Position Paper

By Joyce A. Dalessandro

As a member of San Dieguito Union High School District's Board of Trustees for the past sixteen years my focus has been to ensure the highest quality education for every student. Our schools have a well-deserved reputation for excellence thanks to the hard work and dedication of our Board, faculty, staff, administration and community.

I have championed the opening of new schools and the modernization of existing facilities. I have worked hard to secure shared-use facility agreements, placing us on the cutting edge of efficient use of community resources.

I work diligently to make our outstanding schools even better. I have embraced exciting opportunities to enhance our programs and add further dimension to our offerings. I will continue my commitment to strong academic programs, technology, and the arts, while making the most of our finite tax dollars.

Our academic success places us, repeatedly, at the top of the list county-wide, and has gained us national recognition. Sixteen years ago I was determined to return music to our schools. Today we have highly successful and varied music programs on all of our campuses. Art, dance, theatre have flourished district-wide. Robotics, engineering, Chinese language classes, to name but a few, provide rare opportunities for our students.

It remains a critical issue that we preserve the sound fiscal practices that have served the District so well in lean budget years. Our cost saving measures and the efficient use of our resources ensure that not a single hard-fought education dollar is wasted. Sustaining frequent dialogue with our elected officials reminds them of the impact of their policies on each of our students.

Political parties have no place at the table. School Board Trustee is a non-partisan position. I believe that is a basic tenet in ensuring that no political agendas or party loyalties are brought into the decision making process. The students of the San Dieguito Union High School District deserve our undivided attention and dedication, without any regard for what is best for political gain.