Lizette Arevalo
Lizette "Lucha" Arevalo was a candidate for at-large representative on the Compton Unified Board of Education in California. The general election was held on November 3, 2015.[1] Arevalo ran in a candidate slate with fellow challenger Francisco Orozco.[2] She lost the election. Orozco lost as well.[3]
Biography
Arevalo graduated from the Compton Unified School District in 2006. She went on to earn a bachelor's degree in sociology, Chicano studies and Black studies from the University of California at Santa Barbara, a master's degree in sociology and education from Columbia University and a second master's degree in ethnic studies from the University of California at Riverside. She is a Ph.D. student at the University of California at Riverside, studying ethnic studies. While working on her Ph.D., Arevalo also works for the university as a graduate student instructor. She has held this position since 2012.[4] She previously worked as an organizer with Raza College Day from 2006 to 2010, and in 2008, she served as a coordinator for the organization T.R.U.T.H. and as an after-school tutor at Centennial High School, her alma mater.[2]
Elections
2015
Three of the seven seats on the Compton Unified School District Board of Education were up for general election on November 3, 2015.[5] Incumbents Micah Ali and Skyy Fisher sought re-election to their seats. Incumbent Emma Sharif did not file to run for re-election, leaving a seat open to a newcomer. In their bids for re-election, Ali and Fisher faced 18 challengers: Richard Alatorre, Lizette Arevalo, Barbara Calhoun, Charles Davis, Arturo Frazier, Maria Hechavarria, Carol Jordan, Justine Landeros, Jolena Lomax, Janette Mora, Sandra Moss, Francisco Orozco, Diana Padilla, Denzell Perry, Gregory Pitts, Jerry Randle, Kim Smith, and Omar Spry.[1][6] Arevalo and Orozco ran together as a slate.[7]
Ali, Davis, and Moss won the election. Davis was already a member of the Compton Unified Board of Education. His term was not supposed to be up for election again until 2017, but due to the at-large election process, he was able to run early. His election to a different term left a vacancy on the board.[3][8]
Marketta Martin initially filed as a candidate, but she withdrew from the election.[9]
Results
| Compton Unified School District, At-large, General Election, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Micah Ali Incumbent |
15.7% | 2,282 |
| Charles Davis |
9.7% | 1,412 |
| Sandra Moss |
8.3% | 1,204 |
| Gregory Pitts | 7.2% | 1,049 |
| Carol Jordan | 7.0% | 1,021 |
| Barbara Calhoun | 6.6% | 960 |
| Richard Alatorre | 6.4% | 932 |
| Jerry Randle | 5.5% | 795 |
| Skyy Fisher Incumbent | 4.4% | 637 |
| Arturo Frazier | 4.2% | 612 |
| Francisco Orozco | 4.2% | 602 |
| Lizette Arevalo | 3.8% | 547 |
| Diana Padilla | 3.2% | 466 |
| Kim Smith | 3.2% | 457 |
| Omar Spry | 2.7% | 387 |
| Justine Landeros | 2.3% | 331 |
| Denzell Perry | 1.8% | 258 |
| Maria Hechavarria | 1.7% | 242 |
| Janette Mora | 1.1% | 161 |
| Jolena Lomax | 0.9% | 135 |
| Total Votes | 14,490 | |
| Source: Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "NOVEMBER 03, 2015 - LOCAL AND MUNICIPAL CONSOLIDATED ELECTIONS: Final Official Election Returns," accessed November 24, 2015 | ||
Funding
At the time of this election, the Los Angeles Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk did not publish school board candidate campaign finance reports online. Ballotpedia staffers requested this information, but the only free method of viewing the files was at their office.
The Los Angeles Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk targeted the end of 2018 to make school board candidate campaign finance reports available online for free. From that point forward, Ballotpedia began including campaign finance data for Los Angeles County school board candidates.[10][11][12]
The first campaign finance reporting deadline was September 24, 2015, and the second one was October 22, 2015. If candidates raised or spent more than $1,000 from a single source, including their own funds, between August 5, 2015, and November 2, 2015, they had to file a campaign finance report within 24 hours.[13]
If you have any information regarding the campaign finance disclosures in this race, please contact the school board elections team at elections@ballotpedia.org.
Endorsements
Arevalo received no official endorsements in this election.
Campaign themes
2015
Arevalo highlighted the following issues on the campaign website she shared with Orozco:
| “ | Lucha and Francisco know what works. Well-supported teachers and workers, strong parental involvement, compassionate discipline in the classroom, and moral leadership from elected officials. Compton is a unique city with complex social issues. Our problems today stem not from individual residents, but from mismanagement at the school board. We intend to grow the potential of our city by tackling these issues. A Better Plan. A Better Child Development Theory A better world opens up to our students if we treat them with Warmth, Respect, and set High Standards that spark their interests. Compton is a low-income community, we therefore need to invest much more in our students. It begins with a strong foundation at our elementary schools that remains consistent till their High School Graduation. We will expand the role of a School District and reach out to Parents, concerning them and including them in the very serious and complex world of child development. We intend to implement:
A Better Governance Theory Our staff is hardworking, dedicated, but woefully unsupported. Their potential to keep and maintain a healthy learning environment is not being met, and only adds to our students low academic performance. Our New School District will make it a priority to tend to our workers needs. By hiring an effective and responsible superintendent, we will make sure that the Administrators and managers of the District are respectful, open, motivating, and effective. We will provide:
We strongly Believe that a manager that respects, motives, and creates a better working environment is not a 'Nice-to-have,' it's a 'Need-to-have.' Only a well-supported staff can produce better results. Better Investments We will invest in:
|
” |
| —Lizette Arevalo and Francisco Orozco (2015)[2] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Lizette Arevalo' 'Compton Unified School District'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Compton Unified School District, California
- Compton Unified School District elections (2015)
- Incumbency no guarantee of success in Nov. 3 school board elections (November 6, 2015)
- What happened in Nov.'s top board elections? (November 4, 2015)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Los Angeles County, California, "Candidate List," accessed August 11, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 A Better Compton, "Your Candidates for a Better Compton School District," accessed October 15, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "NOVEMBER 03, 2015 - LOCAL AND MUNICIPAL CONSOLIDATED ELECTIONS: Semi-Final Official Election Returns," accessed November 4, 2015
- ↑ Lizette "Lucha" Arévalo Facebook, "About," accessed October 16, 2015
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, “2015 Scheduled Elections,” accessed January 27, 2015
- ↑ Compton Unified School District, "Board Members," accessed January 27, 2015
- ↑ A Better Compton, "Your Candidates for a Better Compton School District," accessed October 15, 2015
- ↑ Abbey Smith, "Phone communication with Charles Davis," October 20, 2015
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Final List of Qualified Candidates," September 1, 2015
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Campaign Finance Reports," accessed July 2, 2014
- ↑ Daniel Anderson, “Email communication with Brenda Duran, Los Angeles County Public Information Officer," October 7, 2016
- ↑ Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Brenda Duran, Los Angeles County Public Information Officer," January 2, 2018
- ↑ Fair Political Practices Commission, "Filing Schedule for Candidates and Controlled Committees for Local Office Being Voted on November 3, 2015," accessed August 5, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2015 Compton Unified School District Elections | |
| Los Angeles County, California | |
| Election date: | November 3, 2015 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Micah Ali • Incumbent, Skyy Fisher • Richard Alatorre • Lizette Arevalo • Barbara Calhoun • Charles Davis • Arturo Frazier • Maria Hechavarria • Carol Jordan • Justine Landeros • Jolena Lomax • Janette Mora • Sandra Moss • Francisco Orozco • Diana Padilla • Denzell Perry • Gregory Pitts • Jerry Randle • Kim Smith • Omar Spry |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
