Why I am running for Santa Clara County Governing Board?
I am running for this seat because we need trustees who loudly advocate for students in our local community and Sacramento. We need teacher trustees who have real-life experience in the classroom and fully appreciate how setting priorities for student achievement drives the budget process. We need trustees who know that implementing research-based educational strategies can increase student academic performance. We need trustees who are dedicated to promoting equity for all students, willing to build community partnerships to improve schools, determined to strengthen and expand after-school programs, and ready to advocate for strong public schools with community-elected boards. We need trustees who embrace the responsibility of defending our vulnerable, high-needs students.
School board trustees must prioritize students, families, and the community by promising accountability and direction to ensure our county schools offer first-rate educational opportunities for academic, emotional, and social success.
About Jyl Lutes
Jyl Lutes is a 3rd-generation San Jose native. She attended local public schools in Campbell and San Jose, and graduated from San Jose State University. She earned her California Teaching Credential and taught for nearly 30 years in the California Public School System.
Jyl's husband David began work for the County of Monterey in Salinas in the 1990's, and Jyl was elected to the Alisal Union School Board of Trustees. In 1998 she was elected for the first of 5 consecutive terms on the Salinas City Council, also serving as Mayor ProTem, chair of the Transportation Agency of Monterey County, the Solid Waste Authority, and on a variety of regional agencies and local commissions including the Fort Ord Reuse Authority, the Salinas Planning Commission, and the City Budget and Educational committees. Jyl was also the Salinas delegate to the California League of Cities and the California School Boards association.