Endorsement: Gary DeSmet for school board

For the first time in 12 years, the Sonoma Valley Unified School District board of trustees has a contested election, with incumbent Gary DeSmet facing a challenge by attorney John Kelly for the seat from the Sassarini Elementary School attendance area.

The winner in the Nov. 8 election will be looking ahead to a four-year term at a time when the District faces multiple challenges – from needed upgrades for facilities and technology to continued adaptation of recent state-mandated changes in curriculum and testing.

And that’s aside from dealing with the election results of the district’s proposed Measure E, a $120 million bond that, if passed, will find the district distributing bond revenue to ensure all campuses keep their students “safe, warm and dry” with infrastructure improvements and upgrades to facilities, some nearly 90 years old. And if Measure E doesn’t pass, trustees will continue to navigate what they call a 21st century education landscape with 20th century tools.

Kelly is a probate attorney, with kids attending Flowery Elementary School, though they currently live in the Sassarini area of the district. Kelly is passionate and brings no shortage of energy to his advocacy for Valley schools – he describes himself as having an “intense drive.” Kelly worked as a consultant with the Sonoma Valley Unified School District for 19 months and as the district’s special projects manager for four months, until the district and Kelly parted ways last May.

Kelly has also served on the City of Sonoma’s Community Services & Environment Commission as well as on the city’s Budget Advisory Committee.

If elected, Kelly says teacher pay, upgrading facilities and confronting “inequality” among the Valley’s schools would be his top priorities.

DeSmet, a retired teacher, has served on the school board since 2008 and has helped shepherd SVUSD through many changes in the past eight years, two of the biggest – the implementation of Common Core state standards and the Smarter Balanced assessments – in the last three years alone. DeSmet cites his advocacy of such initiatives as the Freshman Teams small learning communities, the “A – G” college-readiness program and Career Pathways as highlights of his tenure and says continued promotion of accelerated math, support for language learners and the push toward preschool for all will remain as top priorities.

We think both Kelly and DeSmet are fine choices for SVUSD voters.

Kelly cites falling test scores at Sassarini as the primary reason why change on the board is needed, though that can be a difficult argument to make. Trustees reside in various areas of the district, but each makes decisions for the district as a whole, not simply their attendance area. A trustee can no more be blamed for falling test scores at a single school than they can take credit when test scores rise. That being said, a trustee willing to actively engage their attendance area is certainly a good thing.

In his two terms on the board, DeSmet has been a passionate voice for topics that 10 years ago were considered “forward thinking,” but are now mainstream educational premises – such as universal preschool and third-grade literacy objectives. What makes DeSmet particularly valuable to SVUSD’s board is his many years as a teacher: he’s taught elementary, middle and high school – 17 years all told in Sonoma Valley Unified. He’s currently the only trustee with a background in education, which gives him invaluable insight into how district policy will affect classroom management and what support educators need to be successful.

If Measure E passes, the school district will be heading toward a true 21st century learning environment for its students – and a well-functioning board will be a vital element in ensuring its success. We see DeSmet as playing a key role in that.

We recommend Gary DeSmet for the Sonoma Valley Unified School District board.

– Jason Walsh, editor

– John Burns, publisher