Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, September 12, 2020

15

Mountain View News Saturday, September 12, 2020 

SAVE THE 
DATES...

KIWANIS CLUB OF SIERRA MADRE INVITES 
YOU TO THE FIRST SIERRA MADRE 
CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATE FORUM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2020

2:00 PM

THE BANDSHELL IN MEMORIAL PARK

SOCIAL DISTANCING/MASKS REQUIRED

BRING YOUR OWN CHAIR

LIMITED SEATING

THE SIERRA MADRE CHAMBER OF 
COMMERCE AND THE SIERRA MADRE 
WOMEN'S CLUB WILL SPONSOR THE 
SECOND CANDIDATES FORUM ON 

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2020

4:00 PM

THE BANDSHELL IN MEMORIAL PARK

SOCIAL DISTANCING/MASKS REQUIRED

BRING YOUR OWN CHAIR

LIMITED SEATING


MEET THE CANDIDATES FOR PASADENA UNIFIED 
SCHOOL BOARD DISTRICT 6

CRYSTAL CZUBERNAT is a PUSD parent and the only 
school board candidate who is a Sierra Madre resident. A school 
enrollment and 
distance learning 
expert, Crystal has 
been endorsed by 
Sierra Madre Mayor 
John Capoccia, 
Sierra Madre Mayor 
Pro Tem Rachelle 
Arizmendi, Sierra 
Madre Council 
Member Gene 
Goss, and Sierra 
Madre's Pasadena 
City College Trustee 
Jim Osterling.

In addition, she 
has been endorsed 
by Sierra Madre's current PUSD Board Member Larry Torres and former 
PUSD Board Member and Sierra Madre resident Mikala Rahn.

Crystal stated “I am the only Sierra Madre resident and Sierra Madre 
Elementary parent on the ballot. Because of my expertise in increasing 
school enrollment and distance learning, I am the best choice to help 
guide Sierra Madre schools through the big changes in teaching practices 
and the use of technology the PUSD now faces.”

Crystal Czubernat has spent nearly twenty years working in education, 
both as a credentialed teacher and then as a School Enrollment 
and Distance Learning Expert. 

She also was a pioneer in working to establish online learning at multiple 
public high schools serving students who have fallen behind in 
school or were looking to get ahead and graduate early or simply desired 
what was then a non-traditional learning environment.

As Vice President for Enrollment Management for Pasadena’s Pacific 
Oaks College, Crystal Czubernat helped lead the school out of troubled 
times, bringing in large enrollment increases and growing their 
online school.

Crystal has a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education, two Master’s 
Degrees (Curriculum and Instruction and Counseling) and is completing 
requirements for a Ph.d in Organizational Leadership.

Currently, Crystal is the COO of The Christian Closet, an online telehealth 
therapeutic resource. 

Crystal Czubernat is the mother of twins, who attend PUSD’s Sierra 
Madre Elementary.


Like many 
constituents in the 
district 

TINA WU 

FREDERICKS 
is a product of 
public schools, 
which she believes 
are foundational to 
a democracy. Wu 
Fredericks has a 
degree in Mathematics 
from UC San Diego. 
She has taught at 
all three levels: 
elementary, middle 
and high school. 
As a credentialed 
classroom math teacher, she taught middle school and high 
school, then as a third grade teacher assistant for PUSD.

Wu Fredericks will take the COVID-19 crisis as an 
opportunity to reimagine education and advocate for:

. Smaller class sizes
. The highest safety standards for reopening schools
. Hiring more teachers and staff
. Librarian, nurse, custodian, and counselor in every 
school


Because Our Kids Are Worth It!

Wu Fredericks will continue to listen to her constituents. 
While speaking with voters during the campaign, she 
was heartened to learn that whether parents have grown 
children or kids in private school, they strongly believe 
in public schools. Smaller class size is important to all 
parents. As a former classroom teacher, she understands the 
difficulty in teaching a class of over 30 students. Reducing 
class size is her top priority and it will improve the quality 
of education, whether distance or in-person. 

After years of political advocacy work and organizing 
legislative visits on issues including healthcare, tenants 
rights, and environmental justice, Tina Wu Fredericks 
will direct her experience as an advocate toward fighting 
for improved education. She will work with fellow board 
members, teachers, and families to unite and organize 
them to fight for more funding to benefit students equitably 
because our kids are worth it.

United Teachers of Pasadena (UTP) - the bargaining 
unit for the Pasadena Unified School District’s teachers, 
counselors, and librarians has endorsed Wu Fredericks. 
She is also endorsed by the Los Angeles County Democratic 
Party (LACDP) and by a diverse coalition of district-
wide stakeholders endorsements including Muir alumni, 
film director, and PUSD parent Pablo Miralles, longtime 
educators Dr. Eddie Newman and Del Yarbrough, Sierra 
Madre Councilman John Harabedian, Pasadena City 
College Trustee Sandra Chen Lau, former ACT Chair Bill 
Hackett, and Progressive Asian Network for Action.

To join Tina Wu Fredericks campaign, make a contribution, 
and get more information about the campaign, go to www.
Tina4pusd.com

www.Tina4pusd.com

Campaign Manager (contact person): Jacque Robsinson 
(626) 789-4939

Twitter: @tina4pusd

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tina4pusd

Instagram: tina_4_pusd


PRISCILLA HERNANDEZ

Our children are the future 
leaders of our community. 
Providing them with a 
quality education is essential 
to ensuring a better future 
for all of us. That’s why I 
am running to represent 
Sierra Madre and Pasadena 
residents on the School Board 
in Trustee Area 6.

As an Executive with a 
successful Non-Profit 
Organization and a former 
campaign Deputy Education 
Coalition Director for the 
Governor of California, 
I have the leadership 
experience to 1) maintain our 
schools’ focus on academic excellence; 2) provide sound financial 
management with sensitivity of our school district funds; and, 3) 
develop innovative new educational resources to improve student 
learning. 

As a mother of two, I’ve experienced the difficulties that Covid-19 
has created for our families and our children. I want to be actively 
involved in the effort to return our students to a learning environment 
that is safe, stable and nurturing.

I am an action-oriented problem-solver. After watching the struggles 
of my son and other children with severe food allergies, I initiated an 
assembly bill, known as the “Zacky Bill”, to resolve this issue and 
provide better protection for our vulnerable students. 

As your School Board Trustee, I will use this same results-oriented 
approach to address the concerns of students, parents and residents.

In addition, I am the candidate in Trustee Area 6 with statewide 
education policy experience. My work in the broader field of 
education and government provides greater opportunities for our 
local schools to benefit from additional resources and funding.

The financial road ahead for our School District will be challenging, 
but we can succeed by putting the needs of our students first. I will 
use my years of business experience in budgeting to maximize the 
resources for essential educational programs and keep any budget 
cuts away from our classrooms.

www.priscillaforourschools.com


LOCAL ELECTION COVERAGE

On November 3, 2020 voters across the country will either cast 
ballots by mail or physically go to the polls in some have already 
dubbed, "the most important election of our lives". That may be 
very true especially on the National level. However, the election of 
capable individuals locally is equally as important. 

In the State of California alone, there are more than a dozen ballot 
measures for citizens to vote on. In the city of Sierra Madre 
residents will go to the polls and select three people from a field of 
eight to sit on our city council, vote on whether or not to elect or 
appoint our City Clerk, vote for our City Treasurer and select the 
representative to sit on the Pasadena Unified School Board.

 

The Mountain Views News will do our best to provide our readers 
with good, reliable, objective information on all. For the ballot 
measures we will provide you with the Pros and Cons of each 
measure.

In addition, each week, as we have done in the past, we will profile 
the candidates and give each of the candidates the opportunity 
to introduce themselves to our readers by answering the following 
questions:

 1. Why are you running for City Council (or the 

 PUSD Board)?

 2. What are you going to do for Sierra

 Madre?

 3. How do you plan on accomplishing

 your goals?

All candidates are being asked to answer the same questions and 
their answers will be published unedited.

The schedule for the candidates responses will be as follows:

Saturday, September 12, 2020 PUSD District 6 Candidates

Saturday, September 19, 2020 SM City Council Candidates

 2 Year Seat

Saturday, September 26, 2020 SM City Council Candidates 

 4 Year Seat

Saturday, October 3, 2020 California Ballot Propositions

. A separate letter has been sent to each candidate asking them to

participate.

In addition to the candidate spotlights, we will attempt to cover 
the various forums sponsored by local organizations. 

Our reporting on this election will be as fair and objective as possible. 
However, please keep in mind that our columnists are always 
free to share their opinions. Their opinions are their opinions and 
may or may not reflect the position of the paper. 

This is true in all things, not just this election.

Finally, we will also provide for you the calendar of important 
dates regarding the election. It is our goal to do whatever we can to 
help you make an informed decision on November 3, 2020.

Susan Henderson, Publisher and Editor

MILENA ALBERT

The reason I am running is 
simple. I campaigned back 
in 2007 when my son was in 
kindergarten and my other 
two children were about to 
start school. I I've learned a 
lot about issues and was ready 
to tackle them as a board 
member, but I did not win. 
Fast forward 13 years, my 
three kids have gone through 
a total of six schools and have 
repeatedly fell further behind 
every year. Last year my 
daughter was promoted from 
middle school to high school 
with four Fs. Something I did not anticipate to happen. I 
looked for academic intervention to help her for three years, 
but that never happened. My research on the district academic 
progress data revealed that many other students were 
not fairing better then my three children. 

I've been known as a problem fixer my entire adult life. As a 
chair of the Parent Policy Council I worked with staff to address 
problem areas. It was Head Start that motivated me to 
seek a career in public service. In my 12 years as a commissioner 
for the City of Pasadena, I contributed by finding most 
effective solutions. The same goes for my work as a public 
administrator with the City of Los Angeles. Yet, I could not 
help my children because I was not part of the decision making 
team. Hence, my decision to run for the PUSD Board of 
Education. I want to be in a place where I can made a difference 
for all students. 

http://www.milena4pusdkids.com


MEASURE P: The Pasadena City 
Services Protection Measure

On November 3rd, Pasadena residents will have a choice. Measure 
P allows for Pasadena voters to decide whether to maintain the 
longstanding utility transfer to the general fund. The elimination 
of these funds would result in the annual loss of approximately $18 
million that support emergency 911 response, fire, paramedic, public 
health programs for the community, senior services, homelessness 
and housing programs, street repairs, and other general services and 
programs.

As a full-service city, Pasadena relies on dependable, locally generated 
funds to effectively deliver quality City services to its residents, 
despite unforeseen emergencies and natural disasters. The City of 
Pasadena has experienced a $30 million loss due to the COVID-19 
pandemic. Despite those losses in revenue, the City used reserve 
funds, deferred infrastructure projects, and implemented other cost 
saving measures to maintain its current emergency response to the 
pandemic, public health programs, and critical services benefiting 
Pasadena residents and businesses during this unprecedented crisis.

If the Pasadena City Services Protection Measure does not pass, the 
loss of approximately $18 million annually from the Light & Power 
Fund transfer will result in significant reductions. The reductions 
would impact emergency 911 response; fire, paramedic, public 
health, and senior services; homeless programs; street repairs; and 
the ability to maintain clean, healthy, and safe neighborhoods.

The Pasadena City Services Protection Measure is not a new tax, it 
does not raise taxes, and it does not raise utility rates—the charter 
amendment is meant to simply protect current funding levels that 
provide the services residents receive today.

If approved by a majority of Pasadena voters, the measure will also 
require annual independent audits with public disclosure, reduce and 
limit the Light & Power Fund transfer to not more than 12 percent, 
previously as much as 16 percent; and will be under local control 
with monies spent benefiting Pasadena residents and businesses.


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com