By Meghan Sahli-Wells
Tomorrow is Election Day in Culver City. I hope all registered voters will take the time to cast their ballots because the School Board has a tremendous impact on our community.
Whether you have kids in the school system or not, your property values, taxes and overall quality of life are largely determined by the state of our local schools.
My three votes go to Karlo, Claudia and Kathy.
Karlo Silbiger has been an outstanding leader on the School Board over the past four years. He championed the solar project and the Environmental Sustainability Committee, making our campuses greener every day. He has made the Board more transparent, more responsive to the community. He thoroughly researches every decision, getting input from a diverse group of parents and residents. A product of Culver City schools, Boston University and Harvard, he went on to study education and became a teacher.
Mr. Silbiger’s intellect and love of education are unparalleled.
Claudia Vizcarra has the perfect combination of policy and parenting experience that makes her the best-balanced candidate in the field. With two children in Culver City Unified, she has a deep, personal understanding of the needs of our students. Her professional work as Chief of Staff for LAUSD School Board member Steve Zimmer gives her precious insight into education policy. Once on the Board, she will hit the ground running.
As the only Latina in the race, Ms. Vizcarra will give voice to an important segment of the CCUSD population, one that rarely has had representation in Culver City higher office. Iam excited to vote for her on Tuesday.
Kathy Paspalis repeatedly has demonstrated her passion for Culver City schools. Her drive for our schools’ success is unfaltering. Her experience on the School Board, and as a parent of two Culver High students, makes her highly qualified for re-election.
As a resident, parent and city leader, I am thankful Mr. Silbiger, Ms. Vizcarra and Ms. Paspalis are willing to give their time to our children and our community. They deserve our votes on Tuesday.
To find your polling place, see www.lavote.net.
To learn more about all the candidates, see http://www.smartvoter.org/2013/11/05/ca/la/race/051/.
To learn more about my endorsed candidates, see
http://www.karlo4schoolboard.com/
http://vizcarraforccschoolboard.org/
http://www.paspalisforschoolboard.com/
Ms. Sahli-Wells, Culver City Vice-Mayor, may be contacted at meghan@ccnan.org
