Charné Tunson

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Charné Tunson

Nonpartisan

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 3, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

Clark Atlanta University, 1998

Graduate

Loyola Marymount University, 2012

Personal

Birthplace

Inglewood, Calif.

Profession

School principal

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

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Personal LinkedIn

Charné Tunson ran for election to the Los Angeles Community College Board of Trustees to represent Seat No. 1 in California. She lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.

Tunson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Charné Tunson was born in Inglewood, California. She earned a bachelor's degree from Clark Atlanta University in 1998 and a master's degree from Loyola Marymount University in 2012. Tunson's career experience includes working as a school principal.

Elections

2020

See also: Municipal elections in Los Angeles County, California (2020)

General election

General election for Los Angeles Community College Board of Trustees Seat No. 1

The following candidates ran in the general election for Los Angeles Community College Board of Trustees Seat No. 1 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Andra Hoffman (Nonpartisan)	51.5	887,245
		Karen Hernandez (Nonpartisan)	16.9	290,952
		Charné Tunson (Nonpartisan)	8.4	145,222
	Submit photo	Tori Bailey (Nonpartisan)	7.6	131,143
	Submit photo	Antonio Paolo Sanchez (Nonpartisan)	4.7	80,675
	Submit photo	Marjorie Shaw (Nonpartisan)	4.3	73,269
	Submit photo	Jessica McCarns (Nonpartisan)	3.7	63,604
	Submit photo	R. Richard Cuevas (Nonpartisan)	2.9	49,363

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,721,473
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

To view Tunson's endorsements in the 2020 election, please click here.

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Charné Tunson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Tunson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Charné M. Tunson is an advocate for youth mentorship. Her favorite memory was the first meeting with her Mentor who arrived to pick up Charne' in a Mercedes Benz..."Wow, I get to ride in a Mercedes! That day I learned that I could become a successful Black woman", which she went on to do, dramatically impacting the lives of so many youth. Charné was born to a 16-year-old single Mother in SouthEast LA and spent her first year of life around Crenshaw High while her mother completed her senior year. Charné's mother was dedicated to creating the best environment she could for her 3 children and made many sacrifices to support their education; including putting off her own college education. But went back to school and graduated from college the same year as Charné, both pursuing a careers in education.

Attending college is not just formal education, "but also the life skills learned while trying to survive four years in a different world is priceless!" Charné notes that leaving her home to attend college helped to open her eyes about the possibilities that exist outside of her community and taught her to be resourceful when pursuing her goals.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• The student voice is the most important voice and needs to be brought to the forefront of the conversation and given multiple seats at the table. When we lead with what is best for students, we are truly serving their needs.
• There is so much work that needs to be done to stand up for, in front of and to support our Black students. When Black students are performing well academically, then we can truly say that "All Students are Doing Well.'
• School leaders have an obligation to lean in and not just look at academic success- but all the other factors including student well being. Too many of our students are food and housing insecure and until their basic needs are met, we cannot expect them to focus on the academics.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I support defunding the police in schools because far too often they work in isolation from school site leadership. As a former school Administrator I have bore witness to the abuse of power and authority from the police when addressing students, staff and parents.

Just last Spring while serving as a school Principal in the Watts / Willowbrook community, I had to adamantly ask two Sheriff Deputies to leave my campus after they not only disrespected me, but diminished a very volatile situation involving two parents. I immediately left campus and drove to their assigned headquarters to meet with their supervisor. After many apologies from the deputies and their supervisor I had to break down the many criminal activities that had occurred on the campus or in the adjacent property- all of which I did not reach out for assistance to them. They were shocked- jaw dropped even, and I told them that part of the reason I did not call for assistance was because of the way we (people of color) have been treated by law enforcement. I shared how I always treat my staff, students and parents with the utmost respect and would not stand to be disrespected by anyone including their deputies especially while doing my job and theirs to protect my campus.

Just to be clear, I believe in my heart of hearts that not all police abuse power; however, there is a time and a place for their presence and it is NOT in the day to day operations of a school setting; especially in higher education

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

The late Rita Pierson was a vicious advocate for students. In her famous TED Talk she vividly describes how "Every kid needs a champion." She has instilled in me the power of relationships when supporting students and I have come to learn that a young person needs just one caring adult to make a lasting impact on his/her life. Since then I have made it a responsibility to connect with every student on my campus as regular as possible.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The LA Riots was the most significant event that I remember very vividly. I was in high school and waiting on the bus stop to get home from school when the incident began. I watched my community unleash their pain onto itself and I was full of naivety that it took 20 years of maturity for me to fully understand the significance of the event.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My very first job was tutoring elementary students that lived in a community housing project. It was a summer job but it solidified in my mind and my heart that the world of education was where I needed and wanted to plant my flag.

What is the primary job of a school board member in your view?

The primary job is to serve the stakeholders- students, staff and community members. Oftentimes Board members will say that they do not get involved in the "day to day operations" of the schools and I believe this is a missed opportunity to get down in the trenches and truly identify the needs of the school, hear the voices of the stakeholders and make informed decisions.

Who are your constituents?

My constituents are the students of the 9 LACCD campuses, the faculty and staff members employed throughout the district, and the communities surrounding the campuses.

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.

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