Audra Orr for Vacaville School Board Area 4
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Building Better Futures Together
ABOUT AUDRA
Bringing Experience to Serve
As a candidate for the Vacaville School Board, I am dedicated to bringing positive change and ensuring a brighter future for our students and community. I'm not a politician, but I believe our children are our greatest resource. I have worked my entire life in service, helping others and protecting the resources of our country and community. I retired as a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserve after 26 years of service, and I retired after over 20 years as a police officer between Vacaville Police Department and California Department of Justice.
My campaign is focused on developing innovative ideas and resources to make Vacaville schools the best they can possibly be and to create pathways to success for all students. I intend to combine my passion for education and service with my experience in leadership, team-building, and collaborative creative problem-solving to make a difference in the lives of our youth and create a positive change in our schools. I fully support voting Yes on Measure E and will use my voice to advocate for the new school to be built in Area 4.
Increasing Community & Parent Involvement
Vacaville has a great community that loves our schools, but I don't think we have fully explored what a valuable resource it can be for volunteers, student service opportunities, and training opportunities for vocational pathways, and in return how the schools can be a valuable resource to our local businesses by developing young adults who are truly ready for the workforce.
I also know that many parents don't have the availability to volunteer in the traditional way, but I think there are other ways to be involved. I want to put together a working group of creative-minded folks to develop opportunities for involvement for those parents who want to be involved but can't do traditional volunteering.
Preparing High School Students for Life After Graduation
VUSD has done a good job over the past few years of improving our Career and Technical Education (CTE) options, but I think we can do better. I will work to get more trade options such as welding which could be a good route to a job directly after graduation added to our list of CTE classes.
I also know of teachers who previously created curriculums of classes such as life skills math, which is now becoming a state requirement for graduation, and I will encourage teachers to continue to read the needs of their students for success as adults.
Improving the Safety & Mental Health Environment of the Classrooms
I have listened to numerous teachers, paraprofessionals, and parents speak, often tearfully, about the physically and mentally unsafe environments, primarily in the lower grade classrooms due to larger classes combined with behavioral issues and too few staff members. The pandemic didn't do us any favors as many children didn't get the early intervention needed or learn positive social interaction skills. The current environment is unacceptable as children, as well as staff, are being hurt physically and mentally. It's hard to learn in an environment like that.
I will work to decrease the size of the classroom and increase the mental health services provided to the students in order to find the resources needed for those requiring assistance, as well as work to find the resources needed by the staff in the classrooms.
Recruiting and Retaining Quality Staff
If we want the best education for our children then we need the best teachers and learning environment we can possibly provide for them. I will work with our staff to develop a quality recruitment program to bring those teachers into our community. Additionally, it's been shown that contracting out services is not the most fiscally beneficial expenditure of our funding. We need to hire teachers with the skills required for those positions, such as in the special education area, as well as the paraprofessionals our students need. The paraprofessionals who work for our district are more invested in our students, our schools, and our community than temporary contract employees and will save school funding in the long run. I will work to make this a reality.
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