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Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District elections (2016)
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Two of the five seats on the Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District board of trustees were up for at-large general election on November 8, 2016. In their bids for re-election, incumbents Alfonso Sanchez and Maureen "Moe" Mendoza faced three opponents: John Avila, Sarah Galvez, and Paul Leon.[1] Sanchez won re-election, and Galvez won the other seat on the ballot.[2] On top of choosing new members for the board of trustees, citizens of the school district also voted on a $150 million bond measure.
Elections
Voter and candidate information
The Ontario-Montclair board of trustees consists of five members elected to four-year terms. Elections are held at large on a staggered basis every November of even-numbered years. Four seats—three four-year terms and one two-year term—were up for election on November 4, 2014, and two seats were up for election on November 8, 2016. There was no primary election.[3]
To get on the ballot, school board candidates had to register with the county elections office by August 12, 2016. If incumbents did not file by that deadline, the filing deadline was extended for non-incumbent candidates until August 17, 2016. In order to qualify as candidates, they had to be at least 18 years old, citizens of California, residents of the school district, registered voters, and "not legally disqualified from holding civil office," according to the bylaws of the Ontario-Montclair board of trustees. Once they took office, school board members could not be employed by the school district.[4][5]
To vote in this election, residents of the school district had to register by October 24, 2016.[6] Photo identification was not required to vote in this election.[7]
Candidates and results
At-large
Results
| Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District, At-large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Alfonso Sanchez Incumbent |
35.04% | 19,996 |
| Sarah Galvez |
22.91% | 13,075 |
| Paul Leon | 22.48% | 12,828 |
| Maureen Mendoza Incumbent | 12.56% | 7,167 |
| John Avila | 7.01% | 3,999 |
| Total Votes | 57,065 | |
| Source: San Bernadino County Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters, "Final Certified Election Results," accessed December 7, 2016 | ||
Candidates
| Maureen "Moe" Mendoza | Alfonso Sanchez 
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John Avila | |||
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| Sarah Galvez
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Paul Leon | ||
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Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: California elections, 2016
The district's school board election shared the ballot with a bond measure for the school district, a number of statewide ballot measures, and elections for the following offices:[8][9]
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Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for California school board elections in 2016:[10][11]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| August 1, 2016 | Semi-annual campaign finance report due |
| August 10, 2016 - November 8, 2016 | 24-hour campaign contribution reporting period |
| August 12, 2016 | Candidate filing deadline |
| August 17, 2016 | Extended filing deadline for non-incumbent candidates for open seats |
| September 29, 2016 | First pre-election campaign finance report due |
| October 24, 2016 | Voter registration deadline |
| October 27, 2016 | Second pre-election campaign finance report due |
| November 8, 2016 | Election Day |
| January 31, 2017 | Semi-annual campaign finance report due |
Endorsements
The San Bernardino County Democratic Party endorsed incumbents Maureen "Moe" Mendoza and Alfonso Sanchez.[12]
Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Campaign finance
Candidates in this race were required to file two pre-election reports. The first was due on September 29, 2016, and the second was due on October 27, 2016. If candidates received more than $1,000 from a single source between August 10, 2016, and November 8, 2016, they had to file a campaign finance report within 24 hours of receiving the contribution.[11]
Candidates who did not raise or spend more than $2,000 on their campaigns had to file an exemption form by September 29, 2016. They did not have to file additional campaign finance reports.[11]
Candidates who had a remaining balance from previous campaigns or who had raised or spent money on their campaigns prior to the candidate filing deadline had to file a semi-annual campaign finance report by August 1, 2016. The next semi-annual campaign finance report was due January 31, 2017.[11]
Reports
Candidates received a total of $220.00 and spent a total of $220.00 in the election, according to the San Bernardino County Elections Office.[13]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maureen Mendoza | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Alfonso Sanchez | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| John Avila | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Sarah Galvez | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Paul Leon | $220.00 | $220.00 | $0.00 |
Past elections
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What was at stake?
2016
Issues in the election
Measure K
In addition to choosing two candidates for the Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District board of trustees on November 8, 2016, citizens of the district voted on Measure K, a $150 million bond measure. A 55 percent majority was required to pass the measure.[14] It was approved with over 77 percent of the vote.[15] The measure appeared on the ballot as follows:
| “ | ONTARIO-MONTCLAIR SCHOOL DISTRICT REPAIR, STUDENT SAFETY, CLASSROOM TECHNOLOGY MEASURE. To repair aging classrooms in order to maintain student health/safety and retain/attract quality teachers, remove asbestos/lead paint, repair restrooms/leaky, deteriorating roofs, upgrade disabled access, school security/fire safety, increase water conservation/energy efficiency, improve technology/computer/science labs, repair, construct, acquire/retrofit school facilities, sites/equipment, shall Ontario-Montclair School District issue $150,000,000 in bonds, at legal rates, requiring independent audits, citizens' oversight, keeping all funds local?[16] | ” |
| —Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District (2016)[17] | ||
Issues in the district
Court rules test scores not required in teacher evaluations
Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge Barry Goode ruled in September 2016 that the Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District, along with 12 other school districts, could not be required to use student test scores in teacher evaluations. Goode's ruling went against a lawsuit filed by the group Students Matter, which sought to mandate the use of student standardized test scores in teacher evaluations. Students Matter argued that the districts' teacher contracts violated California's 1971 Stull Act, which requires school districts to evaluate teachers in a manner related to student performance. Goode concluded that all of the school districts in question were meeting their legal obligations.[18]
“The Legislature endorses many uses of those tests, including evaluating pupils, entire schools and local educational agencies,” Goode wrote in his opinion. “But it does not say the results should be used to evaluate individual teachers.”[18]
Marcellus McRae, who represented the plaintiffs, said he was surprised by the ruling. “If you really think about it, this is such a basic concept that the goal of teaching is for students to learn,” McRae said. “It is, to me, axiomatic that teacher evaluations have to be based at least in part over whether students have learned.”[18]
Students Matter won a similar case in 2012. That lawsuit had been filed against the Los Angeles Unified School District, and the school district was ultimately required to include test scores in its teacher evaluations. In the 2016 case, however, Goode ruled that school districts were allowed to decide how to use test results. “There are serious questions about whether, and the extent to which, a pupil’s standardized test score is ‘reasonably related’ and ‘applicable’ to the performance of a given teacher,” Goode said.[18]
Teachers unions supported Goode's ruling. They argued that standardized test scores overlooked external factors that inhibited student learning, such as poverty.[18]
“Every day teachers across California use a variety of benchmarks, including in-class quizzes, tests, projects, and personal observation to fine-tune their approaches with their students,” said California Federation of Teachers President Joshua Pechthalt. “There is no single method for assessing progress that is ideal or that should be used to the exclusion of all others.”[18]
Candidate survey
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About the district
The Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District is located in San Bernardino County in southern California. The county seat is San Bernardino. San Bernardino County was home to 2,128,133 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[19] The district was the 59th-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 22,767 students.[20]
Demographics
San Bernardino County underperformed compared to California as a whole in terms of higher education achievement from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 18.8 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 31 percent of state residents. The median household income for San Bernardino County was $54,100, compared to $61,489 for the entire state. The percentage of people in poverty in the county was 20.4 percent, while it was 16.4 percent statewide.[19]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District' 'California'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District | California | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ San Bernardino County Elections, "Candidate List," September 8, 2016
- ↑ San Bernadino County Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters, "Final Certified Election Results," accessed December 7, 2016
- ↑ Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District, "board of trustees," accessed July 28, 2016
- ↑ Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District, "BB 9220 Board Bylaws: board of trustees Elections," accessed July 28, 2016
- ↑ California Elections Code, “Part 5, Section 10600-10604: School District And Community College District Governing Board Elections,” accessed June 15, 2016
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "Voter Registration," accessed June 13, 2016
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "California Online Voter Registration," accessed June 13, 2016
- ↑ San Bernardino County Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters, "2016 Presidential General Election - November 08, 2016: Candidate List," accessed September 26, 2016
- ↑ San Bernardino County Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters, "2016 Presidential General Election - Measures," accessed September 26, 2016
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "November 8, 2016, General Election Calendar," accessed July 27, 2016
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 California Fair Political Practices Commission, "Filing Schedule for Candidates and Controlled Committees for Local Office Being Voted on November 8, 2016," accessed July 27, 2016
- ↑ San Bernardino County Democratic Party, "2016 Candidate Endorsements & Phone Banks," accessed October 14, 2016
- ↑ San Bernardino County Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters, "County of San Bernardino Public Portal for Campaign Finance Disclosure," accessed March 7, 2017
- ↑ San Bernardino County Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters, "2016 Presidential General Election - Measures," accessed October 26, 2016
- ↑ San Bernardino County Elections Office, "11/11/2016 4:00 p.m. Posting of Unofficial Election Results," accessed November 14, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ San Bernardino County Elections Office of the Registrar of Voters, "Full text ballot proposition of the Ontario-Montclair School District bond measure election November 8, 2016," accessed October 5, 2016
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 18.5 Los Angeles Times, "Court refuses to mandate use of test scores in teacher evaluations," September 22, 2016
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 United States Census Bureau, "San Bernardino County, California," accessed July 5, 2016
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
- ↑ San Bernardino County Registrar of Voters, "Past Election Archives," accessed July 14, 2014
- ↑ San Bernardino County Registrar of Voters, "Past Elections: 2007-1996," accessed July 14, 2014
| 2016 Ontario-Montclair Elementary School District Elections | |
| San Bernardino County, California | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Maureen "Moe" Mendoza • Incumbent, Alfonso Sanchez • John Avila • Sarah Galvez • Paul Leon |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
