Candidate for
Board Member; San Mateo Union High School District

This is probably too much information--but I want you to get a sense of who I am and why I care so much about our schools.

I have enjoyed my 4 years on the San Mateo Union High School District Board very much. School board is like a second job--it is work, but if you enjoy the work, serving is a great experience! I think that the most important contribution I have made in the last four years is paying close attention to all of the details. This has allowed me to put the brakes on decisions that either needed more study or that were really not in the best interest of the District and facilitated more analysis by both Trustees and Administrators.

In addition to participating in a multitude of meetings, I have attended many events (i.e. basketball, football, plays, concerts, musicals). I try to go to everything that I am invited to. I really like participating in Graduation--and have done so at all of our schools. Graduation is such a great celebration of all of the accomplishments of our students, who have worked so hard to complete very challenging high school curriculum!

I have come up through the ranks, as a parent volunteer, room mother, PTA president, Site Council Chair, Blue Ribbon Task Force Member, Burlingame Elementary Board Trustee and now SMUSD Board Trustee. I have 3 children who have graduated from Burlingame High School and currently have a daughter who is a sophomore at Mills High School and an exchange daughter from South Korea who is a junior at Mills. I have lived in the district for 30 years.

My undergraduate and graduate work is in education (Ball State University and Indiana University). I earned my law degree (Indiana University) while working as a graduate assistant in school administration and school law. I have a sister who is a teacher and a sister who is a superintendent. I am the first in my family to graduate from college, as my grandparents were immigrants from Italy and there was no money for my father to go to school (he had to work the farm as his brothers were at war). My parents held Teachers in the highest regard and valued education as the key opportunity in this country. I agree.

Education is all about opportunity: Opportunity for all students to learn and succeed and opportunity for students to explore their interests and develop life long relationships. I want all district students--like my own children--to have that opportunity. I want to be part of our district doing all that it can to assure equal educational opportunities for all students.

I enjoy working as part of the Board. I am a lawyer with a background in both litigation and corporate management. I served as the claim officer of an insurance company for ten years, with national responsibility for large reserve dollars, claims management and litigation in 21 offices located throughout the country. I currently practice law in San Mateo.

I believe that it is very important to read everything very thoroughly--and we get so much information that it takes a good deal of time to do this--but to me the facts are in the details and it is my job to make sure that I know what we are approving or not approving. I like numbers-and we see a lot of numbers. I enjoy learning about current and prospective curriculum. I like data. I like problem solving!

I recognize that I represent many people who have a vested interest in the success of our schools and I need to honor their trust in me by doing all of the work necessary to be fully informed, be open to their communication and input and be available and accessible to them. I answer my emails and I answer my phone. I may not have the information that someone needs, but I will connect them to the person who can help them.

As a Trustee, I hope to continue to work to manage every district dollar as I manage my own money--very carefully. I will work to make sure that all construction projects are well managed, well built, on time and on budget. I will encourage our Teachers and our Administrators as they bring new ideas, new programs and initiate changes that will increase student learning and achievement. I will attend as many school events as I can. I will work to make sure that we attract and retain highly qualified teachers. I will be part of facilitating good working relationships with our feeder schools and our communities. I will do my homework and I will listen.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Linda

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