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Mah, Santiago vie for County Board of Education seat

by Casey Weiss

On Nov. 4, residents will choose between a former teacher and the incumbent board member to represent Mountain View on the Santa Clara County Board of Education.

Grace Mah and Ellen Santiago are competing to become trustees for Area 1, which includes Mountain View, Palo Alto and Sunnyvale. Trustees had appointed Palo Alto resident Mah to fill a vacant seat on the board, and she wants to continue her work there. Santiago, a Sunnyvale resident, said she is running to remain involved with education after leaving her position at Graham Middle School to become a Web designer.

The board's seven trustees serve four-year terms, during which they approve policies concerning the 260,000 students attending public schools in the county.

For Mah, the budget is the most important issue facing the county, especially as school administrators predict mid-year cuts. California already under-funds public education, she said.

Mah, who has two children in Palo Alto schools, said district administrators and trustees should have more discretion over how they spend their money. Closing in on the achievement gap and decreasing dropout rates also are among her priorities.

A former engineer, Mah is now a community volunteer. She helped bring controversial Mandarin immersion programs to the Palo Alto School District. For more, visit www.gracemah2008.org.

Santiago said that, as a former teacher in the county (she left Graham Middle School in June 2007), she knows first-hand the importance of closing in on the achievement gap. She agreed the budget is an important issue facing local districts, especially as "property taxes fall and schools have to do more with fewer resources."

District trustees should approve their own cuts if necessary, Santiago said. But if there is a dispute among board members, she would interfere to keep the cuts away from the classroom.

Santiago, who has a master's degree in accounting and is a certified teacher, said her educational background will help her succeed as a board member. For more, visit www.ellensantiago.com.