Kevin Sabellico

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

Kevin Sabellico

Nonpartisan

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 5, 2024

Education

High school

Canyon Crest Academy

Bachelor's

University of California, Santa Barbara, 2020

Personal

Birthplace

Bethesda, Md.

Religion

Catholic

Profession

Educator and business owner

Contact

Campaign website

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Kevin Sabellico ran for election to the San Dieguito Union High School District school board to represent Trustee Area 4 in California. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Sabellico completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Kevin Sabellico was born in Bethesda, Maryland. He earned a high school diploma from the Canyon Crest Academy and a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2020. His career experience includes working as an educator and business owner.

Elections

2024

See also: San Dieguito Union High School District, California, elections (2024)

General election

General election for San Dieguito Union High School District school board Trustee Area 4

Incumbent Michael Allman defeated Kevin Sabellico in the general election for San Dieguito Union High School District school board Trustee Area 4 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Allman (Nonpartisan)	51.1	8,990
		Kevin Sabellico (Nonpartisan)	48.9	8,595

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 17,585
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

To view Sabellico's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Sabellico in this election.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Kevin Sabellico completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Sabellico'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.

Kevin Sabellico is a proud product of our public schools as a graduate of Canyon Crest Academy. Kevin’s first job was Little League umpire, teaching him the importance of fair play. He volunteered with charities through the Interact Club at CCA and served as an altar server at St. Elizabeth Seton Catholic Church. As President of the CCA School Site Council, he worked with parents, teachers, and administrators to pass the Single Plan for Student Achievement. Kevin graduated early and completed internships in the State Senate, County Board of Supervisors, and a nonprofit supporting disabled veteran business owners.

At UC Santa Barbara, Kevin worked on Janet Napolitano’s Global Food Initiative, helping residents access CalFresh and advocating for hunger-free programs on campuses, securing $10 million/year in state funding. He’s worked on over a dozen political campaigns across the country, including Chris Duncan’s successful mayoral run and Catherine Blakespear’s campaign for State Senate. Congressman Mike Levin appointed him to the Electoral College in 2020, where he cast one of California’s decisive votes for Joe Biden.

In 2021, Kevin was appointed as a planning commissioner, focused on affordable housing, public safety, and post-COVID business recovery. In May 2024, he was confirmed to the County’s Environmental Health and Quality Advisory Board. He now works as a Substitute Instructional Assistant in the San Dieguito District so he can give back to his community.

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?

• Fight Extremism and Corruption: Schools should be places where academic freedom is paramount and students have a place to explore controversial ideas. They shouldn’t be places where Board Members push their ideological beliefs onto teachers and restrict what topics they can teach. Schools should also be places where students and teachers feel accepted for who they are and not concerned about their safety because of their race, religion, or gender identity. Racism, transphobia, and right-wing extremism have no place in our schools, and I’ll fight anyone who tries to assert their extremist politics onto our students.
• Ensure School Safety: Every parent’s number one concern is their child’s safety. Not just in school, but getting to and from school. As a Planning Commissioner, I’ve kept students safe by advocating for traffic calming measures, protected bike lanes, and common-sense gun safety laws. I also passed a comprehensive School Safety Plan when I was School Site Council President. I will always put student safety first and make sure our schools are safe for everyone.
• Support Teachers: Teachers are the ones doing the actual work of educating our children, and they know what instructional methods, course materials, and classroom management practices work best with their students. I want to empower teachers and make sure they feel supported by the Board and the District Administration.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

STEM, Special Education, Environmental Policy, Gun Violence Prevention, Fiscal Policy, and LGBTQ issues

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

I worked for Kamala Harris twice in my career, first as an intern on her U.S. Senate campaign and then as an organizer for her Presidential Campaign in South Carolina. I've seen her when the cameras are on and when the cameras are off, and I've seen her empathy, her mental toughness, and her intelligence. The way she has met this moment and become the Democratic nominee is so inspiring. I pray that she becomes our president, and she is definitely a huge role model for me.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

CGP Grey's "Rules for Rulers"

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

As a City Planning Commissioner, I learned to listen to both sides before making up my mind. It's important that public officials hear from all stakeholders so that the public has confidence in their decision-making abilities. A school board trustee needs to be able to make decisions in the best interest of the students, and the decisions the school board has to make are often complex. Being a studious, deliberative person who comes to meetings prepared and ready to ask tough questions will enable to do the job of trustee effectively.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

School Board Trustees serve as part-time elected officials who exercise responsibility over the district’s budget, approve the curriculum, and set long-range planning goals for infrastructure upgrades and other improvements. The role of a trustee should be to ensure compliance with state and federal laws, facilitate parental and community involvement in the schools, and support teachers in educating the students under our instruction. There are other responsibilities that only trustees have, such as negotiating with collective bargaining representatives, taking certain disciplinary action against students or staff, and preparing the District’s LCAP.

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

I remember 9/11, since my dad was in the military at the time and my mom was scared about what would happen. I was too young to fully understand what was going on, but I remember the fear and the heartbreak that resulted from the attacks.

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

I was a Little League umpire where I made $15 a game ($20 if I was behind home plate). Being an umpire is actually great experience for being on a School Board, because you deal with kids and their parents all the time. I did it for four seasons, and it taught me the meaning of fair play.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Link from the Legend of Zelda.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

California by Phantom Planet

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

As a student, I suffered from Tourette's Syndrome (and I still do as an adult, to a lesser degree). I have a unique understanding of our special education program because I was part of it, and I know how to improve the processes for students and parents requesting reasonable accommodations.

Who are your constituents?

The District's primary responsibility is educating students, so students, parents, and teachers are of course the main groups with a stake in our school district. But everyone who lives in the school district is a constituent, whether they have a connection to the schools or not. Business owners rely on the school district to provide an educated workforce, and property owners pay taxes that help fund our schools. Every resident of our district should be invested in the success of our students and our schools.

Tell us your favorite joke.

Oscar Wilde, the all time King of one-liners, uttered these final words: "This wallpaper will be the death of me. One of us will have to go."

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

San Dieguito Faculty Association

California School Employees Association, San Dieguito Chapter
San Diego County Democratic Party
San Diego Democratic Education Alliance
San Diego-Imperial County Labor Council
Sierra Club
Moms Demand Action (Gun Sense Candidate Distinction)
Scott Peters, U.S. Representative
Catherine Blakespear, State Senator
Rick Shea, San Diego County Board of Education Trustee
Rimga Viskanta, San Dieguito Union High School District Board President
Jane Lea Smith, San Dieguito Union High School District Board Vice President
Katrina Young, San Dieguito Union High School District Trustee
Julie Bronstein, San Dieguito Union High School District Trustee (ret.)

Bill Flores, San Dieguito Union High School District Trustee (ret.)

Describe your ideal learning environment for students.

Schools should be physically safe and places where students can grow emotionally and socially. Schools should also be places where students and teachers feel accepted for who they are and not concerned about their safety because of their race, religion, or gender identity. Racism, transphobia, and extremism have no place in our schools.

What will you do to build a relationship with parents in the district?

My door will always be open. As a trustee, I will make myself available to any parent who requests a meeting, and I'll go to the Site Councils, PTAs, and other forums where parents can have their voices heard. I see it as the School Board's job to facilitate communication between the public and the administration, and I'll be that link for everyone in our community, whether they voted for me or not.

What are your preferred strategies for faculty, staff, and administration recruitment?

My top priority as a trustee will be to recruit and retain highly-qualified teachers and staff. The first way we can do that is offer competitive salaries, but perhaps even more important than that is to show respect. My opponent has disrespected teachers time and time again, with behavior that was described by an independent investigator as “demanding,” “disrespectful,” and “inappropriate.” That’s why teachers are endorsing me in this race.

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

Fiscal transparency and government accountability is critically important. I've worked for many elected officials in my career, and they've served in a lot of different positions for a lot of different agencies. The hallmark of a poorly run agency is astronomical legal fees. Our district has spent so much money paying lawyers when we should be paying teachers. The District settled a gerrymandering case for $40,000 and paid over $300,000 to the superintendent who sued because my opponent allegedly harassed and retaliated against her. The investigation into my opponent cost the District an additional $49,000. I'm running to spend more of our taxpayer dollars in the classroom, not the courtroom.

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San Dieguito Union High School District school board Trustee Area 4

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