José Luis Rojas Villarreal
2019 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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José Luis Rojas Villarreal is a new candidate this year.

José Luis Rojas Villarreal
Passion - Community - Leadership

It is my honor to humbly introduce myself and outline my platform as a candidate for School Committee. In the next paragraphs, I share my personal and professional background, and what I will bring to the school committee. I hope that you will read more and give me your #1 vote.

Background
My family and I have lived in Cambridge for more than 15 years, and our two sons attend a public school. Born outside the US, my wife and I came to the area for work opportunities and have stayed because of the supporting community that surrounds us. We are lucky to have two joyous boys, a family that loves us and friends from various backgrounds. As a child, I never imagined that I would live in a place like Cambridge. It is a great city and I know we can make it better, which is why I am running!

I am running for school committee because I care passionately about the importance of education. My belief that all of our kids deserve the opportunities that come from education started with my upbringing. In Mexico, my parents invested in my brother’s and my education. They saw it as the best “inheritance” they could give him and me. 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 my brother and me 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.

My professional experience, along with my personal background, make me well suited to be an effective school committee member. For example, as an Amigos School parent, I have been a School Council member for 7 years including Co-Chair. As finance committee chair for cooperative and non-profit boards (Equal Exchange, Creative Action Institute, ICA Group and LEAF), I have learned to challenge group think and come up with creative solutions, and to hold leadership and management accountable for success.

In addition, through 20 years experience and leadership in community finance (Root Capital, Mass Growth Capital, Boston Private and LEAF), I developed skills to communicate / collaborate with people of diverse backgrounds; from people from low-income communities to corporate board rooms. I learned to value various and appreciate all cultures by working in the Americas, Africa and Europe; including working with organizations and business in Massachusetts. I arrived at solutions with my clients through quantitative and qualitative analysis; from discussing financial statements of worker-owned business, to understanding a community’s socio/economic challenges and opportunities.

Equally important in earning. your #1 vote is that I am dedicated to investing significant time to be an involved, active and engaged School Committee member, by reducing my personal job to part-time!

Top Priorities

• Closing the Opportunity Gap
• Assessing Systems Intended to Support Learning of all Students
• Right-sizing School Capacity
• Including More Diverse Array of Voices in Decision Making
• Making the School Committee More Effective

Top Opportunities and Challenges Facing CPSD Today

Some of the top opportunities and challenges that the outcome of the next election will present include changes in the School Committee composition and the ongoing implementation of the District’s new strategic plan. The new make-up of the School Committee will impact the District’s ability to reach its goals and provide joyful rigorous learning in a culturally competent way for each student. If elected, I will ensure the School Committee has data-driven discussions. I will continue to push for equally high standards for all of our children. I will support the identification and implementation of best practices to drive positive change in the District.

The next School Committee will need to support the implementation of the District’s new strategic plan. If elected, I will request more plan specifics to ensure the implementation process is clearer, well understood and supported by all stakeholders. With that information, I will work with other School Committee members to monitor and evaluate the implementation of the strategic plan, encourage and support its success, and make any necessary changes.

The following is brief list of issues facing the district and my ideas to address them:

Closing the Opportunity Gap, Meeting the Needs of All Students

• Early education is key. Pre-school and JK matter.
• I will support equitable access to Jr. Kindergarten through participation of the School Committee and City Council in a joint task force.
• Bilingual education has been shown to address the opportunity gap and provide other learning benefits.
• I will support the expansion and/or addition of more bilingual immersion schools.
• Cambridge’s Montessori school has provided the highest achievement growth for all subgroups.
• I will support a study to explore the setup of another Montessori school.
• Summer and tutoring programs work.
• I will work to improve access to summer and tutoring programs to those who need them the most.

Curriculum and Programs &
Grades & School Department Administration and Superintendent

Assessing Systems Intended to Support Learning of all Students

• Testing has led to improved standards, but there are challenges - for example, student anxiety, teaching to the test, etc. Student achievement should be assessed using a combination of measures, of which test results are only one. As has been pointed out by other School Committee members, additional measures could include graduation rates, student attendance and participation in extracurricular activities.
• I will support engaging learning environments and culturally responsive teaching practices, rather than focusing only on testing students.
• I will support the compilation of multi-layered data to show how student achievement is being measured and assessed.
• I will challenge the District to explain what they are doing to improve the schools that are truly missing the mark on overall student achievement.

School Department Budget and Capital Needs &
Controlled Choice, Student Assignment Policies

Right-sizing School Capacity

• While new schools have been built, classroom capacity has remained virtually flat while Cambridge's student population has increased more than expected. Real estate construction is exploding around the city, particularly in East Cambridge and Alewife,
• I will build the District’s ability to improve forecasting of student enrollment patterns and school capacities.
• I will push the District to assess the need for new schools given Cambridge's development.
• I will encourage the School Committee to review the maintenance programs for the existing schools, to ensure that pupils are learning in a safe environment.

Parent Involvement, Student Input and School Councils

Including More Diverse Array of Voices in Decision Making

• Some parents feel they are not listened to, based on their socio-economic background, their race, their immigration status, etc.
• I will go to a School Council meeting in each school (17 schools) over my 2-year term, to meet parents and hear their opinions.
• More student voices need to be included in the decision making at the high school.
• I will meet with high school student leaders to hear their opinions and bring them back to the School Committee.

Making the School Committee More Effective

• School Committee members should respectfully agree to disagree when needed, while at the same time working to support higher expectations for each student and joyful / vigorous learning for all.
• I will develop code of conduct with School Committee members to encourage more respectful, productive and impactful discussions.
• The School Committee has accomplished a lot. But it must continue to address the opportunity gap.
• I will ensure the School Committee holds the administration accountable when achievement targets are missed.
• I will request explanations for those short-comings and an analysis of lessons learned, in order to ensure strategies are adjusted to better address the opportunity gap.

I hope that this information is helpful and that you will give me your #1 vote on November 5!

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

And remember, if you are looking for passion, community and leadership in School Committee, Vote #1 for José Luis Rojas Villarreal!

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 (2019)