Candidate for
Board Member; Palo Alto Unified School District

Occupation: Software Engineer, Education Data Consultant, Parent
Age: 49
Education and Qualifications:
I am a father, Google engineer, and former college teacher who will bring to the Palo Alto School Board an understanding of educational data and technology, a commitment to transparency and accountability, and a strong concern for student well being.

I understand Palo Alto schools as a parent and volunteer whose children have attended Nixon, Barron Park, JLS, Terman, and Gunn. I have a B.A. and an M.A. from Yale, a Ph.D. in sociology, and was a faculty member at Northwestern University. I bring expertise in educational data and policy through four years at the Stanford Center for Innovations in Learning and consulting over the past decade for organizations including the US Department of Education and the Gates Foundation. At Google I have led teams to successful product launches. In 2011, I joined with other parents to urge PAUSD to implement Project Safety Net's plan for improving student social and emotional health, including successfully advocating for a district committee on homework. As a committee member, I helped build consensus for a new PAUSD policy setting homework time limits.

I look forward to working collaboratively with stakeholders to advance our community vision of schools where every child can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. To prepare our students for the 21st century economy, our excellent schools should continue to provide a rigorous curriculum to high-achieving students while also providing challenging paths for average and struggling students. I will work to reduce academic stress, improve student health, increase counseling support, and raise the achievement of lower income and minority children. To support these goals we need to identify and implement best practices district-wide, and build bridges to centers of excellence and innovation in Silicon Valley.

These values are widely shared, but our school board must transform these intentions into actionable policy. I will work toward transparency, streamlined decision making, and a data-driven management process with clear accountability for results. The district will benefit from an open process that invites public input and participation. These reforms are particularly important as we face complex issues including budget constraints, school overcrowding, improving student health, closing the achievement gap, and supporting our excellent teachers. The payoff will be higher academic achievement by more students and healthier, happier kids. That's the vision that spurred me to run for school board. I ask for your support.

Please visit kendauber.com.