John Selawsky

John has held the following public offices: Commisioner, City of Berkeley Community Environmental Advisory Commission; Berkeley Schools Excellence Project Planning and Oversight Committee; Director, Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) Board of Directors.

 

John's record of community service: Berkeley Schools Excellence Project (BSEP) Site Committee, Oxford Elementary; BSEP Planning and Oversight Committee; Berkeley YMCA Youth Campaign; BUSD Music Committee; Community Environmental Advisory Commission.

 

John's 2004 ballot statement: Public education is under attack. BUSD faces reduced state and federal funding, making it increasingly difficult to offer even basic educational programs, while the need for programs and services has increased. In this era of shrinking resources, BUSD has been forced to cut staff, reduce program, increase class sizes, and severely restrict support services. During my term, however, we have restored fiscal integrity and rebuilt budget, payroll, and personnel systems, successfully preventing a state takeover. We have received steadily improving evaluations from the state’s Fiscal Crisis Management Assistance Team, hired a Superintendent with vision and fiscal diligence, secured the stability of Berkeley High School, and worked to improve our early literacy program. I authored a ban on irradiated food in BUSD, the first in the nation, and have prioritized disaster preparedness and school safety issues. I will continue to ensure fiscal and instructional accountability and improvement, advance legal and community defenses of our District integration plan and work with community and neighborhood groups and the City to ensure essential services are provided. It is an honor to serve the children of Berkeley.