By: Abigail Miller
Jacqueline Gaebe has been an educator for 23 years and has strong roots in the VUSD district. She graduated as a Blazer from Golden West High School and went to college at UC Irvine. She “returned and began teaching as a middle school teacher” she says. From there She then moved into administration as an “Assistant Principal, Principal at Linwood Elementary, and an Area Superintendent”.
Even with all of her involvement surrounding VUSD, most importantly she says she is “a parent in our district. I have a high school freshman and twins in 4th grade”.
Gaebe made the decision to run for the school board “because we are currently lacking inclusive leadership and it is negatively impacting students and staff”. She says the district is in a place where “information, input and decision-making is being limited to a few and it is hurting our organization”. Gaebe says the school board needs “leadership that can inspire and empower all of us to learn, grow, and find the greatness within us”.
However Gaebe says she doesn’t want “voters to vote for me. That is not the kind of leader I am. I want them to vote for us”. She plans on working with the community, partnering with staff and families to “build a district that brings pride to our community and opportunities to our children”. Gaebe says “our district should not be defined by our board members or a superintendent. We are 30,000 students and 3,000 employees strong”.
Gaebe says she is “the most qualified because I have recent and relevant experience. I’ve led a school site where we had a vision, strategically-planned, balanced our budget, where every single person was valued, where we raised achievement and made students feel like they were significant and belonged.” She adds, “that we loved them and we worked individually and together to make each of them successful”.
Gaebe is also the only candidate with children in the Visalia Unified School District. “That is invaluable and allows you to live the impact of your decision-making. It keeps you humble and empathetic” she says.
If elected, her overarching goal is “to effectively create the conditions for educational excellence”. Gaebe says that VUSD is “a learning organization. We need to focus on the knowledge and skills students need, as well as, the behaviors and dispositions that they need to successfully apply their learning”. This will be possible by creating “equitable opportunities and a safe environment physically, mentally and socially, for all”.
As a leader, Gaebe wants to “do more listening and less talking and involve the people across our organization. We need to encourage everyones’ ideas, creativity and innovative thinking as we plan to meet the challenges our district is facing”.
Jacqueline Gaebe is running for the District 7 seat. Elections are on November 3, 2020.
Abigail Miller
Abigail Miller '22 is currently a fourth-year member of the Redwood Gigantea. As the Government & Politics page editor, lead photographer, and photography editor, she has published over 100 photo galleries capturing Redwood's most memorable moments. She owns her own photography business, Abigail Miller Photography, which you can find in the link below.
https://abigailmiller.zenfolio.com
Tags: Gaebe, schoolboard, vusd