Lisa Culbertson Simmons

My Commitment

I am dedicated to ensuring that all kids in this community receive the same quality of education that I expect for my own children.  With the influx of families like mine, our schools face challenging times in accommodating growth while maintaining excellent academics and vital enrichment.  I am no stranger to challenges, and will commit my experience to protecting our schools as a trustee on the Dixie School Board.

As a neighbor, former teacher, but most of all working mother of two young sons, I want what you want:  the best chance for my kids to be successful.  I want our schools to offer the highest educational and extracurricular opportunities to promote learning. To make this happen, our schools must be guided by an informed, committed leadership that listens to the community and appreciates our evolving needs - leaders with a vested, long-term interest in our students. 

As a part of that team, I would put my demonstrated passion and experience to work in maintaining Dixie's excellence.  Our children deserve the best.  I am committed to putting the needs of the kids and community foremost in making decisions for the future of our schools.

I moved to Marinwood in 2009 for it's natural beauty and close-knit community, but most importantly for the schools.  Growing up in Kentucky, I knew many kids who struggled just to attain a basic education and graduate.  I am proud to live where my kids can have a top-notch education attending local, public schools.  My sons attend Mary E. Silveira Elementary School, which has exceeded my expectations.  At a time when many schools are struggling to provide (and students to attain) a basic education, we are so fortunate to be within a district that continues to provide enrichment beyond the basic curriculum, and to promote essential life skills.

The quality offered by the Dixie School District may be public, but it is not free.  It has achieved its high rank through tremendous effort from the community both in time and dollars.  To maintain this quality moving forward, the district will need to make decisions that take into consideration long-range dynamics in light of major changes in 2013 on both the state and national level, effecting school funding and education objectives. 

Major finance reform passed in 2013 aims to achieve better local control and accountability of spending in California through the Local Control Funding Formula.  Also in 2013, the Core Curriculum institutes a national standard in teaching objectives that foreseeably impacts staff training and curriculum within our district as the nation seeks to equalize education. 

The influx of young families into the Dixie District further challenges our current infrastructure and requires resourceful and wise planning.  But it also creates an exciting opportunity to make the schools even better.  To do so requires school leaders to navigate successfully through these new fiscal and educational formulas while also planning to accommodate more students.  With the state instituting a local control model in school spending, our decision-makers must involve the community – by understanding local issues and their impact upon the future needs of the students, and by educating and listening to the families within our district.  Through this formal shift to local control, the District’s duty remains the same:  to provide the same educational opportunities to all students within the Dixie District. 

As a School Board member, I endeavor to stay current on education issues on a national, state and local level, and maintain foresight in making decisions that effect all Dixie families.  As a Basic Aid district, we are funded first and foremost by local tax-payers.  As elected representatives, we are brought to office by your vote.  As tax-payers and voters, you deserve to be informed and represented foremost. Most importantly, I will always put the needs of our students – all Dixie students – first.

Why I Can Do It

I am a career prosecutor in the Bay Area that has passionately advocated justice for vulnerable victims for over a decade.  As a prosecutor who has focused on crimes against women and children, I have a proven commitment to protecting kids.  Having a legal professional guiding policy is imperative given new legislative mandates for spending in our district moving forward.  I will put my legal skills to use in deciphering and furthering the best use of our school resources within these new legal strictures.  As a litigator who must know, collaborate, and succeed within a strict set of legal rules and standards, working on a team and being held accountable come second nature to me. 

Moreover, I know what it takes to teach without resources having taught overseas elementary through high school grades in developing countries. In learning to teach English as a second and foreign language, my program at Berkeley prepared me to be effective without basic resources – a lesson that has proven invaluable in appreciating the challenges faced by teachers and staff in our schools, as well as district planners:  how to achieve the best education without always having conventional or optimal resources.  It also motivates me to prioritize providing our classes with critical resources.

Throughout my 20’s, I volunteered in the Bay Area helping fostercare children to navigate the legal system, and with domestic violence services enabling traumatized families to secure necessary resources. 

I worked with blind students in law school, seeing first-hand their unique needs, and learning about disability law in the process. Having grown up with a mentally disabled sibling and another sibling who was physically impaired, I appreciate the challenges faced by atypical students but also their achievement potential when properly accommodated. 

I know what is required to accomplish goals on a Board.  For the past 4 years, I have served as a Board Officer for the San Francisco Municipal Attorney’s Association where I assisted in negotiating outstanding healthcare for employees with families.  At this stage in life, I hope to put my experience and hard work to service for our children.