Vote Yes on Measure W

        We write in support of Measure W, the AUHSD parcel tax proposal on November’s ballot.

    The undersigned signatories have had the opportunity to meet with Superintendent John Nickerson, and staff members, to go over budget developments and the factors driving costs.   We have also had a chance to review the cuts that have been made over the past two years, and our roundtable group asked numerous questions regarding District matters/issues, some that have been controversial these past several years.

    We had a very constructive exchange, and because of our time spent, can state conclusively that the failure of this modest tax will result in a less robust education for the high school youth of our community.  It is a concrete fact that Sacramento purposely funds the students in our District to a lesser extent than is the case in a great many districts throughout California.  It is also a fact that families continue to move to our towns, believing that their children will experience a very strong public education, through 12th grade.

    Please give thoughtful consideration to a YES vote on Measure W.
 
Bill Fraser, Lafayette
Jean Follmer, Lafayette
Adam Gilberd, Lafayette
Dan McCormick, Lafayette
Mario DiPrisco, Lafayette
Nick Waranoff, Orinda
    
A student’s perspective of Measure W

    I am a junior at Miramonte High School, and I support the proposed Measure W Parcel Tax for the Acalanes Union High School District. As someone who is experiencing the effects of our school's budget deficit, I write this with the hope that our community will come through for us.

    Throughout the budget cuts of the past two years, we have heard the voices of teachers and parents, but we have yet to hear how the $4.2 million loss has directly affected students.  As my sophomore year was wrapping up last May, suddenly there were rumors that we wouldn't be able to take a 7th period class, that we wouldn’t have a librarian, that my counselor would have to leave: and that deeply concerned me. 

    But sadly, none of those were rumors. Unfortunately, AUHSD has had to cut our individual librarians, meaning that when I have to study early in the morning for a test, I can’t. When I want to use my study period in the library, I can’t. The students, including myself, who are no longer allowed in the library funnel into the Wellness Center, threatening to reduce its effectiveness to the students who depend on it.  Even a small shift in our high schools' balance affects every student on campus. The loss of even one school counselor has transferred an incredible workload on to the others; yet Lamorinda students are still expected to graduate and attend elite universities, to test high, succeed in our ambitions. And now we must do all of this with less support, making it even more challenging.

    Most of us sitting in our classrooms cannot yet vote, but we will be the ones forced to live with the consequences if Measure W does not pass. Measure W, $168 per parcel, is part of the price to protect the opportunities and resources that our students need to succeed. Without the passage of Measure W, our district will be forced to cut millions more, threatening more than just our libraries.

    Vote YES on Measure W on November 3.

Lorelei Keenan
Miramonte Class of 2028

Vote Yes on Measure W to help Orinda thrive        

    We moved to Orinda in 2018, and in that time this community has shown me, over and over, how deeply we care about our schools. My family has three kids moving through them right now— a seventh-grader at Orinda Intermediate and an 11th and ninth-grader at Miramonte.

    As so many have experienced over the years, Miramonte isn’t just a school. It’s a touchstone and gathering point for this whole town—Friday night football games, theater productions, speech and debate competitions, spirit weeks, a tradition of teaching excellence, and community events that bring families and neighbors together. It’s also helped so many students go on to incredible next chapters of their lives, and it continues to be a draw for families across the state, even the country. Simply put, when Miramonte thrives, Orinda thrives.

    But so much of what’s great about the school is now at risk, as funding shortfalls threaten cherished programs, staffing, even how many periods the school can offer each day. We aren’t in this situation because the district is spending carelessly. We have a revenue problem. Like our sister schools across the district, Miramonte has already absorbed real cuts as the district tightened its budget—fewer counselors, limited library coverage, and reduced course offerings. If we don’t take action now, more cuts are coming.

    In Measure W, we have an opportunity to help Miramonte, and by extension, Orinda, continue to thrive. 

    This is the moment for all of us—parents, grandparents, and neighbors without kids in our schools—to make ourselves heard. Talk to your neighbors and share what Measure W is: a single $168 annual payment, funds that will stay local and be independently audited on a regular basis, with a full exemption available for seniors. Then talk to them about what Measure W will mean for our students, our community, and our future.

    Our schools don't run on goodwill alone. They run on funding, and that funding is now up to us.

    Please join me in spreading the word between now and November 3, and in voting Yes on Measure W, for the benefit of us all. 

Vinita Anantavat
Orinda City Lead, Yes on Measure W
Orinda
 
K-8 parents: Measure W affects your kids too 

    As a mom of three kids at Happy Valley Elementary and former president of the Happy Valley Parents Club, I know the value our schools add to our community. And as a Measure H volunteer, I was inspired by how our community came together to support the local funding that makes our schools so exceptional. During that campaign, I learned a lot about our schools' funding needs, and that those needs don't stop at elementary school.

    That's why I'm asking fellow elementary parents not to sit this one out, even though Measure W provides funding to our high schools. It's tempting to think it doesn't apply to us yet, but it does.

    The cuts already underway at our high schools have come fast — elective classes have disappeared, and school librarians have been lost. Those losses are real, and they can't be made up through community fundraising alone. That's exactly why a new parcel tax is necessary, both to reverse some of what's already been cut and to prevent deeper cuts still to come.

    Here's the part that matters most for families like mine: Measure W runs for eight years. That's a span long enough that nearly every one of our current K-8 students will walk through the doors of high school before it expires. This isn't someone else's problem to solve. It's ours.

    And if Measure W doesn't pass, the damage won't just be temporary — teachers will leave for districts that can pay competitively, courses will be eliminated, and programs will be cut. Rebuilding takes far longer than cutting does. That means by the time today's Happy Valley students reach ninth grade, they could be inheriting a high school system that's been hollowed out for years, with no quick fix in sight.

    We showed up for Measure H. Let's show up for Measure W too.

    Please join me in voting Yes on Measure W.

Jesse Abhyankar
Former President, Happy Valley 
Parents Club
Lafayette
 
Our schools are the foundation of a thriving community — Vote Yes on Measure W

    We are a mother- and daughter-in-law and between us we represent more than 50 years living and working in this community. As real estate agents we see firsthand that the No. 1 reason families move to Lamorinda is our schools. Our high schools rank in the top 5% nationally, and that reputation is a huge draw among home buyers. "How are the schools?" is always one of the first questions we get from prospective buyers.

    So we know that maintaining exceptional schools is key to keeping our community thriving.

    As parents, we've also seen just how important our schools are to our community. Karen saw firsthand how key our schools were to her own children's success, and she put in years giving back: two terms as president of the Orinda Union School Board, a seat on the board of the Educational Foundation of Orinda, co-president of the Del Rey and Miramonte Parents' Clubs, and a seat on the Miramonte Boosters Club board.

    With a sophomore at Miramonte and a sixth grader at Orinda Intermediate, Hillary sees every day what well-funded schools provide to students: Enriching electives, small classes, librarians, guidance counselors, the list goes on. 

    Measure W is not the result of a spending problem, it's a revenue problem. The Acalanes Union High School District is one of the lowest-funded districts in California per student. On top of that, the district has cut more than $4.2 million from its budget over the last two years, proof of real fiscal responsibility. Consider this: the last parcel tax that benefited the district passed 16 years ago, with no built-in adjustment for inflation, so it has since lost about 36% of its purchasing power. 

    Measure W is a modest safeguard to protect all that: $168 a year, all funds staying local, mandatory audits, and a full exemption for seniors.
    Please join us in voting Yes on Measure W for our students and our community and to preserve the school excellence we all are proud of. 

Karen Murphy
Orinda Union School Board [1986-1994]
Education Foundation of Orinda [1984-1995]
Hillary Murphy
Orinda resident of 16 years, mother of two Orinda students

Help our school libraries and more with Measure W

    Many of my fondest memories were at the Campolindo High School’s library. Debate meetings were hosted there, with resources stacked all around us. I would find books I’ve never seen before, discovering new stories that I never would’ve found otherwise.

    What I wish is for the future generations to be able to experience that too. Our library, now without adequate funding, has hope with Measure W. The AUHSD schools offer many opportunities and resources such as the library, but due to funding shortages, these programs are at risk. As a senior at Campolindo, the counselors are spearheading my process in getting into the college I want, a right that every generation of high schoolers should have.
 
    By voting YES on Measure W, we can ensure everyone has the same opportunities that I had. Protecting programs, library resources, and counseling keeps our schools’ capability in supporting students. 

    Measure W will generate millions of dollars annually that are reserved solely for the schools, protecting our libraries, counseling, and more. By voting YES, you can actively participate in the process of creating the best future for the next generation. I hope everyone can have the access that I have had to the full potential and joy that our high schools have to offer.

Mailena Yang
Campolindo High School Senior

Pamela West for CCC Board of Education

    As 40-year residents of the Lamorinda community, we are writing to strongly endorse Pamela West for the Contra Costa County Board of Education.

    Our schools face real challenges, including persistent learning gaps, underfunded budgets and programs, insufficient support for teachers and the mandate to prepare students for a rapidly changing world. We have known and worked with Pam for decades and have witnessed how she instilled in her own children a drive for a better life through education. She will bring the right mix of personal experience as a parent and practical business judgment to address the issues faced by our county’s school districts.

    Pam’s advocacy for excellence in education was on display during her tenure on the Orinda School Board. Her shameless advocacy, a strong work ethic and her tireless pursuit for more education funding, make her well suited for the County Board. We are confident Pam will be a steady, reasonable voice for excellence and accountability in serving the youth, administrators and taxpayers of our community.

Nathan & Melanie Bell
Moraga

Campolindo Needs Our Support — Vote Yes on Measure W

    As president of the Campolindo Parents Club, I see every day what our school means to this community, and I also see, up close, what happens when funding doesn't keep pace with what our students need.

    Let me be clear about something: this is not a spending problem. It's a revenue problem. The Acalanes Union High School District has already tightened its budget significantly, cutting $4.2 million over the past two years. At Campolindo, that has meant reduced course offerings, a librarian now shared across all four district campuses instead of dedicated to our students, and thinner academic counseling at exactly the time our students need more guidance, not less. Even after absorbing those cuts, the district remains one of the lowest-funded in California per student. Our schools haven't been careless with money. They've been squeezed by a funding structure that simply doesn't provide enough to begin with.

    At $168 a year, Measure W is a modest price to pay for keeping our schools exceptional. All funds stay local, seniors can receive a full exemption, and independent audits are required.

    Our school has given so much to our families. Now it's our turn to give back.

    Please join me in voting Yes on Measure W.

Ann de Villiers
President, Campolindo Parents Club 
Moraga

Steve Cohn for MOFD District 3

    Steve has been an Orinda resident for 40+ years. His 50-year career in finance and project management, and graduate experience in wildfire and transportation planning, make him an ideal candidate for this important position.

    He has spent many years in steadfast pursuit of investment of MOFD reserves into proactively applying wildfire mitigation practices strongly backed by extensive research and application. The expected outcome of these practices will be more fire safe communities across all MOFD districts, and better informed and accurate insurance risk modeling, reducing the number of households losing fire coverage.

    I believe Steve will be a strong and committed presence on the MOFD board, and bring a needed level of fiscal expertise and technical acumen to this governing body.

Please cast your vote on Nov. 3 for Steve Cohn, MOFD District 3.

Susan Lindell Radke
Orinda 

Elect Pam West for County Board of Education

    We are proud to support Pam West for the County Board of Education to bring experienced, thoughtful leadership and a fresh voice to the important decisions impacting our schools and communities. We’ve known Pam for many years and know she is the best person to serve. Pam has previous experience serving on the school board of her town. Pam has been the excellent leader of a large organization specifically for high school aged young people from her church. We also know Pam to be a terrific mother of four children of her own all of whom have excelled in education and professional lives. Backed by teachers, parents, and community leaders alike, Pam is dedicated to ensuring every student thrives.   

Shelley and Bob Packer
Lafayette