Candidate for
Member Governing Board; Alvord Unified School District

Having Lived in the District for 18 years and attending Alvord schools for 13, I am very familiar with AUSD and its policies. Under the philosophy that we make a living by what we get, and a life by what we give I am committed to giving education and our students my all to ensure a positive learning experience.

My mother always told me that I should opt for Quality over Quantity. Rather then focus on the quantity at which students perform (money, test scores, gpa's) I fell that we need to focus on the quality of education in schools. The quality of student safety, relationships, and instruction.

Quality of Safety

Recently California released the California Healthy Kids Survey, which complies data realative to behaivor, attitudes, and mental health issues. District reprots tell us that 27% of 7th graders fell hopeless or sad, 23% of 9th graders use marijuana, and 24% of 5th graders use alcohol. As a Governing Board the job is not completed till statisitics are down to ZERO!!! After all all students are only as safe as the unsafest student!

Quality of Relationships

After the effects of Columbine the FBI released a study of shared components of high schools shooters...they found lack of a significant relationship as the number one factor. Dr James Comer once stated "No significant learning occurs in the absence of a significant relationship." Low test scores does not always mean lack of learning ability, often times, teachers do not have permission to educate students. Forming a genuine relationships closes this gap and allows for the gateway of learning to open up! The "GOOD" teachers are not always young and cool, they open up and bond with students, after all youth bond to people not programs!

Quality of Instruction

API.........AYP............GPA............What do these mean? Decreased quality of Instruction! Schools have become so infested with acronyms, learning suffers. Rather than teach to content, educators alike are being forced to teach to contexts. Rushing through material to ensure that students will test well. In my AP experience I found that I was not learning to be a better educated student, but rather, to pass a $75 test.

My object as a candidate is not to make an IMPRESSION in schools, but to make an IMPACT in education! I want to create a learning environment where students fell engaged, rather than improssioned!