Kate listening to concerned parents in her office hours.

I ran for school board originally to create transparency and access for our district. I wanted to be the kind of school board member that speaks to all stakeholders. I wanted to be a strong voice and advocate on the board. Since being elected in 2020, I have done all of those things and more.

One of my first acts as a board member was to request that our board meetings be more accessible. We switched to one click access to live streaming meetings as well as video archives of meetings rather than just audio.

In January of 2021, I became the first school board member in CVESD history to host Office Hours, and I have since hosted office hours every month. Members of the community, parents, and employees of the district have all had an opportunity to speak to me about their needs and thoughts. I have been able to assist countless people. Especially during tumultuous times around COVID, when there were many concerns, it was a great opportunity to engage directly and answer questions and dispel myths that created fear in our community.

With a large district such as ours, it’s difficult to really get to know the school sites. I have visited everyone of our nearly 50 school sites (including our dependent charters), toured the campuses, met with the principals, staff, and parents, and really gotten to know the community and culture of every school in our district. Really knowing our schools has helped me be a more effective leader. 

I am a strong voice on our school board. I have developed a reputation for asking tough questions and digging into data. As a parent of a child in the district, I know firsthand how our decisions affect our families. My decisions are student-centered and keep their success as my highest priority.

I have been fighting for the children of Chula Vista since 2020 and I’m not done yet!