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Chang, Lucas top vote-getters in local school board elections

By Michele Tjin

Voters went to the polls on Election Day to choose who will run their local school districts.

There were no real surprises in the Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District race, as incumbent Cynthia Chang was the top vote-getter. Voters also returned incumbent Jack Lucas to the West Valley-Mission Community College District board.

But in the Loma Prieta Joint Union School District, incumbents Julie Gouldsberry and Neil Hollander were edged out by their opponents.

At the high school level, newcomers Michele van Zuiden and Roger Mason will join Chang on the board for the next four years.

"I'm humbled by the people's trust and support they have placed on me," Chang said, who received 8,771 votes (29 percent).

Chang, a CPA, has been a school board member at either the elementary or high school level since 1994, but this past election was the first in which she had to press the flesh and get her name out. In previous years, there were no elections held. She said this time around, she had to work hard to get to know parents and community members, especially those who live in Los Gatos.

"It was a great pleasure," the Saratoga resident said. "The process has helped me to be a better board member. People feel they have established connections with me."

For van Zuiden, this campaign was her second attempt at winning a seat on the board. Her first try ended unsuccessfully two years ago.

"When you lose, that's hard, but don't give up," she said. "It's rewarding as a parent because we tell our kids to try again."

Van Zuiden, a health care executive, came in second with 6,850 votes (23 percent).

Mason, an attorney, said he was pleased and looking forward to knowing the other board members better and learning about school board governance.

"The campaign was a lot harder than I expected," said Mason, who ended up with 5,179 votes (19 percent). "I didn't have a committee, so I did a lot of it myself."

Bill Chiocchi, a former trustee from a feeder school district, and Steven Kahl, a teacher at Mountain View High School, came up short in the end. Chiocchi said he wasn't too disappointed.

"I'm not upset," he said. "It's a good group who won."

Chiocchi promised to continue working on school issues. On top of his list is his involvement with the Akwaaba Foundation, which will help Los Gatos High School teacher Denney Daetz in his quest to make a computer simulation, one of his teaching tools, available online.

In the local community college district contest, Lucas received 35,091 votes (33 percent). Lucas was a five-term council member in Monte Sereno and has seven campaigns under his belt. He has yet to lose an election.

"I won what I set out to win," Lucas said. "It's a good feeling."

Lucas will represent Area 1, which includes Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Saratoga and parts of San Jose.

The other new board member is Don Cordero of Los Gatos, a longtime counselor and teacher in the district. Cordero, who received 30,271 votes (28 percent), said he was pleased to see how his hard work paid off.

However, his election to the board means he will have to step down from the classroom. Cordero said he teared up in class when he told his students he wouldn't be back.

In Area 2 of the college district, appointed incumbent Buck Polk easily sailed to a full four-year term, receiving 38,340 votes (58 percent).