Area 1
Jennifer Tarbox
JenTarbox.com
Business owner, parent
Political support:
Sacramento County Republican Party and other groups
What makes you a qualified candidate for school board?
The role of a school board member is to ensure that school districts are responsive to the values, beliefs and priorities of their communities. I have been a longtime active advocate in my community for our children.
I think what makes a good board member is someone whose main focus is on the children and is willing to dig in and do the work. It would be my job to make sure I am representing the families of the children in my district.
Why are you running?
I am running for school board because I see a need and opportunity to be able to take my child advocacy efforts for our kids to the next level.
What are your views on race and equity issues?
Not every family can afford to send their child to a private school, or even drive their children to other schools outside our area. I want to make sure that we first do our best to provide for our students’ needs, and second, make sure we are open to bringing in quality charter programs that can fill those spaces where we are unable to. The goal should always be to make sure the students have access to what they need. If we do not, or can not, provide for a student what they need to succeed in our academic setting, I want them to have the options and choice to attend other schools.
How are you planning to address the achievement gap?
Prior to COVID, we had an achievement gap and over the last few years it only grew larger. A piece of this is due to access to programs that meet the students’ needs. We are failing the children who do not see college in their future.
There is so much pressure on students today on making it through the college A-G path, yet if a student does not see college in their future, they build a lack of interest. I would like to put more focus on bringing the trades back onto campuses, working to improve the pathways we already have created, as well as partnering with local business and trade unions. If we can capture their attention by providing a career path right out of highschool that does not require further education but can provide a great economic future, I believe we can begin to close that gap.
Kara Lofthouse
VoteKaraLofthouse.com
Educator, business owner, parent
Political support:
Folsom Area Democratic Club and other groups
What makes you a qualified candidate for school board?
I do not know of anyone more qualified for candidacy for school board than I am, as I truly check every box when it comes to qualifications for this particular seat. I was born and raised in Folsom and I attended Folsom schools. I am a mother of four children ranging from ages 15 to 3, who are attending schools in the district.
I am the owner and education director of Wild Roots Learning Center, a small education based learning center located in Folsom which provides enrichment classes for students pre-K through 12th grade. I taught history and social science for ten years.. I was a vice principal for both middle and elementary schools in Folsom and Rancho Cordova. I ended my career in the public education system at the district level as a K-12 curriculum and instruction specialist.
While all of this makes me highly qualified, my passion for student learning is what qualifies me well above anything else for this seat on the school board.
Why are you running?
While working in the Curriculum & Instruction Department during the 2020-2021 school year our main focus was the disruption from COVID-19 on our education system and how to come back even better. During this time, I was working on my master’s in education and was constantly reading research that showed all the ways we could be doing things with more innovation and creativity. At that time, unfortunately, it was not the direction the district wanted to go and I decided to resign.
Our future depends on the kids we are teaching, and I believe wholeheartedly we can break down the walls that currently exist by working together with all stakeholders. I sat through board meetings for eight years watching individuals making decisions for the district with little knowledge of education, what it is like in the classroom or what is best for kids. I spent my career telling my students if you want change, you have to be willing to stand up for the change, so here I am.
What are your views on race and equity issues?
My top priorities are embracing diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice.
The 35 schools in the Folsom Cordova district and its 20,000+ students represent many different races, cultures, learning differences, languages, and socio-economic backgrounds of our students and families. In my 15 years working in both public and charter schools, my roles have often been serving schools with a highly diverse population, and my masters work was completed with the focus of culturally responsive and sustaining classrooms, so this is not something I take lightly.
As a team member of the curriculum and instruction team our main focus was access and equity for all students, and this remains my priority to this day, not only in my everyday life but in my intentions for Folsom Cordova Unified School District. With ethnic studies becoming a high school graduation requirement, as well as proposals for required Social Emotional Learning (SEL), I have a great level of fear of biased and uninformed input from the community leading us to a regression.
My top priorities for FCUSD are:
- Mental health of students, teachers, and school support staff
- Addressing school staffing shortages.
- Embracing diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice
- Using innovation to provide options for families
How are you planning to address the achievement gap?
Data, data, data. The district has started to do some of the really tough work to get us moving in the right direction to address the achievement gap in our district. Talking about it has been number one, and this has been happening, and a clear plan has been created, and now the work must be done, and accountability must be held.
Area 5
Ed Short (Incumbent: Currently holds the seat)
EdShort.org
Engineer, Folsom Cordova School Board Trustee
Political support:
California School Employees Association and other groups
What makes you a qualified candidate for school board?
As a licensed engineer I bring a solution oriented approach to problem solving. I will expect more from the district staff, teachers and our students. Improvements must be made if we are to continue to improve our test scores in reading, writing, math and science.
As a 20-year experienced board member for Folsom Cordova Unified School District, I will continue to ensure that the district is accountable to parents and taxpayers for every dollar spent.
Why are you running?
As the son of two teachers and the parent of two children, I know how important it is to have highly qualified teachers and the best possible facilities. We must invest in more training for teachers and work hard to create safer schools for all our children. As a member of the Folsom Cordova Unified School Board, I will put the interest of the kids first.
What are your views on race and equity issues?
I will focus on the disparities our kids of color are experiencing in Rancho Cordova schools.
The quantity of Career Technical Education students is significant and can aid in job loss and current employment opportunities. I would also like to combine that with business mentorships programs to make sure our students who directly enter the workforce have the skills they need to have quality careers.
Further, I would like to promote parent-teacher partnerships to decrease drop out rates and improve literacy.
How do you plan to address the achievement gap?
In spite of state COVID school closures, I worked hard to help reopen schools and to provide the appropriate resources for our kid’s quick recovery from learning loss. I support the following mitigating initiatives presently to help to close the achievement gap from COVID loss of learning. Please click on the following list of current strategies.
I will continue to increase the number of certified teachers and keep class sizes small. Competitive wages and benefits keep our diligent, caring leaders in our schools. These leaders come from diverse backgrounds that relate to our Mather and Rancho Cordova families and most important students to reach optimal learning levels in these times. I will invest in more training for teachers and work hard to create safer schools for all our children.
Jennifer Laret
JenLaret.com
Marketing and advertising, parent
Political support:
One Rancho Collective
What makes you a qualified candidate for school board?
I have lived in Rancho Cordova for 19 years and volunteered within our community. I understand both the Folsom and Rancho Cordova communities and have good working relationships with parents, teachers and administrators on both sides of the district .In the last couple of years I have worked with the Rancho Cordova sites to help improve athletics at our school. During this process I have had insight on some of the things that we are doing well as a district and have discovered areas where we can also improve.
Why are you running?
I am running for school board because I currently still have 3 kids in the district. I care about the education of my children as well as the education of my fellow community members’ children.
In Rancho Cordova, our schools are in major need of upgrades. We would like the Rancho Cordova side of our district to be restored to one of the premier education locations in the area like it was in the 1970s. Our kids have really struggled since the pandemic and we need to think of new and innovative ideas to keep them engaged and on track for graduation.
What are your views on race and equity issues?
I think that one of the best things that we can do is to foster healthy relationships between students and staff so that the students can feel supported in and out of their school environment. We want to promote a positive cycle of interactions at a young age. We need to strive for positive communications with our parents as well so that we are addressing the students’ needs in the home, school and within the community.
How do you plan to address the achievement gap?
We have many refugee and immigrant students and they do not have a robust program to support these students. We definitely need more support for our English as a Second Language program students. One thing that I have really seen is the gap with our translation services. We need a robust employment package that will attract multilingual teachers and aids.
I think that we need to get our class sizes smaller in the first through third grade grade classes to allow for more individual attention during reading time.
I would also like to expand our Career Technical Education programs and partner with more of the trades and look at getting more certificate programs on both our campuses.
Srishti Prabha is an education reporter and Report For America corps member in collaboration with CapRadio and The Sacramento Observer. Their focus is K-12 education in Sacramento’s Black communities.
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