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BACKGROUND

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Public Service & Volunteer Background
  • LASD School Board President, 2020

  • LASD School Board Member, 2016-2022

  • Santa Rita PTA President, 2013-14

  • Santa Rite PTA Committee Chair

    • Emergency Preparedness

    • Read-a-Thon

    • Book Fair

  • Member, Santa Rita Site Committee​​​​

I have been a member of the LASD Board of Trustees for the last six years, after being first elected in 2016 and then re-elected in 2018. Throughout that time, I have worked with my colleagues on the board to support the physical, mental, and emotional health of our students, teachers, staff and families as we navigate this unprecedented pandemic, while also supporting our students' learning and development. I have also worked to increase communication and transparency with our entire community, through regular board member office hours and many one-on-one conversations.

 

More specifically, my colleagues and I have worked with the Mountain View City Council to develop the landmark plan which will create a new school campus and two acre park to support the ongoing and much-needed housing growth in that part of the city and district. We have also had years of amicable facility agreements with Bullis Charter School, a welcome change to the prior years of contention.

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In 2020 I served as Board President, and was in the process of guiding the district and community through a long-needed update to the Facilities Master Plan before the pandemic forced an extended pause. Once the crisis did occur, thanks to clear board direction and our tireless administrators and dedicated teachers and staff, LASD pivoted to remote learning faster and better than many other districts in the county and state.

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My time on the Board has also seen significant improvement in the district's financial situation, even as we have been able to increase salaries in line with our surrounding districts. As a result, this year the district has taken over the cost of computers and tablets at our school sites, freeing up the PTAs to focus less on fundraising and more on rebuilding their communities. 

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But beyond those recent efforts, I have been active in the Los Altos community ever since Jocelyn and I moved here in 2006, including the schools, the community center, and other local issues. 

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For the last 12 years, I have been a dedicated volunteer at Santa Rita Elementary, Egan Junior High, and Los Altos High School. I served a variety of leadership roles in the Santa Rita PTA, including PTA President from 2013-2014. I've chaired many committees including Earthquake Preparedness, Book Fair, and Read-a-thon committee, and participated in many more. I've also volunteered for school activities that bring me in day-to-day contact with teachers and students such as Project Cornerstone, Science Olympiad, Living Classroom, Junior Olympics, and many more. I also served on the Measure N campaign committee which successfully passed the most recent bond measure.

 

As someone fortunate enough to have time to dedicate to local issues, I believe that I have a responsibility to serve my schools, my community, and my neighbors.

 

Special thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation for their LEAD program. Participating in the 2016 LEAD program, run by Claudia Coleman, gave me a great overview of the Los Altos community and the confidence to run for a seat on the LASD Board. 

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My grandfather, Reynold B. Johnson, moved his family to Palo Alto in 1952 to start up IBM's West Coast Laboratory. My family and I have seen a tremendous amount of change in this area over the intervening years. After growing up on the east coast myself, I attended Stanford from 1992-1997, earning bachelor's and master's degrees in Computer Science.

 

My wife Jocelyn Goldfein (a tech industry exec turned investor) and I moved to Los Altos in 2006 and feel lucky to have found such a wonderful community. 

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After ten years in enterprise software, I became a stay-at-home dad shortly after the birth of my second daughter in 2007. My children Maya and Madelyn have attended Santa Rita, Egan, and Los Altos High.

Personal Background
  • Stanford University

    • BS '96, MS '97

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