Between now and early October when voting gets underway, The San Diego Union-Tribune Editorial Board is planning to publish dozens of candidate Q&As and nearly two dozen commentaries connected to a handful of San Diego city ballot measures and seven state propositions on the Nov. 8 election. Keep checking back as we fill in this voter guide.
A: Stop any discussions on current and future sales of district properties! All board members representing our students must be fiscally prudent in making decisions and spending money to avoid the unnecessary risk that burdens our budget and schools, directly affecting our student’s education. Closing or consolidating schools where necessary may cause significant disruptions and emotional stress on students, parents and the community, and could be inevitable.
Q: The pandemic caused some students to fall behind and exacerbated equity issues among students. What would you do to address learning loss and improve the achievement gap? Again, one-on-one, small-group instruction and tutoring are powerful learning tools. I would encourage creating new tutoring programs or expanding existing programs to assist teachers in providing the extra education needed to accelerate learning. Other possible strategies include career-focused coursework with career coaches, academic Saturday schools, and summer and after-school programs.
When someone is secluded and cut off from others, adverse health effects result. These effects can be psychological, behavioral, physical or combined. In short, the impact of social isolation can be profound. Traumatic experiences affect the brain! Students suffered the most because they lost interactions with others and experienced social isolation.
Emotional isolation occurs when someone is unable or unwilling to share their emotions with others. Someone may be reluctant to discuss anything but the most straightforward matters. Without emotional support, they may feel “shut down” or numb. Alone and scared! As a teacher, I knew the importance of basic classroom supplies and our tools to enhance and implement teaching strategies and lessons in our classrooms. I made it my priority that classroom supplies were available and monitored for staff and students by the building site supervisor and me, and new supplies to fill unexpected shortages were ordered immediately. In my 20 years as an administrator, I always ensured classroom supplies were available.