The third and final in a series of San Joaquin County election candidate forums brought community members to the South Forum building on Wednesday, Sept. 28.
These question and answer forums were sponsored by Delta College, as well as the University of the Pacific’s Eberhardt School of Business, CSU Stanislaus, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and other notable Stockton organizations.
These public forums, where the community is encouraged to get to know potential elected officials, were held over the span of three weeks.
Each forum featured candidates from different local government races on the ballot this November. Questions were asked by students who represented Delta’s political science department, as well as local government reporter Ben Irwin of The Record.
Wednesday’s forum featured candidates running for seats on the Stockton Unified School District’s Board of Education.
The embattled board is holding elections this November, just weeks after a lengthy report from the San Joaquin County Grand Jury detailing severe financial mismanagement and operational dysfunction was released.
This comprehensive report concluded that SUSD’s management and board of trustees “were not adhering to policies and procedures regarding financial transactions.” It also concluded that the district’s $585 million dollar budget was “not being used in the best interest of the students, families, staff.”
SUSD is facing a $30 million deficit as a result of “poor business practices,” and is currently under audit by the Fiscal Crisis Management Assistance Team (FCMT) on behalf of the San Joaquin County Office of Education.
AngelAnn Flores, who was elected to the board in 2018, was notably the only incumbent to participate in the forum.
“Right now what we’ve lacked is honesty, integrity, and moral ethics,” she said.
The first half of the forum was with the current Area 2 representative, AngelAnn Flores, and her opponent Melissa Garibay Ortiz.
Flores is a Stockton native, a mother, and a grandmother in the community, and has held the seat for one full term of four years. Flores called for members of the community to join her in “rebuilding, restoring, and demanding results for our school district.”
Garibay Ortiz is a University of the Pacific alum and mother of four who has three children enrolled in Area 2 SUSD schools. Ortiz said she was seeking the office because she believed in “school safety and collaboration.”
The second half of the forum featured candidates for Areas 5, 6, and 7.
Running to unseat Area 5 member Maria Mendez is Donald Donaire, a self-described “community organizer at heart” who loves Stockton.
A University of California, San Diego alum, Donaire came back to Stockton after college to do his best to “undo and right the wrongs of the historical unfairness that has been here in Stockton.”
The Area 6 candidates running to unseat incumbent Scot McBrian are Rafael Cordoza and Sophia and Colon. Cordoza called himself a “frustrated parent” who had problems with the curriculum.
“They are not learning,” said Cordoza about SUSD students.
Colon said she is running to “hold the district accountable to the community’s values and priorities” and to “ensure fiscal responsibility.”
Last to be introduced was Stockton mother Kennetha Stevens, who is running against current Area 7 trustee Zachary Ignacio Avelar. Stevens called herself “an advocate for strong schools” who believes “every student deserves high-quality education no matter where they live.”
With four of the board’s seven seats up for grabs, a potential shakeup is set for Nov. 8, which leaves the board’s next moves related to the Grand Jury reports uncertain.