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The race for the open seat on the Sunol Glen Unified School District Board of Trustees is shaping up to be a close and personal one for the two candidates, each saying they want to move away from the past year’s drama and focus on what really matters — the school and the students.
On one side is former board president Ryan Jergensen, who was just ousted from office after a majority of Sunol voters recalled him and fellow trustee Linda Hurley in July’s special election.
Jergensen — who is competing for the seat formerly held by Hurley, whose term was set to end this year — told the Pleasanton Weekly that even though he will be working to regain the trust of the people who voted in favor of recalling him, he believes if they had gotten to know him better they might not have voted him out in the first place.
“The recall campaign and election was fairly even in the votes and results. Just a couple of percentage points off,” Jergensen said. “I am confident that if those who had voted against me had known the truth about me they would have voted otherwise. Because I am on the ballot again, people have the opportunity to learn the truth about me.”
According to the outcome confirmed by the Alameda County Registrar of Voters Office, 277 Sunol residents voted in favor of recalling Jergensen – 52.07% of participating voters – while 274 people cast ballots for removing Hurley (51.50%). The margin of each recall was just 22 votes for Jergensen and 16 votes for Hurley.
Choin, who was one of the people to work on the campaign to recall the two trustees, on the other hand told the Weekly that the Sunol community deserves a fresh face on the Board of Trustees overseeing the single-school, K-8 district.
“I think Sunol voters would be very pleased voting me onto the Sunol Glen School Board. Vote for me and I will work to keep Sunol Glen a distinguished school that offers high quality education to its students,” Choin said. “If I can give this community the gift of a calm and productive four years on the school board, then I will consider my time and efforts a success.”
Choin has been very vocal at school board meetings throughout the past year about what she claimed to be examples of bad governance from Jergensen, which is why she joined the recall campaign efforts. She previously stated how happy she was that the Jergensen and Hurley were removed from the board and believes the community deserves a change.
But Jergensen isn’t going anywhere for the time being. He said he wanted to run again so that he can represent both the “large segment of the Sunol population” who voted against the recall and even the people who might have voted to recall him.
“I will continue many of my efforts and also take even more time to hear the people of our community and try to make sure every voice and view is heard and respected,” Jergensen said.
Jergensen was first appointed to the board in 2021 to replace former trustee Denise Kent-Romo, who resigned one year into her second full term because of health issues. He was then formally elected in 2022 to serve another four years on the board.
But over the past year and a half, Jergensen — along with Hurley — had been under scrutiny by dozens of community members, teachers and local elected officials after the then-trustees voted in favor of a flag resolution last September that limited the school to only fly the U.S. and state flags on district grounds.
Many parents, students and Sunol Glen School employees spoke out for months — Choin included — calling the two trustees out because certain flags like the LGBTQIA+ Pride flag were now not allowed at the school. They also criticized Jergensen for several instances of bad governance.
There were other situations where the public did not agree with something Jergensen did at the dais, but he said he hopes to move past all of that as he seeks the school board seat once again, even if some community members can’t seem to look past the months of fighting.
“Yes there was quite a bit of drama,” Jergensen said. “Unfortunately, even if I am not wishing to be a part of the drama and do not attack others in our community, I am sometimes drawn into it simply by people attacking me or my actions.”
He said that’s where civil discourse comes into play, which is something he wants to prioritize as a trustee because he said it is necessary to hear all opinions, even if it is difficult to do so.
He said diverse opinions and views are healthy to bring to the table and that they, as a community, should not exclude those with opposing views, which is something that he couldn’t say about current Board President Peter (Ted) Romo.
“I would not have any problem serving on a board with those of differing views,” Jergensen said. “I never tried to recall Mr. Romo, nor did I attack him or his views, as was the tactic unfortunately used toward me.”
Jergensen said instead of being so polarizing, he wants to work toward being able to meet more in the middle so that all voices in the community can be heard — not just the group of people who voted to recall him and Hurley.
“That’s what I have been aiming for all along, but feel I’ve been mislabeled,” Jergensen said. “We need diversity, not conformity of thought.”
“I look forward to meeting, speaking with and working hard to represent all of the various views in Sunol,” he added. “I will not ever tell anyone else to ‘wake up’ or to ‘go away.'”
In addition to thinking he’s been mislabeled, Jergensen said people might have misjudged his character during the recall vote and if they spent the time — which they can now that he’s running again — to get to know what kind of person he truly is, they might have thought twice before recalling him.
“Anyone in Sunol may take this opportunity to understand what I stand for, and what others in Sunol think about me and the circumstances surrounding our school and community,” he said.
While Jergensen said his priorities and goals center on making sure every voice is heard in the community, Choin said her top priority is the students at Sunol Glen.
She said if she is elected to the board she will “shift the focus back to support their education”.
“Supporting our students in the classroom and through hands-on learning like field trips needs to take center stage,” Choin said. “I will champion the teachers at Sunol Glen by supporting their continuing education so they can continue to offer the best education in our classrooms.”
Choin — a Sunol Glen parent for the past five years who moved to the small town two years ago — said that apart from working on responsibly using the $10.9 million Measure J general obligation bond to repair the school in a transparent manner, the school board and district need to focus on rebuilding relationships with each other in order to focus on other pressing matters.
Choin said if she is elected, she will start by respecting everyone on the dais and use her experience as a substitute teacher at the school and volunteer over the past year to continue developing those connections with school employees and the current board.
“The way we treat others either paves the way for success or can become a dead end,” Choin said. “Communication will be essential to gather information from knowledgeable professionals and then it should be used to make decisions for Sunol Glen that will be the most beneficial.”
She added that because of her work as a substitute teacher and volunteer, she thought becoming a school board trustee was just the natural next step to take.
“Our students and staff deserve a school board trustee that will listen and give their needs priority,” Choin said. “I have worked in the school, therefore, I know the teachers, staff and most of the students and families, making me an obvious choice to be in a leadership role in the school.”
She also said, like Jergensen, that hearing out the opinions and thoughts from all Sunol residents and community members alike is important, which is why Choin said she will be out in the community doing some outreach as part of her campaign to hear what the voters care about.
One hot topic in the community recently has been commuter parents and where they fit into the equation of the district drama. In the past, some community members have noted how commuter parents don’t have a say in voting for their school board trustees, even though commuter students make up the majority of the student population at Sunol Glen.
Jergensen said even though Sunol’s small-town charm is what makes the school so special, it also means they need and benefit from those families who bring their kids into the school like they have been for generations.
He said he doesn’t understand why some people might say he doesn’t value the transfer families because in fact, he believes they play a pivotal role in the school and the community.
“I don’t understand why any detractors would try to say I feel any differently,” Jergensen said. “It is unfortunate that many are not getting the full story, or the truth without the spin or opinions of some. Their opinions and involvement is crucial for this school, and just as people who live in Sunol they need their voices included and heard.”
He said he has even worked with the board in the past to make sure commuter families’ opinions were heard for things like choosing the new superintendent and on Measure J construction updates.
“I have always solicited their input. Anyone saying otherwise is incorrect, dishonest, and is not genuinely interested in the good work of this school and this community,” Jergensen said.
But Choin instead said commuter families are in fact a large and important part of the school’s community. She said as a former commuter parent herself, she understands the “unique position they are in choosing our school.”
“They are stakeholders in Sunol Glen,” Choin said. “The role of the board trustees is to work to represent the interests of all children and families at the school.”
She said her extensive social network of commuter families at Sunol Glen makes her a better candidate for the seat because those parents — many of whom have spoken out against Jergensen and Hurley in the past — are comfortable with reaching out to her.
“I’ve become familiar with many Sunol residents over the past two years and I continue to offer opportunities for the community to give and receive information regarding the school board,” Choin said.
