The Future is Now

By Mario M. Vazquez

I believe the future is now, as we look forward we must concentrate our efforts to create a secure environment that fosters education for our children.

My wife, Avril, and I are proud parents of four children. Isabel and Aidan attend Kings Mountain Elementary School while Miranda receives district provided special education services for her Autism. Emma and Miranda will begin kindergarten in the fall of 2013.

I'm also a proud graduate of the Cabrillo Unified School District, having attended K-12. I played football and baseball for Half Moon Bay High. When I finished College I returned to Half Moon Bay and became a substitute teacher for the District while attending law school.

I grew up in Half Moon Bay, as did my sisters and brother, and my family and theirs, are very committed to our community. My experiences growing up as an English language learner and my involvement in athletics in the Cabrillo School District have shaped who I am today. I learned a sense of pride and determination that drove me to not only graduate from college, but from law school as well.

I've been an attorney with the San Francisco City Attorney, for 12 years, representing the Human Services Agency, in their work with abused and neglected children and their families. On a daily basis I deal with complicated and sensitive issues that require me to work well with others in a bureaucratic environment to obtain the best results for children and their families. I am very proud of my work in and commitment to public service.

I bring a full spectrum of life experience to my work on the School Board for our diverse school district, from the start of my public education as a monolingual child, to utilizing athletics to foster my High School success, teaching ESL youth at the High School, parenting two children attending Kings Mountain Elementary School, and a child with special needs.

I believe these perspectives that I can draw from make me the ideal candidate to continue serving on the School Board. I am committed and motivated to continue working towards resolving the significant issues facing our District.

I believe the future is now, as we look forward we must concentrate our efforts to create a secure environment that fosters education for our children. We can do this by retaining our skilled educators, and recruiting the next generation of teachers so that we can achieve excellence in our public education. We need to promote transparency, the spirit of cooperation and work on developing the next leaders from within the ranks of our already highly qualified staff.