September 17, 2020 – Ashley McBride of Oaklandside covers the upcoming election for Oakland Unified School District Board members. Deputy Managing Attorney Angelica Jongco is featured:
Angelica Jongco, an OUSD parent, said in the six years that she has been closely watching school board meetings and offering public comment, she’s seen an improvement in the fiscal management of the district as board members become more experienced. She praised current board members for bringing back a budget and finance committee in 2017 and hiring a chief budget officer in April, moves she says have led to more transparency about the district’s finances.
Jongco is an attorney with Public Advocates, a law firm that works with school districts and advocacy organizations on education issues. She first began engaging with the school board in 2014, as OUSD was adjusting to the Local Control Funding Formula, a new state plan that changed how California districts funded their schools.
Though she lives in District 2 and won’t be voting for a school board member this fall (only odd-numbered districts vote this year), Jongco said she looks for a candidate with the ability to dive into the budget and ask questions.
“School districts are very complex systems. Ours in particular is a big system with many schools,” she said. “It is just a very steep learning curve and you need somebody with a strong grounding of needs across the district and a good understanding or commitment to learning the district’s finances and plan.”
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