LAKE COUNTY — As Nov. 5 approaches, the responsibility for people in Lake County to elect new district officials is almost here.
In college and school district elections, Lake County Trustee Area No. 3, Lakeport Unified School District and Upper Lake Union Elementary School District have vacancies that will be sought by candidates.
In special district elections, however, only the Hidden Valley Lake Community Services District will be sought by the candidates, as all other districts either don”t have more candidates than vacant seats or don”t have candidates at all.
At the Upper Lake Union Elementary School District (ULESD), which has the most contested seats, seven candidates, three of them incumbents, will run for seats.
Alisa M. Bloom, who has lived in Upper Lake for 23 years and whose three children have completed the Upper Lake School system, plans to bring a fresh set of eyes to the board. Bloom plans to work on the district”s new curriculum and fix funding issues caused by current economic conditions.
Incumbent Joanne Breton intends to remain in her seat to continue working to create a strategic plan that reflects the consensus of the entire board, the superintendent, district staff and the community as to what students need to achieve their highest potential. Breton has lived in Lake County for 24 years and served eight years on the Lake County Chamber of Commerce board. She is in her 12th year on the ULESD school board serving as board president.
Also running for a seat at the ULESD is Diane Tomkins Plante, who has been a resident of Upper Lake for 28 years. Tomkins Plante attended Upper Lake Elementary School and graduated from Upper Lake High School before receiving an accounting degree from California State University, Sacramento. She works full-time with her father, John Tomkins, for a tax and bookkeeping business. She audited school districts for eight years. In 1999, she also assisted with and acted as treasurer for an Upper Lake High School bond measure that was instrumental in building school facilities.
Don Meri attended Upper Lake schools from the fourth-grade through high school and has served on the Upper Lake Elementary School Board for 16 years as a board member and as president. During his time of service, his focus has been to provide leadership in making proper fiscal decisions and improving instructional practices.
Kelly Palmer-Burns worked at Upper Lake Middle School, where she performed duties as a tutor, classroom aide and library aide for 16 years before she was laid off at the end of the last school year because of lack of funds, she stated. She was later re-hired as a campus monitor.
Palmer-Burns stated that, if elected, her focus would be on running a more efficient and budget-conscious platform and added that the district is too small to be able to support a superintendent/principal, a vice principal and a bookkeeper. She said she would also work on fixing bus issues as well as the possibility of a unification of the Upper Lake High School District and the Upper Lake Elementary School District to help fix other issues.
Candidates Marie Henry and Katy Swaney did not provide candidate statements with the Registrar of Voters and could not be reached for comment.
At the Lake County Board of Education (LCBE) Trustee Area No. 3, Dawn R. Binns is running against incumbent Patricia Hick.
Binns, who has lived in Lake County her entire life, owns a diesel truck repair business in Ukiah with her husband. Her son graduated from Upper Lake High School and her daughter is enrolled at Upper Lake Middle school. Binns” goal is to represent the northshore Schools by being a voice for their concerns.
“I have worked for the Upper Lake School District in the past and I have seen the challenges that the schools are facing,” Binns stated. Hicks intents to encourage the LCBE to offer as many programs for board members and teachers as may be needed for all districts in Lake Country that will engage students in learning to become productive citizens.
She added that as a board member she will continue to take on the responsibility to help set the vision for LCOE, to advocate on behalf of all Lake County children and their schools and hold the system accountable.
At the Lakeport Unified School District (LUSD), retired teacher Beth K. Ackermann and incumbents Dennis Darling and Tom Powers are vying for two seats.
Ackermann was a member of the staff at Lakeport Elementary School that received statewide recognition for outstaying gains in student achievement. She taught for 25 years at the school. She added that she will work on how teaching and testing are done and to help bring student test scores from some of the worst in the county to at least middle ratings. She also said she plans to work on school safety, student behavior and discipline.
For Darling, who has lived in the county for 32 years and has owned a grocery store with his wife for 30 years, the goal is to advocate for public education in general and specifically LUSD, he said. Darling and his wife had two daughters and four exchange students graduate from the LUSD schools and he has served the LSUD governing board for 12 years.
Powers Graduated from Clear Lake High School in 1980 and later earned an electrical engineering degree from the University of the Pacific. Powers has served on the LUSD Governing Board for nine years, during which time he worked to create and support a district culture that provides an exciting academic atmosphere, he stated.
In the election for two seats at the Hidden Valley Community Services District (HVLCSD) Richard A. Pritchard is campaigning to take Linda Herndon”s or Judy Mirbegian”s seat.
Herndon was born and raised in Northern California and raised her family here as well. She retired to Hidden Valley Lake from a career in the Ag industry in 2003. She was appointed to the HVLCSD Board of Directors in 2009 to fill a vacancy and served as Board President for four years. She serves on the State Legislative Committee for the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) representing the district and region.
Herndon”s plan includes maintaining low rates through cost-control and innovation, ensuring the financial wellness of the district through solid financial policy and maintenance of adequate fiscal reserves and maintaining and updating water and sewer infrastructure to ensure continued delivery of high-quality, reliable service.
Mirbegian is the president of the board and supported the solar project at the Waste Water Treatment/Reclamation facility, which is bringing more than $60,000 in energy savings on the annual budget, she said. She also initiated board support for an independent salary study for district positions to keep salaries in line with regional industry standards while trying to maintain fair and equitable pay ranges for employees.
Pritchard stated that he is “running for Hidden Valley Lake CSD because I want to get involved and take on issues that are a concern for everyone who uses the services.”
Pritchard has lived in Hidden Valley Lake with his wife and two sons for more than four years and stated that if elected, he would do his best to make sure the water and sewer system is the best in the state.
Isaac Brambila is an associate editor for Lake County Publishing. Reach him at 263-5636 ext. 37 or at ibrambila@record-bee.com.
