Candidate for
Member, Governing Board; San Leandro Unified School District; Area 4

The son of a retired public school teacher, Louis Heystek was elected to the San Leandro School Board in 1998, and Board Vice-President in 2002. Since his election four years ago, he has been accessible, accountable and responsive to the residents of the San Leandro Unified School District. In his role as a public official, he has always involved parents, teachers, residents and young people in the decision-making process.

Louis has served as Chair of the City of San Leandro Youth Advisory Commission and as member of the Design Team for the San Leandro Collaborative for Children, Youth & Their Families. In 1998, he graduated from Leadership San Leandro, a program of the San Leandro Chamber of Commerce.

As a School Board Member, Louis has promoted a well-rounded education to prepare our students for the academic and career opportunities of the new millennium. He helped draft the District's successful Digital High School grant application, netting over $1.6 million to wire classrooms to the Internet. As Chair of the Board's first-ever Technology Committee, he authored a policy governing the acceptable use of technology by students and staff.

Among his many community activities as a Board Member, Louis serves as Vice-President of both the Alameda County School Boards Association and the Chabot College Foundation Board of Directors. He also serves as director of the local unit of the American Cancer Society. In his spare time, he volunteers at his alma mater as an advisor to "Youth & Government," a program designed to teach students about state government.

Louis will continue striving to provide our children with the highest quality education possible. He will support programs that ensure students meet and exceed academic achievement standards. As a trustee of public funds, he will promote fiscally sound policies and advocate for maximized resources at both the local and state level. He will work to address the District's major facilities needs by advocating for the construction of new campuses.

A lifelong resident of the Bay Area, Louis currently attends the University of California at Berkeley, majoring in Political Science and Dutch Studies.