Quick Voter Guide: Jones or Smith for Benicia School Board
Benicia School Board Trustee candidates Barbara Jones and Dan Smith on student priorities, experience and balancing the budget.
Two educators are competing to represent east Benicia (Area 1) on the School District Board of Trustees in this election cycle: Barbara Jones and Dan Smith. The winning candidate will replace Sheri Zada, who is stepping down. Ballots are due by 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Barbara Jones
barb4benicia.com
Jones was an educator for nearly four decades and retired from Benicia schools in June. She has taught a variety of grades between elementary and high schools in Vallejo and Contra Costa County and ended her career in Benicia. She said she has the time to dedicate to being a board member, and it’s why she decided to run.
“I care very much about our community and our schools and families,” Jones said. “With my experience, I think I can contribute.”
Her general priorities are student success, support for educators and responsible stewardship of district resources, according to her website.
Dan Smith
danforbenicia.org
Smith is a history teacher currently teaching in Mt. Diablo. He’s taught high school and middle school for the last 14 years in Benicia, Vallejo, and Contra Costa County, Smith said, and subbed for elementary classes. He was a journalist for 25 years and was on the Benicia City Council from 2001-05. He was appointed to the Benicia Parks and Recreation Commission and has been involved in grassroots campaigns to preserve historic sites and build recreation facilities, including a new swing set at the Playground of Dreams.
“I have experience dealing with government budgets, and I’ve served on boards and committees, and I thought I would be good at it,” Smith said. “My kids went through Benicia schools, and I want to provide the best I can for the kids here because I love the town.”
If elected, Smith said the first issue he would tackle is improving the special education program. When his children and grandchild attended Benicia school, he said the special education resources weren’t “satisfactory,” and he recently heard a family at a school board meeting describing a similar experience.
“It was uncanny, their experience was the same as mine,” Smith said.
On balancing the BUSD budget
Like most California schools, BUSD has seen declines in enrollment since 2020 and had to make hard decisions about cuts to balance the budget. School budgets are based on average daily attendance, and fewer students means less money.
Superintendent Chris Calabrese oversaw $1.7 million in cuts to this school year’s budget, which resulted in staff layoffs and reduced hours. He told The Benicia Bridge in May, “I don't ever want to close a school, and so you have to make structural changes.”
Dan Smith said he would advocate against closing a school if more cuts had to be made. Thousands of homes may be built in the city in the next decade, and Smith said if he were on the board, he wouldn’t want to “make the decision again to close a school prematurely.”
“There are extra challenges now with Valero contributions to the city and school district budget going away, and I feel I could help out with that transition,” Smith said.
Barbara Jones said the students are her number one priority and “every decision made should always circle back on what’s good for the kids.”
When making decisions to address budget deficits, she said she would assess how proposed cuts would impact the students. She also said it’s important for the community to understand how budgeting in schools works.
Jones added that she would be looking in “every nook and cranny” and “think outside the box” to try to fund programs that are important to families.
“It all goes back to doing a lot of listening,” Jones said. “Listening to the employees because they’re the eyes and ears out on the front lines. I’d make thoughtful and collaborative decisions. The bottom line is I would like to serve the community like I always have just in a different role.”
Other BUSD seats are uncontested
New trustees are slated to fill other open seats representing Areas 4 and 5 that were uncontested. Erin Fernandez, a hospital billing manager, filed papers to represent Area 4. Incumbent Amy Hirsh filed to continue representing Area 5.
Board President Cece Grubbs (Area 2) and Trustee Janny Manasse (Area 3) are not up for re-election. Their current terms end in 2028.
Monica Velez is an award-winning journalist with a decade of experience reporting for daily newspapers, radio, and online news outlets. She grew up in San Bruno and recently moved back to her hometown from the Pacific Northwest where she covered education for The Seattle Times. She got her start reporting on health and immigration in the San Joaquin Valley and covered K-12 education for The Fresno Bee and EdSource.
The Benicia Bridge
