José Luis Rojas Villarreal
2023 Candidate for Cambridge School Committee

Home address:
19 Cornelius Way
Cambridge, MA 02141

Contact information:
phone: 617-460-9277
email: votejoseluis@gmail.com
website: www.votejoseluis.org

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CTE José; Luis Rojas Villarreal
19 Cornelius Way, Cambridge, MA 02141
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www.votejoseluis.org/donate

José Luis Rojas Villarreal
Integrity, Compassion and Long-term Thinking

It is my honor to humbly introduce myself and outline my platform as a candidate for re-election to the School Committee. In the next paragraphs, I will share my accomplishments during my first two terms, my personal and professional background and what I plan to focus on if given the opportunity to serve another term. I hope that you will read more and give me your #1 vote.

Life in Cambridge
My family and I have lived in Cambridge for over 20 years, and our sons attend the CRLS and Amigos public schools. Born outside the US, my wife and I came to the area for work opportunities and have stayed because of the supportive community that surrounds us. We are lucky to have two joyous boys, a family that loves us and friends from various backgrounds. The recent pandemic and political upheavals are showing us how in Cambridge we can come together as a community, to meet the challenges that we face to make Cambridge an even better place for all!

Why I am re-running?
I am running for re-election to the school committee because I care passionately about the value of a good education. My upbringing rooted my belief that everyone deserves the opportunities that come from education. In Mexico, my parents invested in my brother’s and my education. They saw it as the best “inheritance” they could give us. We first studied in English-Spanish bilingual schools in Mexico City. My parents then decided to risk their future and move us to the US-Mexico border to strengthen my brother’s and my English language skills. The education we enjoyed in Mexico and then in the US provided us with unimaginable opportunities. In my case, I obtained financial aid to study as a Mexican undergraduate student at the University of Pennsylvania. Years later, I earned a master's degree in Economic & Political Development at Columbia University.

As an immigrant, I have endeavored to help other people that have also made the decision to look for opportunities outside their home countries. As a volunteer I have looked for ways to elevate the voices of other immigrants, from teaching English to immigrants in the US and the UK, to serving as an interpreter in legal aid workshops. Having lived in and traveled to different countries in the Americas, Europe and Africa, I have learned to appreciate different cultures and work with people from various backgrounds.

Why should you vote for me?
Complementing my personal commitment for education, is my professional passion for working on community development finance. I currently work four days a week for LEAF, a Community Development Finance Institution, that finances and advices cooperatives in the US, manages a healthy food financing initiative for Massachusetts and works with small businesses in communities of color in the Commonwealth. Before that, I worked for banks (Boston Private), state agencies (Mass Growth Capital) and non-profits (Root Capital) leading community lending programs.

One final personal characteristic that I would like to share is my extensive experience working on public and private boards and committees. Before joining the School Committee, I was part of the School Council at my sons’ Cambridge public school for 7 years. I have also been a board member and finance committee chair for various cooperatives and non-profits (Equal Exchange, Creative Action Institute, ICA Group and LEAF). As part of these organizations, I have learned to work collaboratively with others, while also to challenge group think and come up with creative solutions, and to seek accountability from leadership / management.

Opportunities & Challenges of Next Election
If given the opportunity to return to the School Committee, my immediate and longer-term priorities, include the following:

• Work with other School Committee members to monitor, evaluate and support the implementation of the new district plan
  • Ensure School Committee has access to dashboard of key metrics and receives timely reports on meeting or not the district plan’s goals.
  • Provide socio-emotional support to students so they can thrive
  • Work so that students are career and/or college ready by graduation
• Support the successful roll out of universal pre-school (UPK) in the Cambridge
  • CPSD should provide high quality programs that serve as examples for other providers
  • Confirm that CPSD’s UPK admission process does not disrupt enrollment in elementary schools
• Gain support to undertake our first school committee self-assessment in recent memory

Starting this autumn, but knowing it will take more than a year, I will:

• Review multi-year construction & maintenance plan through the building & grounds subcommittee and in coordination with the City Council
  • Respond to demographic changes and implications of best use of facilities
  • Expand educational programs that work (and therefore are oversubscribed by our families)
• Improve relationship with unions and the community
• Budgets that focus on better use of existing resources, as well as considering additional spending on new initiatives to narrow opportunity gaps

These priorities are in addition to my commitment to ensure the School Committee has data-driven discussions and that we have equally high expectations for all of our children. Please go to my website for more details on these and other issues.

I hope that this information is helpful and that you will give me your #1 vote on November 7th! No candidate is safe in our rank choice voting system. Every vote counts!

Please contact me if you have questions about my platform or would like to support me.

Thank you for reading,

José Luis

Why José Luis?
His immigrant background brings a needed perspective. Has long track record working on school community issues. Experience working with people of diverse backgrounds. Quantitative and qualitative data-driven. Raising a bilingual and multicultural family.

CCTV candidate video (2023)

2021 Candidate Page     CCTV candidate video (2021)

2019 Candidate Page     CCTV candidate video (2019)