+ Why are you running for School Board?

I am running for School Board to give back to a community that I love and call home. This past year has been like no other in terms of overextending our school district staff as well as the children and families in our community. The years that follow will require careful and thoughtful leadership to help the community heal from a global trauma. I have a unique blend of educational, professional, and personal experiences that I believe would be especially helpful to support CSD in the current time and context.

+ What special strengths do you believe you would bring to the board?

Strengths I believe would help me serve as an effective member of the School Board include:

• Significant knowledge of child and youth development related to social-emotional learning and academic achievement;
• Experience working with children of all ages as well as educators and administrators at all grade levels;
• Ability to build relationships across teams of practitioners, researchers, funders, policymakers, and families from diverse backgrounds;
• Expertise associated with developing effective metrics and using data and research to inform practice and policy (while also recognizing the limitations of these approaches);
• Practice communicating statistics and data to broad audiences;
• Experience building partnerships across community and state systems and supporting systems-level change and policymaking at the state level;
• Management of multimillion dollar budgets;
• A commitment to equity through a trauma-informed and anti-racist perspective;
• Dedication to personal and professional learning and growth; and
• Experience making informed decisions based on research as well as identified community needs.

+ What is your experience with K-12 education?

Over the last 20+ years, my professional experiences have given me the opportunity to work within and in partnership with school systems – as an early childhood teacher, a parenting educator, a systems leader, and a researcher focused on developing and evaluating social and emotional learning programs in school settings. I have developed and delivered professional develop workshops and trainings for educators at all grade levels related to social and emotional skills and the intersection between these skills and academic learning with an equity-focused and trauma-informed perspective.

+ What is your experience with K-12 education in Corvallis?

Corvallis is a community that I care deeply about. I grew up in Corvallis and was a student in the Corvallis K-12 public school system (Bessie Coleman Elementary, 1984-1990; Highland View Middle School, 1990-1993; Crescent Valley High School, 1993-1997). I am now a district parent and aunt. I have engaged with the school system as a parent, a volunteer (e.g., speaking to students at the invitation from staff on emotional well-being/managing stress; supporting workshops for Katherine Jones Harrison PTA), and in my professional role (e.g., providing workshops for educators on self-regulation/social-emotional skills for the summer kindergarten readiness program).

+ What are three things we do well in K-12 education in Corvallis?

There are so many things I could point to that are done well in K-12 education in Corvallis. Corvallis School District:

• has a longstanding history of providing high-quality educational experiences in a supportive learning environment with emphasis on student well-being;
• continually adapts to changing contexts and community needs while honoring educator and family voice (e.g., pandemic response, social justice engagement); and
• engages families in student learning and in decision-making through a variety of approaches.