Community Activist Selected for State Board

Gov. Pete Wilson has appointed a prominent San Gabriel Valley activist to the State Board of Education.

Marina Tse, 47, a special education teacher in Duarte, has served on several education organizations in her 20-year teaching career, including the state’s Special Education Advisory Commission from which she will have to resign when she begins her four-term on the board next week.

Tse is a member of the Los Angeles County Children’s Planning Council and the Chinese American Education Assn.

She was appointed last month by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to be chairwoman of the Los Angeles County/Taipei County Friendship Committee. Tse also is president of the Monterey Park Library board.

As one of three new appointees to the 11-member board, Tse will help develop and adopt curriculum and allocate federal and state funds.

The unpaid position will afford her more opportunities to pursue her goal of improving education, Tse said. “I applied [for the board] because I saw that I could do more on [the board] than on the commission,” Tse said.

Tse said she would like to raise California’s academic standards.

Born and raised in China, she was educated there and at Cal State Los Angeles and USC. She said educators in this country have failed children by placing an emphasis on fostering self-image over improving skills.

“It’s not about self-image when we move them up to the next grade level before they can read or write,” she said.

Tse said teachers should be encouraged to evaluate their students more carefully and not be afraid to hold children back a grade level until they have mastered the skills necessary to advance.

“There is also a [poor] attitude” among students today, said Tse, who would like to see more respect for teachers in the classroom.

She said teachers in the United States must be strict to maintain competitiveness with other countries.

This perspective, along with her definitive goals and strong community background, makes Tse “an outstanding addition to the board,” said Steve Tatum, a spokesman for the governor’s office.