Schools superintendent candidates vie for votes at forum

BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ 
Daily Post Staff Writer 

The two candidates for San Mateo County schools Superintendent tried to win Portola Valley voters over last night, with both candidates referencing a Post article about candidate Chelsea Bonini’s credentials. 

Hector Camacho Jr. said his experience working in both a classroom and as a school administrator has prepared him for any obstacle that could come with being the San Mateo County schools superintendent. 

“You want to make sure that the person that is leading the education system in this county is aware of all the pieces that matter in terms of education code and how we implement that with fidelity,” Camacho said. 

On April 15 the Post published an article quoting the nonprofit California County Superintendents Association, which represents the 58 county superintendents of schools and county offices of education, saying it is illegal for a candidate who doesn’t have the full credential held by school administrators to appear on the ballot.  

Bonini said the questioning of her credentials is a distraction created by the Post. 

Bonini said the only difference between her credential and Camacho’s is that she doesn’t hold an administrative position. She said that, as a business attorney who founded Kiski Law, she has read the education code. 

Camacho said there are many challenges administrators face, such as students showing up to school hungry, and years of experience prepare you for that. Working in a classroom for 16 years has taught him that there is very little time to formulate a plan when students face a crisis. 

“You don’t really have very much time to get it wrong, and that comes from experience,” Camacho said. 

Camacho, 45, of South San Francisco, is executive director of equity, social justice and inclusion at the San Mateo County Office of Education. He has worked as a teacher and counselor for over 25 years. 

Bonini, 53, of San Mateo, who has served on the Board of Education since 2020, says she has the experience to be superintendent. Her work as an attorney and training to be an administrator have prepared her for the job, Bonini said. 

Being on the board and working as a 2nd-grade teacher in Los Altos last year has given her a chance to be deeply involved in the budget process, policy and all things you do as superintendent, she said. If elected, crisis support will be a priority, Bonini said. The county is already working to provide support to families, but she wants measurable goals. 

“I will use my personal experience and having to take my own child to the psychiatrists, emergency room or to call 911,” Bonini said. 

There is a need for youth crisis spaces in the county, which don’t exist, she said. 

Camacho said his time as a high school guidance counselor is an example of how he has helped save lives. He helped coordinate an effort to implement preventive measures with an advisory program to assist students suffering from suicidal thoughts. One of his first assignments as an executive director was to provide grief counseling to a school that had lost one of its administrators, he said. These experiences have equipped him, and he also wants to build up other administrators to do the same, Camacho said. 

Camacho said all school districts should be funded the same, but the fight for more funding needs to be taken to the state. A good superintendent will be able to rally a community around the issue, as has been happening with the shortfall from the state’s Vehicle License Fee, otherwise known as the car tax. The county is anticipating losing about $120 million in funding.

“Who wants to talk about VLF? I mean, it’s important, but we’re talking about children’s lives here,” Camacho said. 

Bonini said she would want to identify the root causes of each district’s issues and invite them all to the table to see whether there are opportunities for them to support one another. 

As many school districts are making policies on how to handle AI, Bonini said it can be a very useful tool, since it’s already being used by kids. 

But Camacho said there are fears among students that it will replace human interaction in the classroom. If elected, he plans to bring the right people to the table, and in the conversation about AI, that would include the students, Camacho said.