Barbara Lopez for School Board

WINNER of the SFUSD 2008 YOUTH VOTE Election !!!!!

Recent ENDORSEMENTS: Assemblyman Mark Leno, Public Defender Jeff Adachi, Supervisor Bevan Dufty, The SF Bayview Newspaper & N.O.W. The National Organization of Women! Thank you!

BARBARA LOPEZ, FIGHTS FOR IMMIGRANT AND LATINO REPRESENTATION ON THE BOARD!

GET INVOLED NOW--

1. Be Visible at Safeways, Bart/MUNI stops and take a house sign!!!!!! Give an hour or four on Monday or Tuesday and help make the difference! Contact us for different locations...

2. Spread the Word...Email your friends, co-workers, any and everyone!!! Vote for Barbara LOPEZ.

With many problems facing the School District, the discussion on the school board race needs to focus on the issues most pertinent to students and families: their safety and academic achievement. San Francisco has the worst achievement gap in the state of California. With a record high homicide rate, too many young people have been directly affected by violent crime in this city. We need a district-wide safety plan and a candidate who can carry out the districts new strategic plan to close the achievement gap. We need someone who actively works with the populations that are falling through the cracks.

If elected, Barbara would be the only bi-lingual, Latino and immigrant commissioner. Her goals also include increasing the parent participation in schools, improving our English Language Learner & Special Education programs, creating teacher housing with surplus property, and ensuring that all young people graduate with the ability to go to college.

Of top concern, is focusing on the learning potential of English Language Learners and recent immigrants. As an immigrant herself, Barbara Lopez, knows the struggles and hurdles immigrant youth face and the sacrifices parents make to ensure they go to college.

About Barbara Lopez:

For the last eight years, Barbara Lopez has been an advocate for immigrant and working families, representing families in special education and discipline hearings. She started at La Raza Centro Legal, where she was the coordinator of the Youth Law Project providing assistance to families in educational matters, spear-heading efforts with to give workshops to parents in youth in schools across the district.

Currently, she works with immigrant parents at La Voz Latina,an organization she founded several years ago within the Tenderloin Housing Clinic to give parent empowerment workshops, support parent engagement at school sites and work on parent-led community campaigns. The La Voz parents, have been recognized by the City for their leadership and have consistently pushed for better schools and a safe community for their families. Thanks to them we have more translation in schools, foot patrols, rental subsidies and affordable housing legislation. La Voz also pushed for a plan at the district to subsidize passes and look at violence issues on MUNI.

In the public schools of San Francisco, we need to address the issues of closing the achievement gap, equity in budgeting, and violence prevention. This year, as we implement a new stagegic plan for SFUSD it is key to ensure that families have a voice and role in determining the direction and outcomes for their children. We must also work to ensure that there are quality schools that are safe and families want to attend across the city.