Ventura County – School Boards – 2022 General Election

READ: (Edsource.org) Conservatives are waging a war for control over California school boards. They are banning books, putting LGBTQ+ kids into the crosshairs of “parental rights” rants, and tearing down the wall between evangelical churches and secular education. They are fighting against public health initiatives, the comprehensive sex education proven to reduce rape, pregnancies and STDs, any history or social studies lessons they deem to be “Critical Race Theory,” and any educational policies on gender identity and racial equity.

They are determined to reinstate “traditional values”, which includes erasing the history of systemic racism and contributions of people of Color, homophobia, xenophobia, White Supremacy and Christian Nationalism. (The actions in this post are still “live.”)

(Indivisible Conejo) JESSICA WEIHE – Community College Board of Trustees – Area 2

Here’s another race that, in a perfect world, would be less ideologically driven than it is. Jess, of course, is “Anonymous Mommy” on social media, in addition to her nonprofit work (Conejo Community Outreach) and her high-profile marketing work. She inspires both a large following and the most vicious gang of haters in town. She’s endorsed by her predecessor in the position, Dianne McKay, as well as much of the city’s political establishment. But her opponent, Lou Lichtl, was a popular principal at T.O. High…before becoming a not-so-highly-regarded assistant superintendent for the district, whose contract wasn’t renewed in 2020.

(Indivisible Conejo) MIKE TEASDALE – Ventura County Board of Education – Area 2 – Governing Board Member

The incumbent’s two challengers are both #RobMob extremists. One of them is Cathy Carlson, who has menaced our public schools for years. This is an easy choice.

Well, this is interesting! Conejo Valley school board forum called off after 3 candidates withdraw.

“An online Conejo Valley school board candidate forum has been canceled after three conservative candidates withdrew hours before the forum was set to begin…CVUSD’s school board has become a volatile political proxy battle, with conservative parents recruiting national activists to boost awareness of their protests through national media.”(Read more here.) Hmmm…maybe they don’t want to talk about the death threat against the superintendent?

Debate video

• League of Women Voters (for November election): VIDEO

(Indivisible Conejo)

Notes on Conejo Valley Unified School District 2, 3 and 4

Recommendations:

• Area 2: Lisa Powell 
• Area 3: Bill Gorback 
• Area 4: Cindy Goldberg 

The school board race, of course, is Ground Zero for partisan warfare in Thousand Oaks, just as taking over school boards across the nation is a top priority for far-right in the post-Trump era. The three trustee-area elections this fall will decide control of the board for 2 or even 4 years, and the #RobMob is going for broke in an effort to stop our district from supporting vulnerable students or teaching accurate science, history and sex ed. Republicans realize their ideology is despised by the vast majority of younger voters, who are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion in a way the GOP cannot countenance. But instead of altering their own attitudes and policies to attract more votes, Republicans spin mainstream 21st-century ideas as “wokeness,” “indoctrination” and even, grotesquely, “grooming.” It’s up to us to stop them from gaining control of our schools and achieving their goal of dismantling public education from the inside.

Debate video

• League of Women Voters (for November election): VIDEO

Debate video for both Areas 1 and 5

• League of Women Voters (for November election): VIDEO