It is hard to believe that it has been almost four years since I was elected to the Board of Education for the Conejo Valley Unified School District (CVUSD). It has been an honor serving as your school board trustee. I believe that my work has helped to improve our schools and community and I hope that it has met your expectations. I firmly believe in the importance of public education and I have taken this position very seriously. It will be a privilege to continue to serve our students and I am seeking reelection this fall.

In my time as trustee, I have proudly served on the Budget LCAP Committee, the Visual and Performing Arts Strategic Planning Committee, the Greater Conejo Chamber of Commerce Education and Workforce Development Committee, the Career Technical Education (CTE) Advisory Committee, the Student Wellness Committee, and the Facilities Committee. I was Board President in 2022, a very contentious election year.

There is much to be proud of in the CVUSD. Our current group of good-governance oriented trustees, in conjunction with Superintendent Dr. Mark McLaughlin and his leadership team, has accomplished much over the past four years. This includes steering our schools through the COVID pandemic. A few notable accomplishments include:

• Launched our first Spanish dual language immersion program at Conejo Academy of Leadership and Language.
• Introduced a Primary Years International Baccalaureate (IB) Program at Cypress Elementary. Sequoia Middle School is also a candidate for the IB Middle Schools Program giving students an opportunity for a complete TK-12 IB experience.
• Developed a Strategic Plan for Inclusion of Students with Disabilities. As part of that effort, increased the number of co-taught sections which provide opportunities for students with disabilities to access general education classes.
• Opened Wellness Centers at all secondary schools and provided elementary school Wellness Services in an effort to focus on the whole child and help ensure their academic achievement and success. Our centers serve as a model for many other districts.
• Focused on Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) by establishing and hiring a dedicated coordinator of VAPA, developing a VAPA Strategic Plan, and hiring credentialed music educators so that all students in grades 1-5 have weekly standards-based music instruction.
• Piloted an Ethnic Studies class at each of our high schools several years ahead of the state graduation requirement.
• Created a Unified Sports Program with Unified Sports teams composed of athletes (students with disabilities) and partners (students without disabilities). These games promote inclusion and engagement.
• Amplified stakeholder voices by adding two additional parent advisory groups, the African American District Advisory Council (AADAC) and the LGBTQ+ Advisory Council. This brings the total number of stakeholder advisory groups to seven, including our Student Advisory Council.

While we have so much to be proud of, there is always more to be done. We must continue the work of promoting successful learning outcomes for all students, while ensuring equitable access and their positive social, emotional, and mental well-being. We must continue to attract and retain highly qualified educators and staff. We must continue to innovate.

Our district, like many others in the state, faces several significant challenges. Student enrollment, due to high local housing costs and declining birth rates, is falling. This dramatically reduces the dollars that CVUSD receives from the state and federal governments. Chronic absenteeism, which has increased significantly since the pandemic, continues to impact student learning. And the current California state deficit may have an impact on our future funding.

I am running for reelection this November to continue the good work that has been done and to face these challenges head-on. Stay tuned for more campaign information – including how you can help.