Candidate for
Governing Board Member; Dixie School District

My principal mission with the Dixie School Board is to serve the best interests of our children. To that end, my main priorities are:

1. A Challenging, Stimulating And Integrated Curriculum.

Over the course of the last four years, the District has made dramatic improvements in curriculum development. As part of this improvement, we have also adopted a number of new textbooks across several grade levels.

With the recent establishment of state standards, one of my highest priorities has been to take all necessary steps to ensure that our curriculum is aligned with these standards. By involving teachers in curriculum development, we have placed our unique "stamp" on the curriculum and, in doing so, have succeeded in developing a challenging, stimulating and integrated curriculum for all of our students.

Further, the garden and pond projects at Mary Silveira School are excellent examples of vehicles for the introduction of more integrated approaches to curriculum in the District. They should be viewed as models for the District as a whole.

2. Differentiated Curriculum Models For All Children To Reach Their Maximum Potential.

Children demonstrate differing levels of proficiency in the classroom throughout their school years. While our principal goal is to ensure that every child performs at least at grade level, it is imperative that we continue to implement differentiated instruction models which allow students to receive instruction at their individual levels and thereby have the best opportunity to reach their maximum potential.

3. Recruiting And Retaining An Excellent And Caring Teaching And Support Staff.

Given the high cost of living in Marin County, the ability to recruit and retain an excellent and caring teaching and support staff is a continuing challenge. As part of the Dixie District Advisory Team ("DDAT"), which utilizes an interest-based bargaining process, I have worked for three years to ensure that the maximum amount of available resources is provided to compensate our excellent teaching and support staff.

However, increases in compensation are just one part of a overall strategy to recruit and retain excellent staff. Other approaches include fostering an environment in which the staff feels valued. One approach is to empower teachers to develop curriculum and play a collaborative role in policy development. Other approaches involve recognizing teacher effort and excellence whenever and wherever possible.

Finally, while we cannot achieve this goal as a small district, I am committed to working towards a county and/or statewide solution concerning affordable access to housing for teachers.

4. Strong School/Community Relationships With Parental Access To Policy Development And Decision-Making.

The strength of the relationship between school and community is one of the key defining elements of a successful school district. I have worked hard to foster enhanced school/community relationships by encouraging parents and community members to become involved in our schools. I have encouraged local school site councils to fashion solutions to issues raised at the local school level. I have spearheaded community/district collaborative projects such as the construction of the multi-purpose room at Dixie School and have consistently advocated for parent and community participation in our schools.

I have been proud to serve on a Board that values and encourages parental involvement with the district. As long as I am on this Board, I will ensure that this important value is preserved and enhanced.

5. Sound Budgeting Practices.

The District's budgeting and financial planning practices are sound. Throughout my four years on the Board (and particularly during my two years on the Budget Subcommittee), one of my highest priorities has been to ensure that the maximum amount of financial resources are devoted to classroom activities. I will continue to advocate for the prudent use of financial resources in our schools. The District is financially strong and stable and should continue in that fashion for years to come.

6. School Safety And Emergency Preparedness.

There can be no higher priority than keeping children safe at school. School safety ranges from issues involving the safety of the physical plant to ensuring that children are safe with their peers and others who may be on campus. With respect to safety from peers, I have been a consistent advocate for increasing school counseling resources so that "at risk" students can be identified and directed to available resources to ensure their own well-being and the well-being of others.

The District should continue to increase the resources available for these programs and be increasingly sensitive to the situations involving school "bullying." As a member of the California School Board Association's Children's Health Task Force, I have learned a wide variety of district responses to "bullying" and innovative approaches to counseling and mental health resources. I will use this expertise in ensuring that our schools are safe places for our children to attend.

A second but equally important component of school safety is emergency preparedness. We have recently completed our first district-wide emergency training. It is a high priority of mine for these trainings to continue district-wide and utilize drills for the district as a whole. I have been impressed with the emergency preparedness drills undertaken at individual school sites and will advocate for coordinated district/school emergency preparedness drills in the future.

7. School Facilities Are Functional And Attractive.

Through our recent bond, we are in the process of repairing and renovating our classrooms and facilities. While this has been difficult for District staff over the most recent summer vacation, we have already made significant improvements to our facilities. All of the improvements that we are making today will serve our children well into the future.

There can be no doubt that functional and attractive facilities are essential to maximize learning as well as to provide a complete educational experience. The District's maintenance and janitorial staff have done an exemplary job. This is best evidenced by the fact that the facilities and equipment that we are now renovating and replacing were somehow kept in a functional state.

8. Recognizing The Value Of The Performing And Visual Arts.

Our children's educational experience should be a well-rounded one. We have a long tradition in the District of providing excellent programs in music, drama and the visual arts at Miller Creek Middle School and throughout the District. These important programs should continue and grow. The parent community's contribution to maintaining and enhancing these programs at every level is clear evidence that a well-rounded educational experience is a community priority. Further, the extraordinary efforts of the Arts Councils at the Dixie and Vallecito schools have produced tremendous enrichment to students and should serve as examples for the District.

9. Character Education.

While schools should never replace parental roles for teaching children values, the District's "Life Skills" program emphasizes important "key characteristics" to serve to enhance their overall education within the District. These "key characteristics" include:

· Striving for the student's personal best

· Accepting responsibility

· Being cooperative

· Acting in a caring fashion

· Being tolerant

· Being honest

· Persevering through challenging or difficult times

· Exercising patience

· Problem solving

· Feeling confident

I believe that the development and implementation of these "key characteristics" into the curriculum has served our children well. The Board has attended several presentations of the "Life Skills" program and I have been greatly impressed with the commitment of students in embracing the program.

10. Gifted and Special Education.

Serving gifted and special education needs are true challenges for every school district in California. Having served on the District's committee involving its gifted GATE program and teaching classes on trial techniques to gifted students has taught me a lot about children with special needs.

By the same token, the state and federal government do not do a particularly good job in funding gifted or special education programs. Poor funding levels often lead to difficult and challenging situations in which financial resources necessary to respond to children's needs are often pitted against those resources necessary for the overall good for the vast majority of children in the District. As a Board member, I have agonized over the difficulty and unfairness of this situation.

I believe that we as a District need to develop more innovative approaches to serving these special need populations. I will continue to work towards solutions in this area.

Conclusion

These priorities have been my focus during my first term of the Board. As long as I am a Board member, they will continue to be my guide to serving the best interests of our children.