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Angie Simpson
From Ballotpedia
Angie Simpson was a candidate for an at-large seat on the Conejo Valley Unified School District school board in California. Simpson was defeated in the at-large general election on November 8, 2016.
Simpson participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to read her responses.
Elections
2016
Two of the five seats on the Conejo Valley Unified School District Board of Education were up for at-large general election on November 8, 2016. In their bids for re-election incumbents Peggy Buckles and Betsy Connolly faced challengers Sandee Everett, Julie Freedman, Angie Simpson, and Marlon Delano Williams. Connolly won re-election to the board, and Everett won the other seat on the ballot.[1][2]
Results
| Conejo Valley Unified School District, At-large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Sandee Everett |
25.84% | 24,666 |
| Betsy Connolly Incumbent |
18.47% | 17,633 |
| Angie Simpson | 18.29% | 17,458 |
| Peggy Buckles Incumbent | 16.76% | 15,997 |
| Marlon Delano Williams | 10.82% | 10,325 |
| Julie Freedman | 9.69% | 9,246 |
| Write-in votes | 0.13% | 125 |
| Total Votes | 95,450 | |
| Source: Ventura County Registrar of Voters, "Official Final Results," accessed December 5, 2016 | ||
Funding
Simpson reported $27,507.64 in contributions and $24,570.70 in expenditures to the Ventura County Registrar of Voters, which left her campaign with $2,936.94 on hand in the election.[3]
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Simpson participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on September 22, 2016:
| “ | I will be responsive and respectful of the entire community. I believe educational programs should work to develop not only whole selves, but also whole families and a strong community. I listen. I will represent the community, collaborate and innovate ideas to ensure the best for our children. If elected, I will: OPPOSE closure of elementary schools. Closures disrupt the learning and community environment. I will do all in my power to explore alternatives and save unique schools. SUPPORT keeping the parenting program and preschool at the Horizon Hills location. The involvement of parents in the education of their children is paramount in keeping our community healthy. ENCOURAGE innovation, public and private partnerships, and more educational approaches for STUDENTS who learn differently. SUPPORT a common-sense approach to finances- a balanced budget with priority on classroom education. I OPPOSE additional financial resources going to administrators until teachers have the tools they need, and employee healthcare benefits are reinstated.[4][5] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues based on how they should be prioritized by the school board, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. Each ranking could only be used once.
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in California. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| “ | If CVUSD truly wants to embrace a 21st century model, they have to come to terms with the fact that families are looking for REAL education alternatives: trade schools, independent options, homeschooling are programs the customers (students and parents) are asking for. The key is to ACCEPT the idea that not all students are college bound, TRADE schools must be an option, and charter schools are not going anywhere. CVUSD has zero charter schools. Why? It is their philosophy, and it’s not working. CVUSD is running with an old philosophy, and is behind the competition in other local districts. Surrounding districts have approved them. Yes, the district doesn’t directly benefit, but the community does, therefore the CVUSD will benefit by proxy and an enhanced reputation of excellence. Sharing resources, connecting with neighboring districts, embracing alternative school models, looking at trade school options, understanding the homeschool community…. these are all key steps CVUSD needs to take that will excite our community who is asking for renewed energy and fresh vision to maximize CVUSD's potential for ALL types of learners.[5] | ” |
| —Simpson (September 22, 2016) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer nine questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are highlighted in blue and followed by the candidate's responses. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions. The candidate was also provided space to elaborate on their answers to the multiple choice questions.
| Should new charter schools be approved in your district? (Not all school boards are empowered to approve charter schools. In those cases, the candidate was directed to answer the question as if the school board were able to do so.) |
|---|
| Yes. I support the ability for parents to choose their children’s future- I support parents who choose to put their children in charter school, private schools, or home schools. Ultimately, parents should be the drivers for these decisions and I support the broadest range of educational opportunity for our youth.The CVUSD can be seen as a leader in 21st century of learning, by rethinking their approach to Charter Schools. Families are choosing other local school districts, namely Oak Park, or private schools because of their unique emphasis on soft-skills (whole child, collaboration, compassion, character development, empathy, time management, etc…) |
| Which statement best describes the ideal relationship between the state government and the school board? The state should always defer to school board decisions, defer to school board decisions in most cases, be involved in the district routinely or only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| The state should only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. People learn differently and talent can not be fully measured by standardized tests, and a one size fits all snapshot. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| The Common Core is here, and is a work in progress. My concern is the new standards and methodology alienate the top performers and the low performing students. Resources and teacher support will be critical to ensure that all students maximize their potential as products of the Common Core era. |
| How should the district handle underperforming teachers? Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students, offer additional training options, put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve or set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district? |
| Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. Annual employee evaluations are standards in the private sector. I recommend philosophies of high performing corporate entities be adopted by our district to reduce performance gaps with teachers and help our teachers maximize their potential. Learning doesn't happen in one day, it's a process. As a district, it's important to foster a healthy and safe learning environment not just for students but for teachers as well. Should a teacher be offered feedback, structured improvement plans, mentoring support, and the teacher's competency still not improve, then the teacher's employment should be terminated. I oppose test scores being tied to teachers salaries or bonuses. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| No. Teacher's are intrinsicly motivated to be teachers, not sales reps. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. In 2016 I do not think this is a viable option for California. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| As a teacher at TOHS, I witnessed a female student, walking alone get jumped by 5 other girls. I intervened, ensured the student wasn't injured, and walked her to the office as her witness. I was a new teacher, and didn't realize the victim of the assault would be expelled along with the attackers- Even with me, a teacher, witnessing her attack, the current no tolerance policy required the innocent girl be punished and expelled. I felt terrible and saddened by the policy defying democracy. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers A successful classroom requires an ecosystem of support with teachers at the core. Parents, community, and administrators providing support and active participation ensure the students needs and teacher's needs are being optimized for a successful learning environment. |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Angie Simpson Conejo Valley Unified School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Conejo Valley Unified School District, California
- Conejo Valley Unified School District elections (2016)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Ventura County Registrar of Voters, "Qualified Candidate List," accessed September 2, 2016
- ↑ Ventura County, "Semi-Official Final Results," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ Ventura County Registrar of Voters, "County of Ventura Public Portal for Campaign Finance Disclosure," accessed February 8, 2017
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Simpson's responses," September 22, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 Conejo Valley Unified School District Elections | |
| Ventura County, California | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Peggy Buckles • Incumbent, Betsy Connolly • Sandee Everett • Julie Freedman • Angie Simpson • Marlon Delano Williams |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
