Whole children, not just high scores
Families move to Orinda for one reason: they want the best for their kids. But "the best" doesn't look the same for every child, and a district can't serve a range of learners by treating them as one average student. That means a board must actually engages with families instead of just informing them, it should keep up with the evolving science on how children learn, and it must evaluate new educational tools on evidence rather than novelty. Above all, it means a board must listen and build real rapport with the community it serves. Our job is to know the children in front of us and the families behind them, and to make decisions that serve all of them.
My priorities
Educate the whole child
Test scores measure a sliver of who a child is; curiosity, resilience, and confidence determine how they'll actually do in life. I want a district that treats academic performance as a holistic field, not one where only the performance on one test matters.
No screen time in the early grades
Young children learn best through real books, handwriting, conversation, and hands-on problem solving, and the research increasingly backs this up. I support keeping student devices out of daily instruction in TK–5, aside from a keyboarding program, while teachers keep using projectors to teach.
Real engagement, not just fundraising
Orinda families are generous with their money, but writing a check isn't the same as being in the room. I want parents genuinely involved in decisions about what and how our children are taught, and a board that invites that input before decisions are made.
Transparency
Families deserve to know how decisions are made, not just what they are. I'll push for plain-language explanations of board decisions, budgets, and policy changes, with the reasoning and data behind them made public.