, it must be enforced uniformly and fairly. For the safety of other students, parents and staff have the right to demand that any student found with a Weapon, Drugs, involved in Gang Activity, Graffiti on campus, or who consistently disrupts the learning environment, be removed to an alternate educational opportunity.

• Class Size Reduction: The best thing we can do for our students is to hire and support qualified teachers, and reduce the student/teacher ratio. Most secondary level teachers will see 160 to 200 students per day. I support reducing class size in as many grades as possible, particularly in the core subjects of language arts, mathematics and science.

• Priority Spending in the Classroom: Spending priorities should be class size reduction, textbooks, computer technology, libraries, the arts, and vocational education. My priority would be to spend money in the classroom by redirecting certain parts of the administrative and operating budgets.

• Back to Basics Plus: Focus on the fundamentals of education, with enrichment in the arts, and technology. Our priority must be to provide more instructional time in the core subjects.

• Parental Involvement/Choice: I believe we should encourage all parents to participate in the educational programs of their children. Parents are a key part of a student's education and every parent has the right to choose the best educational opportunity for their sons and daughters. As new schools are planned or school reform is discussed, parents must be involved and their input seriously considered.

• After School Use of School Facilities: I support expanding after school programs to use playgrounds and athletic facilities, computer labs, libraries, and classrooms for tutoring and enrichment activities. This is a site decision, but must be encouraged and supported by the district and community.

I believe that schools must provide the best possible education for all our students. I am committed to helping achieve that goal!