Bonnie Lieberman
Santa Clara Unified School District school board Trustee Area 7
Tenure
Term ends
Years in position
Prior offices
Santa Clara Unified School District school board Trustee Area 2
Elections and appointments
Personal
Bonnie Lieberman is a member of the Santa Clara Unified School District school board in California, representing Trustee Area 7. She assumed office in 2022. Her current term ends on December 8, 2028.
Lieberman won re-election to the Santa Clara Unified School District school board to represent Trustee Area 7 in California outright after the general election on November 5, 2024, was canceled.
Biography
Lieberman was born on May 16, 1973, in Daly City, California. She graduated from Santa Clara University with a bachelor's degree in 1995. Her professional experience includes working as preschool teacher and preschool administrative manager. Lieberman also worked for 15 years as a senior corporate paralegal at several law firms in Silicon Valley.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Santa Clara Unified School District, California, elections (2024)
General election
The general election was canceled. Bonnie Lieberman (Nonpartisan) won without appearing on the ballot.
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Lieberman in this election.
2020
See also: Santa Clara Unified School District, California, elections (2020)
General election
Endorsements
To view Lieberman's endorsements in the 2020 election, please click here.
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Bonnie Lieberman did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Bonnie Lieberman completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Lieberman's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I am the parent of two children in the district and I have spent many years advocating for education. I have served as PTA President, PTA Secretary, and as Chairperson and a member of School Site Council. I have volunteered regularly in my children's classrooms and have attended school board meetings on a consistent basis. As a result I have taken on a personal interest in the development and implementation of school policy. After years of advocating for change from the outside I decided I wanted to be in a position where I could really make a meaningful impact on our childrens' education and futures. I am a teacher and I truly am passionate about education. My experience in leadership roles and as a volunteer have required me to plan, to work together collegially with my colleagues to achieve our goals, and to be accountable and take responsibility for decisions made. I would love to bring my extensive leadership skills and my experience in education to the Santa Clara Unified School District Governing Board of Trustees.
- FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY: Let's put our money where it matters the most - in our classrooms and at our school sites.
- LEADING WITH EQUITY: Building school communities that recognize, respect, and support all students and their distinct backgrounds and talents thus creating inclusive, equity centered schools where students are self-actualized, engaged learners.
- LEADERSHIP ACCOUNTABILITY: It is important to hold our leadership to the highest levels of accountability. We must proactively ask for and listen to feedback of students, families, and staff and respond to concerns in a timely manner.
I am passionate about the following areas of public policy: (1) Increasing access to STEAM education opportunities at all schools in our district. STEAM education encourages students to make interdisciplinary connections and engage in hands-on, experimental learning that teaches persistence in problem solving and critical thinking, mechanisms to gather and process information, and skills to evaluate evidence and make decisions. The hands-on experience that STEAM provides has the potential to open new pathways to students who discover an aptitude or passion for a previously unknown subject or skill. It is, therefore, imperative that the tools necessary to teach these essential skills be available to every child, no matter where they live or which school they attend. (2) Increasing access to early childhood education. From birth to age five a child's brain grows more rapidly than at any other time in life. The social, emotional, and mental benefits of preschool programs should be equally as important as the economic benefits they provide to parents as daycare centers. Preschool teaches children how to "do school," ignites a love for learning, and places them on a path for future success. Making programs like preschool accessible to children of all socio-economic backgrounds is vital and should be included as an integral part of our current K-12 model. (3) Improving access to mental health and wellness to ensure all students who need services are identified and treated.
I am a proven leader. I have been President and Secretary of Laurelwood Elementary School's Parent Teacher Association. I have served two terms on Laurelwood Elementary School's School Site Council, including one term as its Chairperson. I am the Production Director for the Laurelwood production of The Nutcracker that casts over 130 children in various speaking and dancing roles. And, I am the Administrative Manager of Laurelwood Preschool, a non-profit, parent participation preschool located in Santa Clara. In all of these roles I have worked collaboratively with all of participants and have led with a spirit of equality and teamwork. All voices matter and will be heard when I am part of a leadership team because no one voice should be louder than the others. And, in the instances where there have been disagreements I have always been able to agree to disagree, accept that we all have our own opinions, and I have moved on leaving that moment behind so that we can start fresh the next time. I am an active and thoughtful listener who proactively seeks out opinions and input from all stakeholders because it is important that all affected parties are included before decisions are made. Finally, I am an educator. I am a preschool teacher and I have spent years volunteering in my children's classrooms. I have learned what students and teachers need to be successful and I will carry this knowledge with me as a school board member. These are some of the qualities that I possess that I believe will make me a successful school board member.
The core responsibilities for someone elected to the school board are:
1. Financial stewardship
2. Collaborative leadership
3. Attentive and proactive listening to constituents
4. Being accessible to students, parents, and caregivers
5. Representing and advocating for the interests of all students, parents, and caregivers in the district
6. Asking the right questions and expecting thorough and transparent answers
7. Ensuring accountability from all stakeholders The first historical event that happened in my lifetime that I remember was the Challenger Disaster in 1986. I was in the 7th grade and I remember my teacher turning on the television in our classroom so we could watch Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher in space. We were all so excited because we had been following the build up to the launch in class and learning about where the shuttle would go and what their mission would entail. I vividly remember the classroom, where I was sitting, and seeing the explosion in the sky on the television. And, I remember my teacher quickly running up to the television and turning it off. She explained to us that something went very wrong and we were all stunned and crying. It is something I will always remember.
Well, this is going to expose my Gen X status but the last song that got stuck in my head is Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley. I am not ashamed to admit that I do like that song as well as any and all memes associated with RickRolling. But, it got stuck in my head a few days ago because it was the last song I listened to on my song shuffle while walking my dogs. The rest of the day I had the chorus of that song stuck in my head to the point that I would randomly just start singing under my breath. Thankfully, the ear worm left my brain, only now to return as I type this!
I believe that the job of a school board member is to advocate on behalf of the community to make sure that the school district is responsive to and reflective of the values, beliefs, priorities, and goals of the community. A school board member should provide leadership and work as advocates for children and families, for schools, and for the school district. A school board member should ask questions, should expect thorough and transparent answers, and should advocate for accountability. A school board member should be a collaborative, collegial member of a whole board working together as a team to with the district superintendent to make decisions and set policies that will benefit and best serve all students within the school district.
My constituents are the students of Santa Clara Unified School District. My constituents are the citizens on the cities served by the Santa Clara Unified School District as it is their tax dollars that help to fund our services.
I want to be an accessible school board member. I want parents and guardians to feel that if they contact me they can expect to receive an answer. When I worked in the private sector one of my personal rules was to reply to every email I received before the end of the business day even if just to acknowledge receipt for the time being. I plan to continue that practice as a school board member. People want to be acknowledged and heard and I want to provide that to them. I want to go out to communities on a regular basis to meet with families and talk with them about things that are working, things that are not working, and how we might be able to help make things better. I would like to attend PTA/PTSA meetings so that I can hear directly from parents and students. I would like to encourage students to speak out about their experiences at school be they good, bad, or just not so inspiring. I don't want to be just another administrator who doesn't listen. I want to be approachable and accessible. And, in all of these instances, I want to know in advance if I will need language interpreters at these events so that I can reach every family and every student. Not everyone has the ability to come to a board meeting to speak their mind or have their needs expressed. Sometimes, we need to go to them when it's convenient for them to speak. And, I plan to do that because it's important.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
External links
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 28, 2020
