Fremont Unified School DistrictCandidate for Board Member, Area 5

Born and raised in Fremont, Lucy Shen (沈静雨) is running to bring a focus on mental health, diversity, and transparency to the school board, while ensuring that all Fremont students are safe and healthy during the COVID pandemic. Having  attended Fremont schools, Lucy has a deep understanding of the FUSD student experience, both the strengths and what can be improved. Lucy is also a daughter of bilingual immigrants and will use that to bridge the generational and cultural gaps between the school board and the community.

Lucy's work on the CHPSE Task Force helped her understand the views of all stakeholders—parents, teachers, staff, and students. The recommendations she made led to the implementation of a high quality curriculum that addressed everyone’s needs. As a youth mentor with StandUp for Kids, Girls who Code, and Spark, Lucy empowered at-risk and minority youth to achieve their full potential. In addition, Lucy understands how to use technology to increase board transparency and efficiency from her experiences as a software engineer and a former MIT researcher. Lucy looks forward to bringing that same passion for health and safety, transparency, and diversity to the school board.

A FUSD School Board member works to ensure and improve high quality, equitable education across the district by serving as the liaison between parents, teachers, students, and staff. For every decision we make - whether about budgeting, curricula, or human resources - it will be my job as a trustee to be an excellent listener, elicit community viewpoints, and incorporate feedback to make decisions that center the learning and development of all students.

From my experiences working with the district and conversations with past and current trustees, I know improvements can be made to increase community engagement. The board needs to decrease the barriers to entry for participating in district meetings and ensure that all public data and policy decisions are transparent and easy to find. Additionally, if elected, I will champion 1) accessibility through email, phone and in-person; 2) regular office hours and linguistically accessible parent education nights; and 3) trustee participation in school and community events. 

Finally, given our district’s budget crisis, it is critical for trustees to understand public financing and be knowledgeable on how funding formulas and state legislation impact our school district. I have experience engaging with policymakers in Sacramento and Washington D.C., and will leverage that experience to follow these higher-level policies, communicate information with constituents, and ensure that our students’ needs are met.