League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
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Grace H. Mah
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![[photo]](mah_g.jpg)
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This is an archive of a past election. See http://www.smartvoter.org/ca/scl/ for current information. |
League of Women Voters of California Education Fund
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Grace H. Mah
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The questions were prepared by the Leagues of Women Voters of Santa Clara County and asked of all candidates for this office.
Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).Questions & Answers
1. What do you see as the role of the County Board of Education?
The Santa Clara County Board of Education is elected by its constituents to represent the community in serving the children of this county. That service includes providing business, administration, and professional development services to school districts; running the state preschools and federal Head Start programs; teaching high-risk youth in the alternative education schools and those in juvenile hall; migrant education and the foster care children, and special education students.The Santa Clara County Board of Education oversees and approves a $260M budget overseeing 31 school districts; 260,000 students; and 31,000 teachers.
2. What experience and training would you bring to this office?
I have five years of experience serving as the governing trustee for the Santa Clara County Board of Education for Trustee Area 1. My interests and knowledge of the Santa Clara County Office of Education are very broad including membership of the Head Start Policy Council, to being Chair of the Policy Committee, and completing the CSBA (California School Board Association) Masters in Governance Certification.Masters in Governance is a governance leadership program that recognizes the necessity for the board and superintendent to work closely toward a common goal. Participants attend each of the nine modules, which define the roles and responsibilities of school governance teams and provide tools that keep efforts focused on student learning. Some of the modules include
During my tenure, I have interviewed and hired two superintendents, co-lead the Charter School Summit to bring traditional school district leaders with charter school leaders to find common ground, learn best practices, and collaborate to strengthen our educational offerings in the community; and attended all of the alternative education focus groups when the Board commissioned a West Ed study to evaluate and improve the learning environment for our at-risk youth.
3. Do you see a need for any changes in the way that the County Board of Education is operating?
As we have newly hired the County Superintendent, Dr. Xavier De La Torre, the County Board of Education has made an excellent appointment. Our interactions among board members have had ups and downs and I believe we are on a road to a high-performing team of eight. We will be appointing a replacement board member for Trustee Area 6 from a strong set of candidates on October 17. With our continued commitment to serving the students in Santa Clara County, our focus has remained steadfast despite some interpersonal conflicts.
Responses to questions asked of each candidate are reproduced as submitted to the League. Candidates' statements are presented as submitted. Please answer each question in no more than 400 words. Direct references to opponents are not permitted.Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).
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Created from information supplied by the candidate: October 10, 2012 16:11
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