The 2020 Presidential Election has been a point of interest and importance even before the year started. It is easy to forget that on November 3, Paso Robles voters will not only be casting their ballots on who gets to be the Commander-In-Chief, but also more local topics like the PRJUSD school board. There are four seats open of the seven member board and 12 candidates running.
Their names are Nathan Williams, Jim Cogan , Dorian Baker, Frank Triggs, Greg Goodman, Laura Parker, Rueben Canales, Caitlin J. Vierra, Leonard Washington, Jim Reed, Chris Bausch, and Joan Summers.
Their names are Nathan Williams, Jim Cogan , Dorian Baker, Frank Triggs, Greg Goodman, Laura Parker, Rueben Canales, Caitlin J. Vierra, Leonard Washington, Jim Reed, Chris Bausch, and Joan Summers.
Joel Peterson, one of the board members whose seat is opening, was familiar with the running process and what comes after being elected to the School Board. He served eight years on the Board of Trustees and even served over four different Superintendents- Dr. Kathleen McNamara, Chris Williams, Interim Dr. Julian Crocker, and Dr. Curt Dubost.
As he looked back on his eight years on the board, he described what the position is all about. “I think the school board members main job is to be an advocate for both students and staff members. And I think the biggest thing that you can bring to the board is your perspective,” Peterson said. “[You have to] understand that so many kids come to the school with a different perspective; they come from different home environments, backgrounds, socio economic statuses, different levels of education... And so we really need to do the best we can to meet all those kids where we can in the classroom.” |
It is the Board of Trustees’ duty to look after the entire district. Spending almost every other Tuesday at the District Office (or on Zoom), from two to five at a board meeting, working from home when the work requires extra attention, visiting school sites, and getting recognized and asked questions in public, are just some of the duties that being a board member entails.
Dubost works directly with the School Board in order to manage the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District, but in the end it is up to the group of elected members who decides what policies are implemented and what is the final say in matters.
He stressed the importance of voters investigating each candidate’s pitch and what they stand for because when they are instated, “it's going to be very challenging times, but also very important, exciting times to make long term decisions that will be affecting the staff and the students in this district for decades.”
The future School Board will make noteworthy decisions about heated topics like the back to school policies, the renovations of different sites, and the budget which correlates to program funding and the controversial pool situation. Who they are, what they stand for, their competency, and how they plan to influence the district matters because their actions will directly impact the campuses, students, teachers, and staff members of Paso Robles.
According to Joseph Beckham and Barbara Klaymeier in their State University article, School Boards have the authority to “develop policies, rules, and regulations to control the operation of the schools, including system organization, school site location, school finance, equipment purchase, staffing, attendance, curriculum, extracurricular activities, and other functions essential to the day-to-day operation of schools within the district's boundaries.”
Dubost continued speaking about how the decisions they make now will affect the future generations of students that will attend a PRJUSD school.
According to Joseph Beckham and Barbara Klaymeier in their State University article, School Boards have the authority to “develop policies, rules, and regulations to control the operation of the schools, including system organization, school site location, school finance, equipment purchase, staffing, attendance, curriculum, extracurricular activities, and other functions essential to the day-to-day operation of schools within the district's boundaries.”
Dubost continued speaking about how the decisions they make now will affect the future generations of students that will attend a PRJUSD school.
“[Students in high school now] will probably be an adult with kids in school and still be talking about the decisions that are being made here during this very, very critical time,” he said, “So it's extremely important for the voting population to familiarize themselves with the issues and the candidates positions on the issues, so that they vote intelligently November 3rd.”
Likewise, Junior Danny Perez and the rest of the members of the PRHS’s Activist’s Coalition for Tomorrow club believed in the importance of the coming election as well as voicing their opinions on a race that would directly impact them. On September 23, the club socially distanced and met four candidates for School Board: Nathan Williams, Jim Cogan, Dr. Greg Goodman, and Laura Parker.
“I hope that people will think about what the students need and truly get to know the candidates running for school board,” Perez said. “Learning who they are and where the candidates’ strengths lie is paramount so that they can vote for strong board members that will be able to lead our school district in a good direction.” ACT club would later endorse these four contenders after each one pitched their campaign, beliefs, and stances on issues like procedures in response to COVID-19, how they would manage the recovering budget, and creating a more accepting campus for students of different demographics… for instance they specifically discussed measures to include the LBGTQ+ community throughout the school district.
|
The 2020-2024 School Board will consist of Christopher Arend, Lance Gannon, Tim Gearhart, and four of the 12 nominees for the position. These seats are open because two of the candidates Joan Summers and Chris Bausch, are incumbents running for re-election as well as the fact that Joel Peterson and Board President Stephanie Ulibarri will not be running again this year.