Endorsements for the Chula Vista Elementary School District
Chula Vista Elementary School District was not embroiled in the recent corruption scandals. The issue with CV Elementary has been the lack of democracy. There was a time in recent history when every board member had originally been appointed to his/her seat. Prior to that, four of the five board members all lived in Bonita. This insidious Old Boy’s network has gone on far too long, and for the first time in many years we have an open election where true representation can be voted upon.
Seat 1:
Four candidates are running for this seat, but in our opinion there are only two realistic choices: Francisco Tamayo and Barbara Majchrzak. Both candidates have strong ties to education in the South Bay. Majchrzak is a retired teacher and spent 35 years in the district. Tamayo is a computer technician in the Sweetwater district. Majchrzak has one key endorsement and that is from the Chula Vista Educators. Tamayo is supported by a wide range of organizations and politicians, mostly associated with the Democratic Party and local unions.
The biggest difference between the two candidates is that Majchrzak is a strong supporter of Charter Schools, which in our opinion is the wrong message for a candidate who is running to support and improve PUBLIC education. Supporting charter schools only works to weaken public education by siphoning off money from the district and directing into the hands of for-profit charter schools.
Tamayo has two young children in the school district and he will work to see that all children in the district receive the resources necessary to make PUBLIC education in the school district the best it can be. For these reasons We Endorse Francisco Tamayo for Seat 1.
Seat 3:
There are two in this race, Leslie Bunker and Rudy Ramirez.
Rudy Ramirez is your consummate career politician having served his two terms on the Chula Vista city council, and is now termed out. He has run for a couple of statewide offices and lost. In an effort to continue his political career and position himself for the future he has decided he will run for school board until something better comes along. We find it disconcerting that Ramirez does not believe in Public education enough to send his own daughter to local public schools. Instead he paid for private education. Obviously we believe Ramirez is running for all the wrong reasons and should not be elected to represent the parents and students of Chula Vista.
Our choice for Seat 3 is Leslie Bunker who has spent her life in education, working within the district as a teacher, now retired. She knows the parents, the community, and most importantly she knows the district. Leslie Bunker received the support and endorsement of the Chula Vista Educators’ union.
We believe that Leslie Bunker will serve to improve the education of the students of Chula Vista, not to improve her chance for the next political office. For these reasons We Endorse Leslie Bunker for Seat 3, Chula Vista Elementary School Board.
Seat 5:
Eduardo Reyes is the clear choice for the school board, Seat 5.
Reyes has been campaigning long and hard for this seat. He has received almost every major endorsement in the South Bay, including an impressive list of organizations and politicians endorsing his candidacy.
Reyes is an educator in the Sweetwater High School District, serving as a vice principal and principal. He has extensive knowledge of the issues and of the district. Reyes has worked in the community, volunteering and supporting various issues and causes throughout the years, which have led to his diverse list of endorsements. We were impressed with his knowledge of the issues and in particular his knowledge of the issues pertaining to the Hispanic community, something no other candidate for this seat can bring to the board.
Joshua Smith, the only other legitimate candidate for this seat, is the son of the outgoing board member Pamela Smith and this candidacy appears as nothing more than a continuation of the Smith name and legacy on the board. Beyond the endorsements of the present elementary school board members he does not list any. He does not list any community involvement. What he does list is his commitment to charter schools which we believe is contrary to someone who is running to represent PUBLIC education. Charter schools take money away from public education and hands it over to private enterprise whose bottom line is to make a profit.
For these reasons We Endorse Eduardo Reyes for Seat 5, Chula Vista Elementary School Board.