Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1291735
TOP ISSUES: Transparency, empower- ment, and social and economic justice. Education takes place in the classroom between students and staff. Students should be the focal point of school board decisions. Empowering and taking care of teachers who are on the front lines of education is the best way to empower and take care of students. DISTANCE CAMPAIGNING: Cam- paigning during this time has been via social media platforms, virtual meet and greets, and drive-through fundraising. I am attending numerous candidacy forums and Democratic clubs virtually to speak and present my platform. CHOOSING TO LEAD NOW: Children learn what they see and live. It is important for our young people to see a successful Latina from their community advocating for them and empowering them to do the same for themselves. WEBSITE: lucyugarte.org VanCedric Williams CANDIDATE FOR: Oakland Unified School District Board of Education EXPERIENCE: High school social and ethnic studies educator 20 years, the last three as treasurer of United Edu- cators of San Francisco. WHY: I am running because we need to build a new collabora- tive spirit to stop privatization, support high-quality schools for historically underserved communities, ensure equi- table and adequate school funding, end the racist practice of school closures and charter colocations, and invest in restorative justice. Oakland hasn't had a teacher on the school board in 20 years. I would like to change that. We need to be bold, courageous and unapologetic when making decisions about and for students. TOP ISSUES: Budget transparency and accountability. Supporting sustainable and full-service community schools. Increasing literacy, improving gradu- ation rates and including K-12 ethnic studies. Using a racial and social equity lens when making decisions that affect underserved students. Investing in anti-racist training, restorative justice, and eliminating the OUSD police. DISTANCE CAMPAIGNING: It's really challenging to campaign in the era of social distancing. Sharing authentic connections with audiences has been a challenge. I rely heavily on phone calls to make that connection with voters. My campaign has been 95 percent vir- tual — I've had a virtual kickoff, virtual political forums, virtual fundraisers, virtual parent discussions, and virtual endorsement announcements. CHOOSING TO LEAD NOW: I was inspired by a confluence of events, including the killing of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and so many other innocent African Americans across our nation; the Black Lives Matter and #SayTheir- Name protests; the DeVos disaster as secretary of education; and the debate over reopening schools during a pan- demic. It is not enough to shake our fist; we must be willing to act. I realized it would take a collective effort to build a new collaborative spirit to stop privat- ization, support high-quality schools for historically underserved communities, ensure equitable and adequate school funding, end the racist practice of school closures and charter coloca- tions, and invest in restorative justice. I am ready to do that work. WEBSITE/SOCIAL: vancedricwilliams.com; Facebook page: VanCedric Williams for OUSD 33 O C T O B E R / N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 0 " We need to be bold, courageous and unapologetic when making decisions about and for students." —VanCedric Williams