{"id":2418,"date":"2020-02-06T10:30:01","date_gmt":"2020-02-06T17:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandiegonewsdesk.com\/?p=2418"},"modified":"2020-02-06T12:14:55","modified_gmt":"2020-02-06T19:14:55","slug":"an-interview-with-camille-harris-candidate-for-san-diego-unified-school-district","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandiegonewsdesk.com\/?p=2418","title":{"rendered":"An Interview with Camille Harris, Candidate for San Diego Unified School District"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tell us about yourself?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I was born and raised in San Diego and <\/span>graduated from Sweetwater High School. <\/span>I then attended Azusa Pacific University where I earned a Master\u2019s degree in Educational Counseling and a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership. <\/span>One of my first jobs was a counselor at Horton Elementary School in Chollas View. <\/span>Today, I\u2019m a professor at both Point Loma Nazarene College and San Diego Miramar College where I mentor and supervise students who are pursuing careers as school counselors. <\/span>Most importantly, I have a wonderful son who\u2019s the light of my life<\/span><\/p>\n

Why did you decide to run for school board?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m running for a variety of reasons, the main being that our educational system has been denigrated, and our kids aren\u2019t receiving the support they need from the school system. As a result, too many of our kids are graduating unprepared for the world, without any idea what they want to do. <\/span>So many are lost, and I want to be their advocate and show them the way. <\/span>As a counselor, that\u2019s what I\u2019ve done. <\/span>As for San Diego Unified, I don\u2019t want to just <\/span>reform<\/span><\/i> it, I want to <\/span>transform<\/span><\/i> it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Student achievement is unacceptably low. Half \u2014let me repeat that \u2014<\/span>half<\/span><\/i> of our students are not proficient in English or Math. <\/span>With everything San Diego has going for it\u2014our high tech companies, award-winning universities, etc.\u2014San Diego Unified should be the epicenter of academic achievement in America. We should accept nothing less.<\/span><\/p>\n

Early in my career, our schools offered parent education classes, where they learned how to help their kids with homework and were provided with the opportunity to learn English. <\/span>Those are gone and we need to bring them back, a<\/span>nd we need leaders who understand the importance of a child\u2019s home life. <\/span>That\u2019s just as important to their success as anything we do.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a counselor, if I thought a child was having problems at home, I\u2019d pay their parents a visit and we\u2019d get things worked out. We\u2019d get them the help they need: mental health counseling, substance abuse programs, etc. <\/span>Teachers need more support too. Never should we have teachers digging into their own pockets to buy basic school supplies for their kids.<\/span><\/p>\n

The facts speak for themselves: o<\/span>nly 56% are proficient in English and o<\/span>nly 45% are proficient in Math. <\/span>That\u2019s an F on the report card of our schools <\/span>Our school board thinks that\u2019s good enough? It\u2019s not, it\u2019s embarrassing.<\/span><\/p>\n

What are your priorities?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Leadership and Accountability<\/em>. <\/span>We need leaders who have our children\u2019s best interest at heart. <\/span>Right now, we have too many <\/span>politicians<\/span><\/i> on the board who have unsuccessfully tried to run for other offices. <\/span>We don\u2019t need more politicians, we need <\/span>people<\/span><\/i>. People who care about our kids, a<\/span>nd we need leaders who are mindful of how our money is being spent.<\/span><\/p>\n

Career Readiness. <\/span><\/em>As I alluded to, current leadership is doing a poor job of preparing our kids. <\/span>We need to provide them with internships and mentoring a<\/span>nd we need to recognize that not every student is going to go to college. <\/span>We need to stop pushing this on everyone and start providing more career options, and more training for those who aren\u2019t.<\/span><\/p>\n

School Safety. <\/span><\/em>Bullying is out of control, on-campus and online. <\/span>We need leaders who aren\u2019t afraid to step in and shut it down because k<\/span>ids can\u2019t learn when they\u2019re scared. <\/span>We need to remove bullies from school and see what\u2019s going on at home\u2014t<\/span>hat\u2019s where problems often start. <\/span>Sex trafficking of our young girls is an epidemic, and it\u2019s getting worse: <\/span>3,000 victims a year in San Diego County alone. It’s h<\/span>appening right under our noses\u2014taken from middle and high school. <\/span>Teachers and staff need more training to know what to look for.<\/span><\/p>\n

Do you support increasing teacher pay in the district?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Our teachers recently received a pay increase as part of their new contract. When their contract expires, I\u2019m happy to consider another pay raise, but not for everyone. I support pay that is based on performance, not just showing up for work.<\/span><\/p>\n

How do you feel about charter schools?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I wholeheartedly support them. I\u2019ve worked for charter schools and believe that competition between public and charter schools causes everyone to try harder. I also believe that parents should have choices with regard to their child\u2019s education<\/span><\/p>\n

What makes you a good candidate for the school board?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unlike others who sit on the board, I\u2019m not trying to use it as a stepping stone to anything else. My entire career has been devoted to helping children reach their full potential, addressing their educational and emotional needs, and making sure they grow up healthy, happy, and prepared for the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

To learn more about Camille Harris, visit harrisforschools.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tell us about yourself? I was born and raised in San Diego and graduated from Sweetwater High School. I then attended Azusa Pacific University where I earned a Master\u2019s degree in Educational Counseling and a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership. One of my first jobs was a counselor at Horton Elementary School in Chollas View. Today,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2423,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nAn Interview with Camille Harris, Candidate for San Diego Unified School District - San Diego News Desk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sandiegonewsdesk.com\/?p=2418\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"An Interview with Camille Harris, Candidate for San Diego Unified School District - San Diego News Desk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Tell us about yourself? 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