Thank you for visiting
my website! Naturally, I hope you will:
Learn more about me;
Read about
projects that I have worked on over the years;
Study my vision
for the future of our students' education;
Endorse my re-election to the Board of Education; and
Give a contribution
to this important campaign!
On my endorsement page,
you can see some of my endorsements from people who have known me
for many years, particularly endorsements of fellow school board members
from every corner of San Diego County. Over time, they have watched
my work, recognized my achievements and now they are encouraging me
to continue. They also know that it's my policy to bring people together
to talk about the issues and solve the problem, always remembering
that our children's education is our foremost obligation.
It's been my privilege
to be a driving force behind improvements in the quality of our students
education and increased efficiency in district business operations,
as well as more meaningful communication and outreach, particularly
among parents. Despite a near 20% cut from the State in unrestricted
funding, we have done more with less, including:
Largest test score gains in three years, particularly in science
and math;
Music in every elementary school for the first time in 20 years;
Real data to
support teachers in a responsive learning environment;
University
of California a-g requirements for all students;
Increases in
Advanced Placement courses for all students;
Innovative
early college programs that keep students engaged;
Academic rigor
for ethnically and linguistically diverse students;
Lower drop-out
rate, using system-wide, effective methods to keep students enrolled
in school;
Credit recovery
courses that allow students to rebound;
Passage of
Prop. S with 68% support and $2.1 billion to upgrade all schools;
Upgraded computer
systems on mutiple levels to support education;
Equitable evaluation
systems to bring the best employees forward;
Transparency
and better communication about our schools;
Broader community
outreach;
If you've scrolled down
this far, I'd like to leave you with a poem by the great Spanish cellist
and conductor, Pablo Casals. It's a reminder that our children have
many talents for us to nurture, and of the important responsibility
that we all hold.
You Are a
Marvel
Each second we
live is a new and unique moment of the universe,
a moment that will never be again...And what do we teach our children?
We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital
of France.
When will we
also teach them what they are?
We should say
to each of them: Do you know what you are?
You are a marvel. You are unique.
In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child
like you.
Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move.
You may become
a Shakespeare, a Michaelangelo, a Beethoven.
You have the capacity for anything.
Yes, you are a marvel. And when you grow up, can you then harm another
who is, like you, a marvel?
You must work
-- we must all work -- to make a world worthy of its children.
Pablo Casals
This is simply
a piece that I produced for a Board of Education Meeting in February
after attending the National Association of Music Merchants. That group
asked that I post this temporarily, although it takes quite a bit to
download. Since then, it's been so popular that I've kept it up for
your enjoyment:
NAMM
presentation on PowerPoint
