Laura Chardiet Steps Into School Board Race

My name is Laura Chardiet, and I’m running for school board because I want to put my experience and my leadership skills to work for the community I love.

I’ve never run for public office before, but my candidacy isn’t about political ambition, it’s about our kids and our schools, about how we can keep making our Culver City schools better, even in the face of unconscionable budget cuts from Sacramento.

I’m a professional educator. I was a classroom teacher for 10 years, and am currently administering a $15 million adult literacy grant for LAUSD. Funding for this grant is based on successful student outcomes. In the five years that I’ve been the program coordinator, our funding has grown by almost two million dollars thanks to our success at increasing positive student outcomes. These professional experiences are invaluable, but I’m also a mom with two kids in our Culver City schools.

It is as a parent that I’ve served on the La Ballona Site Council, the CCUSD Community Budget Advisory Board, the PTA and Booster Club organizations at my children’s schools and the Culver City Council of PTAs. I understand how budgets work and I know the needs of our schools up close and personal. I am confident that we can find ways to meet those needs and continue to improve our schools in spite of the budget cuts.

As a PTA volunteer:

• I founded the Taste of La Ballona, a healthy food expo, applying for and receiving grants from the California State PTA to support it.

• I’ve served as the CCMS PTSA chairperson for Red Ribbon Week and began the tradition of having students put their red hand prints on a large white poster in the outdoor lunch area as a pledge to stay drug free.

• I expanded La Ballona’s International Dinner Show that had highlighted folk dances from South America, so that it now showcases dances from around the world.

• I infused greater entertainment value into the annual Culver City Council of PTAs HSA Awards dinner while lowering the ticket price.

Time and time again I have found creative ways of taking something good and making it better, and that’s what I intend to do for our Culver City schools.

I would love to share my ideas with you when I kick-off my campaign for school board on Sunday, July 24, from 4 pm – 6 pm at the home of Scott and Anne Malsin (4237 Neosho Avenue). Please join me there. Together we can face the future, and make it what we want it to be.