She wants to be the representative of district 7 that encompasses the southern neighborhoods and the Los Angeles coast.
Encouraged by the importance of the education system in the training of minors as their seven-year-old daughter Rosalinda, Patricia Castellanos decided to contend for District 7 of the board of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), whose elections are this Tuesday, March 3 March.
“My daughter attends a public school, and that is one of the things that motivated me the most,” says Patricia, a bilingual family mother, who has a long history of working (for at least 20 years) as an organizer and advocate for Low income communities.
If the election is won, its focus would be to fight for the district to receive the resources it needs from the state and at the federal level, as well as seek more investment in the public education system.
“I know that the reducation of the number of students per classroom It is a topic that has already been talked about a lot, and it is already working, but it is very slow and I would like to work on that because it improves the learning environment, ”he observes.
Also want to find ways and structures for parents to participate and have more access to the district in making decisions about the education of their children, especially families that do not handle English well.
"We especially need to support families with children with special needs more, and create art and music programs, as well as guide them in the vocational opportunities that exist."
Another approach would be to increase the first line of support for students, so that each school has a nurse, classroom assistants, counselors and librarians; and increase the number of employees classified as teacher assistants, cafeteria workers and vigilantes.
Daughter of Mexican immigrant parents, Patricia grew up in the city of Carson, but has lived in San Pedro for 17 years.
He wants to represent District 7 in the LAUSD board, which includes the cities of Carson, Lomita, Gardena, Harbor City, Watts, Wilmington, San Pedro and part of southern Los Angeles where “more than 40% of voters are Latino "
According to its campaign office, in District 7, more than 55% of the students are children of immigrants and on average, 82% qualify for free or reduced price lunches due to the economic situation in their homes.
“I see my family reflected in the thousands of families that send their children to our public schools. They depend on us and their hope is that their children have a better future through a quality public education. ”
Patricia says she is the only candidate with a proven track record in building coalitions with unions and community groups to develop policies in favor of workers, which create good jobs for the middle class and expand public support for schools.
“Personally, I know that education is the primary thing. My parents taught me that it is one of the paths to success and progress", it states.
Currently, she works with supervisor Sheila Kuehl in a county effort to create economic opportunities that help the most unprotected communities.
He has received the backing of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, the United Teachers Union of Los Angeles, the 99th place of the United Education Workers, the United Farm Workers Union, and leaders such as Senator María Elena Durazo , the president of the Assembly, Anthony Rendón, the president of the Council of Los Angeles, Nury Martínez and the leader Dolores Huerta.
“I feel optimistic that I can win because we have come very close to parents and teachers who want to see a change, and I have been touring neighborhoods, knocking on doors, talking on the phone with voters and holding meetings with groups to meet and greet them,” he says. .
