With the 2024 presidential election just weeks away, local representatives are gearing up for their own elections.
This year, Fresno residents will have the opportunity to elect new representatives for the Fresno Unified School District Board of Education.
On October 15, several organizations – Power California, CV-UP, Californians for Justice, Faith in the Valley, Woven Coalition, CMAC, and Youth Leadership Institute – hosted a candidate forum at the Big Red Church, where candidates for Fresno Unified’s Board of Education shared their platforms with the community.
The Fresno Unified Board of Education oversees the district’s employees and students, with trustees representing seven areas, each covering one of the main high schools and surrounding feeder schools.
The forum featured seven candidates in Areas 2, 5, and 6, representing Roosevelt, Fresno, and Hoover High respectively. All current trustees in each area are seeking reelection.
Trustee Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas and Joseph Aquino are running for Area 2; Trustee Andy Levine, James Martinez and Emma Villa are running for Area 5; and Trustee Claudia Cazares and Daniel Bordona are running for Area 6.
The student-led forum was moderated by two Edison High School seniors, Xiomara Lopez and Amare Lake.
“I was really excited to be able to participate in the forum because I knew the youth were involved,” said Daniel Bordona. “That’s who we’re doing this work for, for our kids. It was a great opportunity to get to hear from all the candidates.”
During the forum, the candidates were asked a series of questions and given two minutes to answer. The attendees of the event were also able to provide questions and the candidates were given one minute to answer them.
Candidates were also allowed an opening and closing statement.
Trustee Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas, who has been in the position for eight years, said she appreciates the trust parents have with the district.
“I know every day that parents are making the choice to send their kids to Fresno Unified, to trust us with their social, emotional and academic well being, and I don’t take that lightly,” Jonasson Rosas said in her opening remarks. “I appreciate having the ability to represent and I’m also very proud of the things that we’ve accomplished.”
The candidates equally voiced the need to provide teachers and administrators with resources to address the educational gap.
“The strategy, for me, is ensuring that our teachers are given the tools, that our administrators are also given the tools so that we can help our teachers, and we hold our administration accountable in ensuring that we bridge that gap,” said Trustee Claudia Cazares.
James Martinez, an Area 5 candidate, said Fresno Unified needs to increase student support outside of the classroom.
“We need to invest in resources that provide extra instructional support outside the classroom, like investing in mobile learning labs for additional instructional support between students in the communities that they live in,” Martinez said.
Candidates hope to continue incorporating student voices in the issues affecting schools.
“Education is for the students,” Bordona said. “I’ve always realized, as a school employee, my job exists because of the students and so as a board member, I can’t forget who the most important people are in our system.”
Joseph Aquino, the youngest candidate on the ballot, said his life mission is dedicated to students.
“In the past several years, I have been a testament advocating for student voice, and I made it very clear that as a student, as a student trustee and student leader, I’ve only had one goal, and that is for students in the district,” Aquino said.
Mia Bulnes, estudiante de McLane High School y asistente del evento, dijo, “Espero que los electos que están aquí participando puedan ver ese impacto y cuando no se quien pueda ganar, pero que la persona que gane pueda ver de que la voz de los jóvenes es importante, son tan importante.”
Mia Bulnes, a McLane High School student and attendee of the event, said, “I hope the candidates that are here participating can see the impact, and I don’t know who will win, but I hope that whoever does will see the student voice and realize that it is so so important.”
Candidates also said mental health services are important on and off campus and shared different ways the existing methods could be enhanced.
“We have a Request for Qualifications now as a district that would allow us to provide the vendor some of those services where students can access somebody who looks like them and shares their experiences with them and on their own time,” said Trustee Andy Levine. “Certainly during school time is important, but you cannot predict those things. When you have a mental health crisis, you need to have someone to talk to whenever that comes about.”
The attendees posed a question about how the potential trustees would support the district’s educators.
“The main point is that there needs to be a better relationship between the administration and the board and our teachers,” Cazares said. “We do like how our administrators show up for our teachers, but if that is not enough for our teachers to feel valued, then that’s how to change.”
Levine suggested teachers be provided with more assistance in the classroom.
“Our teachers are being asked to do way more in terms of teaching in the classroom,” Levine said. “An example of that, a step towards that is schools providing wraparound support so the students and the teachers can focus more and more on teaching in the classroom instead.”
When asked in a one-on-one interview about the priority of her campaign, Emma Villa, candidate for Area 5, said her primary focus is ensuring students have a representative who knows the entire system.
“I think about the students; that’s what keeps me up at night,” Villa said. “I’m concerned about them having the right person representing them that knows education, that knows management, that knows accountability and transparency, and all the pieces that go together to create an infrastructure for academic achievement.”
A recording of the candidate forum is available now to watch on CMAC’s Facebook page.
Voters can submit their ballots by mail, at a drop-off location, or vote in-person on Election Day, November 5, at any polling station.
