Hi friends,

Welcome to my new website - a place for us all to join together to improve our schools and communities!

This year I graduated from Emerge California (recruits and trains Democrat women to run for office), and I continue to volunteer, inform and advocate for all our students and schools.  

I was honored to be the Welcome speaker at our graduation ceremony at Oakland City Hall:

Read on for details of my 2017 work in volunteering, informing and advocating, and how you can get involved too!

Volunteering: I volunteered on the 2017 organizing committee for the MDUSD Academy Awards, a night of recognition of teachers, administrators, staff, parents, and volunteer organizations.  I believe that recognizing and encouraging excellence and collaboration is the best way to support our teachers in improving our schools.  Next year be on the lookout for nominations and invitations at the MDEA website.

In fact, volunteering in our schools is a family effort for us: my daughters Iris and Robyn, with guidance from my husband Sandy, started Inventors University to teach other students computer programming, and they graduated their first class in spring of 2017.

Informing: I analyzed the NUSD proposal and shared the map with the public, explaining what the effects would be on students and schools within the Northgate area and also the wider MDUSD district. See the interview here.  

I also believe there are many wonderful innovations and successes every day in our schools that the public is not aware of, and so I tweet, facebook share, and blog about those when I can.

Advocating: Along with a coalition of parents, students, and teachers from around the district, we successfully advocated for our district to pass a Safe Haven Resolution.  It took a range of public speakers at 2 Board meetings, many emails and legal study, and the help of Board members Joanne Durkee and Linda Mayo to propose and draft the important details.  Ultimately it passed 5-0.  

I continue to ask (and offer my assistance) for the district staff to more clearly show how LCFF targeted funds are spent and are improving student outcomes.

I invite you to join with me, in volunteering, speaking out, and sharing successes in our schools.  Together We Can make a difference!