Why they are running

Written by the candidates: Christy Lozano and Thomas Cole

Oct 19, 2024

CHRISTY LOZANO

I’m Christy Lozano and I’m running for Santa Barbara County Office of Education TA2. (If you are confused about TA’s, districts, and who you vote for, I have made a video called Election Confusion to help.)

Here are some facts you should know:

The County Board of Education and Superintendent of Schools oversees 67,000 students and 20 school districts. They have a $100 million dollar County budget and 550 employees. They oversee $1 billion in local districts’ spending, including Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) funds.
These funds supply enough tools to generate excellent outcomes.

In 2022 and probably still today, one half of all students are not proficient in English. Two-thirds of all county students are not proficient in math. And of the county’s own schools these statistics are even worse. In fact, they couldn't’ be worse. No student in the county’s own school is proficient in either English or math.
Zero.
2022 was the first year in 40 years that the Superintendent of School position had a challenger. The first item of business for the new challenger was to face a lawsuit to keep her name on the ballot.
I was successful in winning that lawsuit.

• The Board of Education is responsible for 1) district budget oversight, 2) teacher and administration training and credentialing and 3) directly running their own school and preschools.

School Board Members do not listen to the people who elected them. The job of the Board should be to listen, acknowledge, and respond to the concerns of their constituents.
I am someone who does and will listen.

Here’s a Little About Me

My teaching career began in 2004 and I spent 19 years teaching in Santa Barbara Unified School District, and one year at a private school. I taught physical education, leadership, junior-high World History and Physical Science and was Head Coach of SMHS Girls Soccer, among other sports.

A Few Proud Moments

I am a program builder. Each school I worked at (SBJH, SMHS, La Cumbre JH, McKinley and Cleveland Elementary, and DPHS, and finally Coastline Christian Academy), I would build fitness and sports programs. My programs were very structured, routine, rigorous, age-appropriate, rewarding, and had a component that required students to monitor their own progress using fitness and running cards so they could see their progress. This was an important element because it helped students be part of their own learning and inspired them to work hard.

In 2015 at McKinley, I developed a running program. Every day, the entire community – students, teachers, and parents – gathered on the blacktop readying students for a fun run. During one school year, I had 25 runners who completed 100 miles, 125 completed 75 miles, and the rest completed 50 miles.

My student, Felix, was the first student to reach the 100-mile goal and he was in first grade. He also was first to reach 100 miles in second and third grade. He will probably one day be in the Olympics. He was an amazing runner!

I met Spencer in first grade and over the course of a year he could barely make three laps (six was a mile). He was very slow. The next year he kept working but he would often cry when he had to do hard things in PE. In 3rd grade the light bulb went on for him when his older sister started to go to the gym. He became inspired to run and do PE. He came one day and said “Coach, I am going to do my best mile ever,” and he proceeded to run his fastest mile. I was proud of Spencer. I gave him the PE award that year. I knew how far Spencer had come.

The story of Melody is incredible and happened amazingly fast. She was a 7th grader who did not like to run. She was last in her grade, and at an age that is difficult. My steady and structured program was good for Melody, and she worked hard. She did not have natural athletic talent. She found her own self-will and discipline. She had challenging runs each week and took it upon herself to improve.

At the end of the school year, she was determined to finish her running card. On the last day, Melody was going to finish. She put her head down and ran. She ran for the entire 40 minutes: 38 laps, a total of 3.25 miles, a 5K!! I was stunned. The smile on her face was priceless. She received the PE award that year and I called it the “Goliath Award” because Melody slayed her giant!

Physical Education Was a Special Teaching Career

It gave me the privilege of watching kids physically grow and develop. Academic learning is sometimes harder to see. The beauty of watching a student grow is special because it happens through confidence and finding one’s own identity. I refer to it as “Mining for Gold” and it is gold that lies within each student. It is our job to help every student find and develop this gold.

We clearly have overseen very low academic results in Santa Barbara County Schools, and we have a very large budget to work with. We have many programs in place and have had many, many programs over the years. All we need are leaders who understand the process of learning and how to engage the learner. We need a leader that listens to concerns of students and responds accordingly.

I am – and will be – that kind of leader.

A vote for Christy Lozano is a vote for success at Santa Barbara County schools.

•••

THOMAS COLE

I’m Thomas Cole and I want to be your Congressman

I’m running because parents care about their children's education and so do I. Business owners care about their businesses and employees and so do I. People care about not murdering 800,000 fellow humans in Eastern Europe and elsewhere in proxy wars fought for globalists. So do I.

I’m running too because I believe borders should be closely monitored and controlled, not open to one and all and completely uncontrolled as Salud Carbajal believes. I believe many voters – Democrat, Republican, and Independent – are concerned with these issues too.

Common sense is in short supply and yet people are beginning to realize what the Democrat Party and Salud Carbajal are offering – from wide-open borders to Drag Queen Story Hours for elementary school children – does not make sense.

It doesn’t make sense for the U.S. to continually fight endless wars.

It doesn’t make sense to allow boys to compete against girls in athletics just because some boys think they’d like to be girls.

It doesn’t make sense to force school-age girls to share space with school-age boys in locker rooms and showers. Never did. Never will.

It doesn’t make sense that government should be allowed to spend whatever it wants, thereby creating the inflation that you must now pay for.

It's time for a serious change in our country’s direction.

I will be part of – and will seek to lead – that change.

Learn more at

thomascoleforcongress.com

Peace, Parents, Borders

Goals I will pursue through legislation and through votes and logrolling in Congress.

1) Restrict the U.S.-Mexico border to legal immigration only, which will help stem the flow of illicit narcotics, sex trafficking, and the flooding of our communities with millions of illegal border crossers. USA veterans and citizens first.

2) The war between Russia and Ukraine has cost our district over $450 million in accumulated federal debt. It would have been wiser to have spent that on housing for destitute veterans.

3) I support school choice. I will join the effort to end the stranglehold the teachers’ unions have over our public schools. I would also work to abolish DEI and all racially biased programs from our schools.

4) Women and girls should not be forced to compete against biological males. Men have no right to be in the girls locker rooms or on their sports teams.

5) I will support parents’ rights to keep transgenderism, child genital mutilation, schoolhouse porn, and drag shows out of the schools and away from their children.

6) I fully support clean oil and natural gas production policies that keep America energy independent. I believe energy independence will bring gas prices down.

7) I believe in free speech and the First Amendment.

8) I’d work to repeal FISA, prevent government agencies from spying on American citizens, and reform America's intelligence agencies.

9) I support freedom of choice on COVID vaccines and mask mandates, and I would oppose any new lockdowns of businesses or schools.

10) I will support the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution, which will help end the Federal Reserve’s endless money printing.

11) And, naturally, I am pro-business, pro farmer, pro rancher, pro-family.

I am a 30-year Santa Barbara County resident and founder of Analytics805 an election data research company and Conservative SuperPAC. I retired as a builder and property developer in 2002 and hold patents in wildfire abatement. I work regularly with fire departments and local governments to implement methods to capture local streams and stop wildfires from invading wild urban interface areas. Coledesignmontecito.com

I received my law degree from the California Institute of Law in Santa Barbara and have filed federal lawsuits against SBUSD on behalf of parents and First Amendment rights.

I am a “Pro Second Amendment, Pro Medical Freedom, Pro American Energy, and Pro-Peace candidate.”

And, oh yes, I have played both the violin and guitar professionally.

A vote for Thomas Cole to represent California’s 24^th District in the U.S. House of Representatives is a vote for peace, prosperity, a secure border, and good old Common Sense.

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Why they are running

Written by the candidates: Christy Lozano and Thomas Cole

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