Monica Lee
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Monica Lee represents an at-large seat on the Castro Valley Unified School District school board in California. Lee won the seat in the at-large general election on November 8, 2016.
Lee participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 school board candidate survey. Click here to read her responses.
Elections
2016
Three of the five seats on the Castro Valley Unified School District Board of Education were up for at-large general election on November 8, 2016. Incumbent Jo Loss filed for re-election and faced candidates Suresh Gupta, Monica Lee, Tojo Thomas, and Lavender Whitaker. Loss won re-election and Whitaker and Lee took the other seats on the ballot.[1][2]
Results
| Castro Valley Unified School District, At-large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Jo Loss Incumbent |
24.84% | 11,268 |
| Lavender Whitaker |
24.45% | 11,090 |
| Monica Lee |
19.18% | 8,698 |
| Tojo Thomas | 17.59% | 7,978 |
| Suresh Gupta | 13.60% | 6,167 |
| Write-in votes | 0.34% | 154 |
| Total Votes | 45,355 | |
| Source: Alameda County Registrar of Voters, "General Election (Certified Results) - November 08, 2016," accessed November 30, 2016 | ||
Funding
Lee filed an exemption form detailing she would not spend or receive more than $2,000 for this campaign. Because of this, she did not have to file additional campaign finance reports.[3][4]
Endorsements
Lee was endorsed by the Alameda County Democratic Party and the Castro Valley Teachers Association.[5][6]
Campaign themes
2016
Ballotpedia survey responses
Monica Lee 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 October 21, 2016:
| “ | If elected, I hope to work with the other board members to continue the high level of achievement that currently exists in Castro Valley schools and to review and improve those areas in which needs are identified.[7][8] | ” |
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 |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | I'm assuming this refers to question 7. I believe the district has an obligation to work so that all students achieve a comparable level of achievement.[8] | ” |
| —Monica Lee (October 21, 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.) |
|---|
| No. I believe our schools are great enough that we do not need charter schools. |
| 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 defer to school board decisions in most cases. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. Standardized tests cannot account for issues such as English as a second language students or socio-economically deprived students and any specials needs they may have. |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| Common Core was implemented after my children attended the grades primarily affected by this methodology. I will do research to better understand Common Core. |
| 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. Underperforming teachers should be given the same opportunity for improvement that employees in other jobs receive: implementation of a performance plan; working with a mentor to improve skills; periodic evaluations to assess performance and determine what other assistance may be needed. The goal is to assist the teacher in improving his/her skills in an encouraging manner. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| No. I'm marking no because there is no maybe. This is an issue I would like to research more thoroughly before giving my answer. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. The choice to send a student belongs to the student and their parents. The state should not subsidize that decision. |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Expulsion should only be used in the most extreme circumstances. It should be limited to students who have behaved violently or threatened teachers or other students. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers Teachers are the leaders in the classroom. They prepare the lessons and interact with the students on a daily basis. |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Monica Lee Castro Valley Unified School District. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Castro Valley Unified School District, California
- Castro Valley Unified School District elections (2016)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Alameda County California, "Candidate List," accessed August 13, 2016
- ↑ Alameda County, "General Election (Unofficial Results) - November 08, 2016," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ Alameda County Registrar of Voters, "County of Alameda Public Portal for Campaign Finance Disclosure," accessed October 7, 2016
- ↑ California Fair Political Practices Commission, "Filing Schedule for Candidates and Controlled Committees for Local Office Being Voted on November 8, 2016," accessed September 30, 2016
- ↑ Alameda County Democratic Party, "Endorsements," accessed October 12, 2016
- ↑ Facebook, "Castro Valley Teachers Association post August 24, 2016," accessed October 20, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Monica Lee's responses," October 21, 2016
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 Castro Valley Unified School District Elections | |
| Alameda County, California | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Jo Loss • Suresh Gupta • Monica Lee • Tojo Thomas • Lavender Whitaker |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
