California Superintendent of Public Instruction

AB 181 takes day-to-day control of the Department of Education away from the elected Superintendent and gives it to a governor-appointed Education Commissioner. The new job is described as an independent statewide voice for students and families, a voting member of the State Board of Education, and a coordinator from TK through higher education. Further duties will be clarified and established at the end of the coming year. I oppose this entire process. It is a power grab that silences voters. The Superintendent is a constitutional office accountable to the people, not Sacramento insiders. If elected, I will immediately take legal action to challenge AB 181's implementation, and while serving in this new role, I will use every remaining authority to prioritize results over ideology and families over politics. If the Superintendent is now an advocate, I will be the loudest advocate this state has ever seen when it comes to protecting our kids and fixing our schools.

First, get back to the basics: reading, writing, and math. Nearly half of California students are not reading or writing at grade level. That needs to end now. We need honest assessments, early identification of kids who are behind, and proven phonics and math instruction to be prioritized in the classroom over ideology and indoctrination. Second, protect girls in sports, bathrooms, and locker rooms. No exceptions. Third, give parents and families a seat at the table when it comes to their children's education and well being. Full transparency on curriculum and policies. Parents are partners, not obstacles. I will spotlight what works, call out what fails, recruit and keep good teachers, expand career and technical pathways, and get politics out of the classroom. We have already delivered academic gains and parental rights in Chino Valley. California students deserve the same statewide.

California already spends enormous sums on education. The problem is not that we spend too little, it's that too much of that funding never reaches the classroom. I will push districts to put money back into teachers and students, not bloated administration, consultants, and programs nobody asked for. Eliminate unnecessary mandates and expensive social experiments. Redirect available funds from ideology back to proven reading, writing, and math programs. Demand honest budgeting and real transparency so parents and taxpayers can see where dollars go. Follow the money, cut what does not serve students, and hold the system accountable for results.

I support removing sexually explicit material from school libraries. That is a basic responsibility to children, not a “book ban”. Parents overwhelmingly expect schools to not put graphic sexual content in kids’ hands. In Chino Valley we created a process so materials with sexually explicit content can be reviewed and pulled. Processes like this should be the standard, not something we continue to argue about. School libraries are for learning, not adult content.

Biological boys should not undress in girls’ locker rooms or use girls’ restrooms and showers. Period. Policies that allow access by gender identity undermine girls’ safety and privacy. Our daughters deserve secure, private spaces. I will defend and enforce Title IX as it was written: sex-based protections for women and girls.

I oppose it. No exceptions. Allowing biological males on girls’ teams is unfair and unsafe. Girls lose opportunities, records, and scholarships when they are forced to compete against males. Title IX was written to protect women’s sports. I will always fight to keep girls’ sports for girls only, and use whatever means are available to me to ensure our daughters are protected.

Parents have a fundamental right to know what is happening with their own children. Schools should never socially transition a child behind a parent’s back. The use of a new name, pronouns, or changes in facility use are all clear grounds for parental notification. The U.S. Supreme Court has recognized parents’ role in directing the upbringing of their children. Schools do not replace parents. I led Chino Valley’s groundbreaking parental notification policy for that reason, and I will always stand with families. Prompt notice is basic honesty with the people legally responsible for the child.