Platform

District policies, expenditures, protocols, procedures, schedules, recreational opportunities, and staffing must be driven by the needs of the whole child. This approach must include:

• Specific efforts to ensure that ALL students, especially students with disabilities and at-risk students, have access to the rich array of extracurricular activities that the district offers. We must provide the necessary social and emotional support, supervision, and accommodations to support true inclusivity.

• More robust supports and opportunities for students with disabilities to maximize their talents, and to achieve success after high school.

• At least 40 minutes of recess per day for elementary students and standardized policies that maximize the amount of recess time our students spend outdoors.

• Ensuring that schedules allow all students adequate time to eat lunch.

• An audit of current recreational and physical education facilities, equipment, and spaces. This will enable us to prioritize what needs work and identify additional opportunities to support and develop the physical well-being of our students through play and fitness.

• Providing fiscally sound leadership while advocating for more equitable funding structures that lessens the burden on taxpayers and families.

• Improved communication with parents at both the building and district level. At the end of the day, communication equals trust.

• Efforts to ensure that all families are consistently informed of their rights, available supports and interventions, mental health resources, academic and graduation requirements, the college application process, and the post high-school transition process.

• A redefining of the word “safety” to include not only physical safety, but our children’s social and emotional safety. We must look at the root causes of the behaviors that put students at risk, and work to improve our mental health supports, incident reporting policies and protocols, crisis management protocols, physical safety measures, and preventative measures.

• Transparent, effective, and inclusive recruitment processes that successfully identify highly qualified leaders and educators who focus their work on equitable and student-centered practices.

No aspect of any school district exists or functions in isolation. If elected, I will focus on connecting the dots between each of these issues.