By: Alexandria Urena
Megan Casebeer-Soleno is a Senior Deputy Public Defender for Tulare County. She is running for VUSD school board area 5. Megan was born and raised in Riverside, CA. She graduated from Arlington High School in 2004. Megan has gone to two universities “ I attended college at the University of California at Santa Barbara where I majored in environmental studies. After college, I went to law school at the University of San Francisco.”
Casebeer-Soleno met her husband while attending college and they have two daughters. “ I met my husband, Carlos, in college. Carlos is a native Visalian and after five years in San Francisco, we decided to move here and start a family. We have two daughters, Paloma (3 years old) and Bianca (1 year old).”
She enjoys reading,snowboarding and many other things “I am an avid reader and try to read at least one book a month. I love snowboarding, spending time with family and friends, and snuggling with our two dogs, Solo and Poe.”
Casebeer-Soleno wants to make Visalia’s school’s stronger and more equitable. “I am running for a seat on the school board because I want to make Visalia’s schools better. I want to be a part of changing our community and making our schools stronger and more equitable.”
She feels the most qualified because she is an attorney with experience of advocating, a daughter of educators, a mother whose children will enter VUSD schools and her husband is a teacher. “I have a unique perspective that is not currently present on the board. I am a working mother, with children who will soon enter VUSD schools. I am an attorney with years of experience in advocating. I am the wife of a teacher and the daughter of educators so I understand all too well, the challenges and support that teachers and schools need.”
Casebeer-Soleno is a public defender and often sees what happens to children who don’t succeed in school. She wants to make sure children have a path to being successful. “All too often they end up in the criminal justice system. My goal is to help foster a school system where we can focus our resources, time, and energy into making sure that children have pathways to success.
She says “Keeping kids in school and getting them to graduation is the best thing we can do to ensure a safe and prosperous community.”
She also believes that students should be involved in school board meetings. “I want students to know that they can attend meetings, tell us what is working at their schools and what is not, and propose solutions if they see a problem. Having a board meeting once a year that is held at the local high-schools would be a great way to get more student engagement.”
She also wants to help kids understand local elections and help them focus on our own community. “I hope that more high school kids can understand the importance of their local elections. The big focus is always on the big things, like the President, but there is so much to focus on in our own community.”
Casebeer-Soleno is running for the District 5 seat. Elections are on November 3rd.
Alexandria Urena
Alexandria Urena ('24) is a freshman,and is in her first year of writing for the Redwood Gigantea government and politics section. Outside of the Gigantea, Alexandria is in the beginning women's chorus. In her free time she enjoys playing with her dogs. You can reach her by email at Alexa.ur4631@vusd.us
Tags: vusdelections, vusdschoolboard
