Susan Matura
From Ballotpedia
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Susan Matura was an at-large member of the Paradise Valley Unified School District in Arizona. She assumed office in 2019. She left office on January 1, 2023.
Matura ran for re-election for an at-large seat of the Paradise Valley Unified School District in Arizona. She lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Matura completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Susan Matura was born in Massachusetts. She earned a bachelor's degree from Carleton College in 1996.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: Paradise Valley Unified School District, Arizona, elections (2022)
General election
General election for Paradise Valley Unified School District, At-large (2 seats)
Sandra Christensen and Tony Pantera defeated incumbent Susan Matura, Eddy Jackson, and Sheryl Evenson in the general election for Paradise Valley Unified School District, At-large on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Sandra Christensen (Nonpartisan)  | 24.2 | 34,247 |
| ✔ |  | Tony Pantera (Nonpartisan) | 23.5 | 33,242 |
 | Susan Matura (Nonpartisan) | 21.1 | 29,881 | |
 | Eddy Jackson (Nonpartisan) | 20.1 | 28,481 | |
 | Sheryl Evenson (Nonpartisan) | 10.7 | 15,130 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.4 | 575 | ||
| Total votes: 141,556 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
To view Matura's endorsements in the 2022 election, please click here.
2018
General election
General election for Paradise Valley Unified School District, At-large (2 seats)
Incumbent Julie Bacon and Susan Matura won election in the general election for Paradise Valley Unified School District, At-large on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Julie Bacon (Nonpartisan) | 54.9 | 54,323 |
| ✔ | | Susan Matura (Nonpartisan) | 45.1 | 44,611 |
| Total votes: 98,934 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Susan Matura completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Matura's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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My name is Susan Matura. I have lived in Maricopa County for 23 years and I have three children (one in college, two in K-12 schools). I currently serve as the President of the Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board and I am passionate about public education. I have a background in business banking, lending, and website management. I am also a former PTO president and a long-time volunteer in the District and my faith community.
I am honored to have served as a member of the Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board, including as the current President. In my current reelection, I have received the endorsement of the Paradise Valley Fund for Children (comprised of teachers and staff within the District) and of the Arizona Latino School Board Association. I am also a Save Our Schools candidate. I am proud to serve the community as a member of the Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board and I plan to continue to work hard on behalf of ALL students, educators, parents, and the entire PVUSD community.
- SUPPORT ALL STUDENTS - Strive for academic growth, parent involvement, and a highly qualified teacher in every classroom to prepare EVERY student for graduation and success in their career, college, or community journey.
- ATTRACT, RETAIN, AND SUPPORT QUALIFIED TEACHERS AND STAFF - Maintain a welcoming atmosphere, offer competitive compensation, and practice respectful and productive collaboration while continuing to engage all staff in the district decision-making process. Continue to support teachers and students by allowing teachers the time and space to teach students to think critically throughout their education. This in turn allows the students to feel empowered and confident, ready for whatever their next steps may be.
- MAINTAIN EXCELLENT SCHOOLS FOR STRONG, SAFE COMMUNITIES - Ensure transparency and accountability of public funds and leverage public-private partnerships to expand student opportunities and resources to help protect our property values and vibrant communities.
TEACHER SHORTAGES: As a District, we need to maintain a welcoming atmosphere, offer competitive compensation, and practice respectful and productive collaboration. We need to continue to engage all staff in District decisions and support the staff by allowing them the time and space to do their jobs. We need to treat District staff as professionals, and we should expect others to respect the profession and the positions as well. Our students deserve and need academic and social support. Our teachers and staff members deserve and need higher pay so we can reward their work and also attract and retain highly-qualified employees. Unfunded mandates, including burdensome legislation placed upon school districts without sufficient funding to comply, needs to stop. Arizona residents support public education. It is now time for our state to prioritize public education at the statehouse and to ensure that sufficient funding exists to help our students succeed.
Governing Board members should be honest and forthcoming with the public. Governing Board Members work as a Board of five with no individual authority. They need to be respectful of one another, have productive conversations, and continue to work together for the good of the district after every vote (whether it be a unanimous decision or a 3-2 or 4-1 split).
Prior to my election to the Governing Board in 2018, I was diligent about staying informed about Paradise Valley Unified School District through District leadership trainings, United Parent Council meetings, District community meetings, and PTO meetings. This learning continues, and I believe my background as an involved parent in the District has helped me be an informed, effective Governing Board Member. I remain committed my professional development and to the District as I campaign for re-election in 2022. Additionally, I have a history of working effectively and collaboratively with different groups and these important skills will continue to be useful in my second term as a Governing Board Member.
The best part of my job as a Governing Board Member is interacting with our students and staff. I regularly attend school and district events to celebrate the accomplishments, achievements, and explorations of our students. Seeing Elementary science projects and Senior capstone projects, Middle School plays and High School marching band productions, sporting events and choir concerts, culinary classes and Junior ROTC assemblies remind me of the many opportunities our District, teachers, and staff provides for our PVUSD students. And it is a great reminder of how each student can thrive in completely different arenas, all within our schools. I am proud that our District supports ALL students and encourages dynamic and diverse experiences for every learner. I will continue to support this mission of Paradise Valley Unified School District.
A strong, functioning relationship between the Governing Board and its educators, administrators, parents, community, and students is essential to retaining highly qualified educators in the Paradise Valley Unified School District. As a Board, working with families, teachers, staff, and community members is important to the success of the district. It is our job to continue to reach out to underrepresented stakeholders to ensure that concerns are heard, needs are met, and people understand the value of their participation in the District. Ultimately, the role of the Board is not to micromanage the District, but to set priorities, hire the right people, and help create a climate to make it possible to meet the District's goals.
My constituents are the Students, Parents, Teachers, Staff, and the entire Paradise Valley Unified School District Community. Students are the priority for every decision, while keeping all constituents in mind.
The state needs to make public education a priority in Arizona. Additional funds from the state this year are a welcome start, but without the resolution of the Aggregate Expenditure Limit (an antiquated system that needs a permanent fix), the funds could prove to be an empty promise. Arizona should strive to fund education at closer to the median - spending per student that ranks in the bottom ten states in our nation should not be an acceptable level. Our students deserve and need academic and social support. Our teachers and staff members deserve and need higher pay so we can reward their work and also attract and retain highly-qualified employees. Unfunded mandates, including burdensome legislation placed upon school districts without sufficient funding to comply, needs to stop. Arizona residents support public education. It is now time for our state to prioritize public education at the statehouse and to ensure that sufficient funding exists to help our students succeed.
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
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 10, 2022
