Natomas School Board
Candidates Stump For Votes
PART EIGHT IN A SERIES
THE NATOMAS BUZZ asked the six candidates for school board, “What sets you apart from the other five candidates. In other words, why should people cast a vote for YOU?” Here are the answers we received, in the order they were submitted. Click here for previous entries in this series.
LISA KAPLAN
I have the experience to accomplish what’s in the best interest of our kids, leadership to make it happen, Integrity to do the right thing and courage to hold the district accountable for its actions.
Experience: Personal experience as a teaching assistant, volunteer in our schools, along with running my own business, coupled with my involvement in the community as a Rotarian and over 10 years in education and budget policy, gives me a unique perspective on the challenges that lie ahead in resolving our budget deficit and how we make education work for all students.
Leadership: I have proven experience as your school board member fighting for our kids. Even in the midst of our fiscal crisis, with 27% less funding from the state in the past two years, our children are learning and achieving at the highest rate Natomas has ever had. I am a leader committed to making Natomas more equitable for all students.
Integrity: Putting kids ahead of politics.
Accountability: I fought against mismanagement and waste at the district by voting no on a fiscally irresponsible budget and will continue to speak out every time your tax dollars are not managed appropriately.
Together, we can do better for our children and community. But to do my job, I need you. Our community needs to come together to get involved and support excellence in our schools. I’ve led the way so far. Trust me to continue.
I would be honored to have your vote. www.lisakaplan4kids.com
RYAN HERCHE
What the Natomas Unified School District needs is transparency, accountability, and accessibility. I understand that unless the community is looking over my shoulder, I won’t be truly accountable. I am absolutely committed to transparency in our local government, and I will strive to maximize public access to district information. Oversight from parents, teachers, journalists and concerned citizens is crucial for successful democracy!
I’ll bring a fresh perspective to the school board, and will work with the community to come up with solutions that are in the best interest of our children.
I developed leadership skills through community service. As a coalition representative for the Sacramento Youth Drug and Alcohol Coalition, I helped draft an ordinance that makes it more difficult for minors to get access to alcohol. As vice president of the National Council for Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Sacramento Region Affiliate, I serve on a non-profit board that oversees a budget of over $1 million.
We urgently need creative solutions to our budget crisis! When I was a graduate student at UC Davis, I wrote grants to support my research. Other districts have successfully opened new channels of funding for their schools. San Juan Unified received a state grant to build a $10 million art media production studio. I understand the grant-writing process, and I will bring that skill to our school board.
I’d be honored to have your vote. Let’s make our district thrive together, and ensure a bright future for our children.
C.E. WHITE
What sets me apart from the other five candidates is that I have a child attending a Natomas school and that I am the only credentialed teacher who knows how to use and identify state-of-the-art instructional methods and techniques to promote student success. Even though the students in my class are from financially and socially challenged backgrounds, they routinely outperform the same student groups in Natomas by as many as 100 API points. The students in my class consistently score at proficient and advanced levels on state tests.
Additionally, I am motivated and sensitive to the needs of all students and know how to modify and differentiate instruction to positively impact all learners. I work daily to prove all students regardless of background can learn. In fact, I am the only candidate that has actually raised achievement levels for financially and socially challenged student populations.
Moreover, I would be the first person on the board who has insight as to what teachers need to be successful and how they feel on issues that impact the district. I am the only candidate that can train teachers in the state-of-the-art instructional methodologies and techniques that motivate students to learn at new levels.
Cast your vote for me if you truly want the change my training and experience can facilitate. Our board should be composed of at least one successful teacher. Mark the first box on the ballot indicating C.E. White as your first choice for the Natomas school board.
PATRICIA ADAMS
I am the only candidate who has had two children attend Natomas schools from kindergarten to high school. My oldest son graduated last year and my second son is a junior at Inderkum High School.
What also sets me apart is my involvement in the educational lives of my children and all other aspects of the educational process. I have been a PTA president, School Site Council president, served on many district committees, and organized and managed Natomas basketball and football leagues. As president of the Natomas Parent Alliance, I have provided support and assistance to parents with school issues. I meet with parents regularly and I attend parent conferences with school officials to assist parents in handling complicated school issues. I also, maintain a 24-hour hotline for parents.
Last year, I created a student mentorship program for students who had college potential. Most of these students planned to attend a Sacramento junior college; however my intervention into their lives made it possible for 11 seniors to go on to four-year universities.
I attend all board meetings and important district activities. I also attend monthly meetings with the superintendent to provide parental perspectives on a variety of issues or concerns.
Vote for me on Nov. 2 and elect a person who is extremely passionate about education, who truly believes that our schools belong to us, and who will work to influence and shape our schools until they are institutions we are ecstatic about sending our children to.
B. TERI BURNS
I have the most experience in education policy, finance, operations, legislation and research. In my professional life I am involved daily in the best practices in school districts across the state. I worked in the legislature for 16 years, was Deputy Superintendent of Education for the State of California for six years, and now represent and advise school districts, county education boards, and education groups from throughout the state.
I have the proven ability to make the hard decisions our kids need to move our district forward. I have not and will not avoid making the necessary but tough and sometimes unpopular decisions necessary for making our district financially and educationally sound.
I am starting my fourth decade as a Natomas resident. I have a long-standing love for this district and a commitment to its success, having seen it through many ups and downs. I am not using this position solely to advance a political career.
I am committed to reducing our class sizes again in primary grades and being sure that all of our students are readers by third grade, giving them the best foundations for success.
I am committed to increasing career technical education programs and alternative study options to be sure every student has the chance to be an economically and socially successful citizen.
I appreciate your confidence in me and will continue to listen to students and parents about what they need from our schools.
H.K. ALLEN
There are six candidates including myself, each with a vision, a belief and a direction they would like to take this school district for the next four years of their term. After listening and reading each candidate’s positions, I noticed that I have been the only one to stress developing an avenue to strengthen the relationship between teachers, parents, and students. A triangle of accountability.
Our children’s education is not solely on the shoulders of just teachers or just parents, it is an equal partnership between the classroom and the home that must be maintained in order to produce the best outcome for the child. I’ve witness people blame the teacher, the parent or the student, but never mentioned how to mend the relationship between the three.
If elected I will make it my duty to mend the relationship between teachers, parents and the student. This can be done by first empowering parents with the creation of parent support groups on each campus. These groups would give parents a chance to discuss and vent the frustrations they are having with trying to balance the issues they have with their children, work, and home life. This will also give parents an opportunity to exchange tips, advice and techniques on how to navigate though the everyday struggles they may be currently experiencing. By creating a comfortable environment for parents to network on campus, it will result in open and honest discussions between parents, teachers and students, which can only help in the classroom in that communication is flowing openly in the triangle. This district has great teachers, and great parents, it is time we bring them together for our children’s sake.
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