BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The Bakersfield City School District oversees 44 elementary and middle schools serving just over 30,000 students in the city of Bakersfield. One of the seats on the BCSD Board of Trustees up for grabs this election year is the Area 2 seat. The three Area 2 candidates are Anthony Fuentes, Judy Olsson, and incumbent Pam Baugher.
Fuentes has been a teacher at Foothill High School for 7 years and says he has students’ best interest at heart both inside and outside the classroom, a quality he believes every board member should have.
“The students that go to these school eventually become my own students, so I understand what their struggles are,” said Fuentes. “I understand that the Bakersfield City School District is doing some amazing things, but I also have students that are in my classroom and in the whole Kern High School District that are at a 6th grade reading level. I believe that my perspective is really going to be important in getting the board to make policies that hep students.”
Fuentes adds that he also believes having a connection with both the students and parents as a board member is vital.
“I believe that as a board member, it’s our responsibility to make sure that parents and the community is educated on what’s happening within the classrooms, but it’s also our responsibility to make the best decisions for the community,” said Fuentes. “We can’t do that without making sure that we are talking to all of our stakeholders, and some of the stakeholders are parents.”
Fuentes is one of the two people challenging Area 2 board incumbent Pam Baugher. Baugher has been on the BCSD Board for 12 years, and a teacher for four decades. She expressed the significance of parents, students, and teachers being of one accord.
“Not all decision were made, I thought, with how it will affect people in the classroom. I thought it was important to get the voice on the board because as a teacher, I knew there were really three pillars to a successful student,” said Baugher. “One, of course, was the student, one was the parent, and one was the teacher. When all three of us are working together, that makes a successful student, and that’s what we want.”
Baugher adds that her experience both on the board and as a teacher gives her a useful perspective about how best to approach the problem solving process as a board member.
“I am responsible. I know the difference between my teacher hat and my board member hat, and things don’t always work the way you would like to to because of the laws, etcetera,” said Baugher. “I also stay informed. I always believe in reaching out to all of our constituents to see what they’re interested in, and I think with my knowledge and history, I think it makes me an excellent board member.”
23ABC reached out to the third candidate in the BCSD Area 2 Board race, Judy Olsson, but she did not respond to our request for an interview.