Five candidates running for three open Sequoia Union High School District board seats

Posted by Jacqui Cebrian
a resident of Menlo Park: Belle Haven
on Oct 9, 2020 at 10:11 am
Jacqui Cebrian is a registered user.

I would like to add some clarity and nuance to my September endorsement of Shawneece Stevenson to represent Area E on the board of trustees. Our positions on many things were very similar. Had that not been the case, I would probably still be running. Through my anti-racist learning and work, I have come to realize the importance of our students seeing themselves represented in positions of power as a means of helping them see where they could be someday. I agree with Shamar that there should be more educators on school boards, because understanding the challenges our educators face is critical to making our schools stronger. I had planned to bring that voice and perspective. Shawneece has a great background in parent engagement, which is especially needed from Area E. She has a number of strengths that I thought would best benefit our neighborhoods on the school board. That she is a Black woman is simply one of many strengths she brings and I didn't want my decision distilled down to that single point. We already text about issues and I anticipate that will continue. I thank Mayor Taylor for helping me see that civic engagement and election campaigns need not always be adversarial.

I would also like to add that I was a firm vote in favor of a pass/no pass policy in the spring. Neither policy would work to motivate an A student to keep working hard, because both allowed them to coast on their already good grade. As an educator, I was very disappointed to hear how many parents felt that their students wouldn't work if there weren't grades attached. Compliance is not the same as engagement. If our students won't take time they're trapped at home in order to learn for the sake of learning, we have a lot of rethinking to do. These last four years have brought into stark clarity the lack of critical literacy skills among voting adults. So many SUHSD students have challenging home environments in which to work. If their grade wasn't high when the school buildings closed in March, the many distractions and concern for the health and well being of their families were not conducive to grade raising. At least 1.5 billion students have lost school instruction because of this pandemic. SUHSD made the right decision for the most challenged of students - without harming students who did not have to wrestle with so many issues. Colleges will be forced to rethink admissions in the face of widespread inequities in education through this time. I would love to see the board have a public study session on what colleges are changing around these new dynamics.

Our young people have some serious challenges in their adult futures. Among those are the need to dismantle the systems that leave some voices out - through decades of intentional suppression. That will require a level of engagement without grades for motivation. That starts before they leave our K-12 system.

Thanks for your time and engagement.

Jacqui Cebrian

Posted by Caroline Lucas
a resident of Menlo Park: Central Menlo Park
on Oct 9, 2020 at 6:08 pm
Caroline Lucas is a registered user.

I commend Jacqui Cebrian for her decision. Both Jacqui and Shawneece have strong credentials and much to offer SUHSD. Thank you, Jacqui, for your courageous decision to support a more diverse school board.

In addition, as an Area C resident, a former school board trustee and also a lifetime public school teacher, I am writing to publicly endorse Shamar Edwards. Having followed the work of the former and current trustees and after seeing Shamar’s vision as an educator, I believe that Ms. Edwards is the strongest candidate for the SUHSD at this time.

Trustees need to direct the superintendent and set the vision for the district. Too often trustees approve plans put before them by the superintendent, regardless of whether those plans are visionary, progressive and truly address the needs of all students, including those students without vocal parents. I believe this would not be the practice of Shamar Edwards.

Shamar is a progressive public educator who is visionary and committed to issues of student achievement and equity. She will direct the superintendent to lead the district in the direction desired by the voters. In addition, while not a requirement for a trustee, she brings what I personally found extremely beneficial to any school board, a knowledge of school systems, an understanding of collective bargaining units, and an insight into best pedagogical practices.

It’s easy to vote for candidates with known trustee experience. However, I challenge voters to look at the actual visions of the candidates. I encourage us to elect a candidate who will use her experience in education to truly create the kind of world we talk about to our children, one that values the success of our neighbors and community members as much as the success of our own children.

Jacqui Cebrian didn’t step down only because her opponent was a candidate of color, she did it because that candidate, who happens to be of color, has an experience and vision that will help our greater community thrive. Shamar Edwards, is the Area C candidate who I believe most aligns with that same vision. She is a bright educator, a person who is committed to all students, and also a woman of color who could bring a needed perspective to our school board. Vote Shamar Edwards.