Shaw and Barrera Offer Starkly Different Visions for California Schools

Two local school board presidents, Sonja Shaw of Chino Valley Unified and Richard Barrera of San Diego Unified, are the finalists for California state superintendent of public instruction. They advanced from a ten-person primary, beating three veteran Democratic legislators among others, and will meet in the nonpartisan general election on Nov. 3. Ballot counting was unfinished, with about 1.4 million ballots outstanding, but Shaw was ahead of Barrera in the tally at that point. According to the article, no one outside the state legislature has won the job since 1982.

The two disagree on several issues. Shaw opposes state rules that let transgender students join girls sports teams and rules that bar districts from requiring staff to tell parents about a student's gender identity or orientation. She says the state should not spend more overall but should get more money into classrooms, and she is critical of ethnic studies. Barrera supports the state policies, wants more school funding, and backs ethnic studies. He says he would enforce civil rights protections for LGBTQ+ students in every district. The governor's office says fewer than 10 transgender athletes played K-12 sports last year among nearly 6 million students.

Both candidates cite test score gains and above-average graduation rates in their districts. A California Teachers Association committee put $5 million toward Barrera's campaign, while Shaw reported raising $165,000 this year. A Democratic consultant quoted in the article expects a highly partisan contest.