Students’ satisfaction is No. 1 concern to incumbent

Molly Shore

School board incumbent Elena Hubbell, campaigning for her fourth

term, said every decision she makes as a board member is prefaced by

what is best for children.

“My No. 1 concern is children and students,” Hubbell said.

The senior board member is proud of the progress the board has

made in the years she has served on it.

“All schools are near the 800 [Academic Performance Index] mark

set by the state, and one school already meets it,” Hubbell said.

The Academic Performance Index measures the performance of

individual schools and establishes growth targets for improvement.

But she hastens to add she is not content to stay at the 800 mark;

she wants the schools to exceed that number.

However, Hubbell said, testing is not the only way to assess

children. Teachers working one-on-one with students to see how they

are progressing is an important element of the curriculum.

If she wins another four-year term, Hubbell said one of her

personal goals is to raise teachers’ salaries and make the district

competitive in recruiting and keeping top educators.

Hubbell’s son is a teacher in Santa Clarita, and she said she

understands how difficult it is to live on an educator’s income.

Completion of the schools’ renovations is another goal. Hubbell is

pleased the Phase I renovations at both high schools were completed

on time and stayed within budget. Hubbell said the district cannot

solve its budget problems alone.

“It’s extremely critical that we work with our legislators. We

absolutely must find a way to mitigate the encroachment of mandated

programs,” she said.

Special-education programs mandated by the state cut into the

district’s budget by $1.5 mil- lion to $2 million, Hubbell said.