Candidate for
Board Member; East Palo Alto Sanitary District

I was born and raised in Washington, DC, earned my BA degree from Park University in Kansas City, Missouri and taught at an all girls Catholic High School on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. After three years I lived in Kenya, East Africa for three years as a Peace Corp volunteer. When I moved to California, I taught English at Lincoln and Wallenberg High Schools in San Francisco. I earned a Masters degree from Stanford University in Education and just recently, another Masters in Social Work from Cal State Eastbay.

While teaching in San Francisco, I reached a crossroads in my life in terms of my career. Working as substitute in San Francisco Unified School District was made memorable by the exceptional student bodies at both schools. However, after receiving a probationary status with the SFUSD, meaning I was one year shy of being a tenured instructor, I was laid off along with many other teachers. It was then I decided it was time to change careers because I wasn't willing to start the process all over again only to be laid off yet again. I entered the field of adult literacy where I witnessed life transformations for participants who learned how to read as adults. Learning to read as an adult changes the world view of those adults in dramatic ways, one of the most significant being able to participate in the democratic process by casting a vote for a candidate they were able to read about.

This most recent career changed happened as a result of 2004 Proposition 63 in which voters agreed that community mental health was significant enough for create funds for this much needed service throughout communities in California. I returned to school, got a second Masters in Clinical Social Work so that I could give back to my community while developing a new career. Mental illness is a disease that affects millions of people around the world yet it carries such stigma, shame and misunderstanding. I hope to be one who helps educated and dispel myths associated with having a mental illness. I am also a wife, a mother and serve as the secretary of the Paul Robeson Home Owners Association.

Serving on the board of directors of the East Palo Alto Sanitary District has been a great and important learning experience for me. My contribution on the board along with my fellow board members has made the EPA Sanitary District one of the best run and operating districts in the bay area; I'm extremely proud of this work.