Key Issues – Mark Buchman for School Board 2022

Keys Issues in our Schools

Since first being elected, Mark’s focus is reflected in where his district time is spent. Look at the special board subcommittees here.He actively dedicates/d his time to the District Diversity Task Force, District board policies reviews, the CSEA negotiating team, and the Visual and Performing Arts committee.

Mark spends hours reading board agendas and then doing additional research. Talking with staff and community about agenda topics. Digging down for details and asking tough questions. One that comes to mind was hard because he loves chocolate, but after research he had to ask, “Why are we serving chocolate milk?”.

He faithfully participates in district Parent Leader meetings. LCAPs (Local Control Accountability Plan) meetings are where priorities are set at the District and school sites. Teachers and staff also meet to provide input. People see him those meetings. He attends English Learner Advisory Committee meetings, District English Learner Advisor Committee meetings, Title I advisory committee, and of course, school events. And at– Hawthorne basketball games, LCAP, playground opening, open house, and end of year celebrations, to name a few. Mark is often also at Pacheco Elementary School where his grandson attends school.

Student and Staff Safety

Long before COVID and the recent devastating school shootings, staff and teachers were first responders. First to respond to a student in need, a student who is being abused. But now teachers are sometimes standing in front of a shooter instead of in front of the students. Students go through so much growing up, even just
the normal stress of, well, growing up. Legal access to automatic weapons is real. Kids buying weapons at too young an age is real. There is probably nothing more important right now than student and staff safety. We have several board and staff committees. Student and Staff Safety Task Force needs to be one of them.

Climate Conscious Decisions

Schools need to be community leaders, not just class- rooms, but implementing the best environmental policies. Facilities should incorporate alternative energy in their design or remodel. Buses and maintenance fleets should continue to be converting to alternative fuel. Every school site plan should include a section on greening the campus.

Local Jobs for local Grads

It is time to stop seeing high school as a step to college. It is so much more. Think of all the careers, even those that need a college degree, that can be explored in high school. The college and career ready approach makes sense. High school NOT the last step before college but the first step toward a career. Adding career to the discussion changes everything: a program of study that involves a multiyear sequence of courses that integrates core academic knowledge with technical and occupa- tional knowledge provide students a pathway to post- secondary education and careers,” California State PTA.

Learning Advance for All

There is a roughly 25 percent gap between hign and low achieveing learners. The gap is not between those who come to school knowing how to speak English and those who do not. It is not about skin color. The issue is economics. Working two or three jobs leaves little time to help students focus on school work. Closing the achievement gap is not only about learning, but also about equity.

Budget Building

Today most people have little direct connection to their local schools, but their dollars support schools. Their voice should be sought in budget discussions. It is the small details that create the whole budget.

Arts Are Essential

Having served on a SLCUSD Arts committee when first on the Board to convincing other board members to add arts to STEM to create STEAM Mark understands Arts role in education. Research shows Arts enhance and are a doorway for student learning. Arts include: Motor Skills, Language Development, Decision Mak- ing, Inventiveness, Cultural Awareness, which all result in Improved Academic Performance. PBS Kids goes into more depth at https://www.pbs.org/parents/thrive/ the-importance-of-art-in-child-development While Art is essential to early development, its role carries through until graduation.