Photograph by George Sakkestad
Fremont Union High School District trustee Nancy Newton is running for re-election.
By LESTER CHANG
More often than not, people seek out Fremont Union High School District Board Vice President Nancy Newton at meetings to talk about issues, whether they be controversial or not.
They do so, she said, because of her experience--nearly 30 years of working with educators, teachers, students, parents, public officials and corporate representatives to achieve academic excellence.
Newton, now seeking a third four-year term on the school board, believes her efforts have helped pay dividends for education.
Among some of those efforts: seven-period days, modernization of science facilities at the district's five high schools, student counseling services, safe campuses and a districtwide zero tolerance policy on drugs and weapons.
In her estimation, the district and the board, working with the public, have been producing students who are ready to take on the 21st century.
Newton, who has been on the board since 1987, said she has reached many of her goals and now wants another four years to tackle new challenges.
One challenge, she said, is to grant more autonomy to schools.
In the past, district administrators generally made decisions affecting the entire district. Now, administrators, educators, parents, teachers and students at individual schools work more with district officials to develop the curriculum, she said.
Another pressing challenge is for the board, which has faced budget constraints in recent years, to find ways to adequately compensate district employees and maintain a high level of education at the same time, she said.
The district and the 400-member Fremont Education Association have argued over salaries and benefits during ten months of negotiations that have resulted in an impasse. A mediator has been brought in to try to resolve the issues.
Newton hopes the use of the mediator will make a difference. "I am sorry things are stalled. We hope the mediator will help find some common ground for resolution," she said.
Should she be reelected, Newton said, she wants to meet more with residents to find out how to improve the district.
"We live in a very large district, and so we need to continue to enhance our communication with them," she said.
She proposes having more people join district committees. She also suggests holding more public meetings as a way to find out what the public wants out of public education.
Her involvement with community, education and business groups over the last 30 years or so has helped her become a productive and focused board member, she said.
She served as president of the Santa Clara County School Board Association and as president of the Cupertino-Fremont Council of Parent Teacher Association, an organization that oversaw the workings of 30 PTA groups.
She also chaired a series of workshops at Santa Clara University aimed at training and educating school board members.
To help strengthen her knowledge of how schools worked, she served on numerous district committees on curriculum and budgets.
"I think I bring a very strong expertise to budget matters and fiscal management," she said.
When she first joined the board, her chief goal was to restore student guidance services, which had been eliminated because of budget cuts. Another goal, she said, was to restore and improve outdated and under-equipped libraries.
Both issues were resolved, due in part to good fiscal management and reallocation of budget funds, she said.
She also supported alternative educational programs that have turned poor students into productive ones and a high school program conducted at De Anza College that encourages students to seek a college education.
Both programs have been successful, district officials said.
Newton said students are taking more challenging math, English and science courses. She noted that more than 90 percent of the graduating classes in recent years have enrolled in colleges or universities.
The high scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test by local students this year indicate the district is doing a good job, Newton said.
"The most important thing [for school leaders] is to provide programs and a philosophy that will allow students to reach their full potential," she said. "I think experience in education helps."
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, October 30, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.