The Solano County supervisors agreed to have the county run a special election to decide who will represent Trustee Area 6 on the Vacaville Unified School District board.

The consent agenda action came Tuesday, the same day a special election was being held to decide who will represent Trustee Area 4 on that same school board.

Both are the result of protest petitions being filed with the Solano County Office of Education after the school board had appointed individuals to the posts, and are led by a group that does not think their voices – marked as parents – are being heard by the district on critical issues.

Source: County to run second Vacaville Unified special election | News | dailyrepublic.com

By Nick McConnell

Lindsay Kelly is expected to be named to the Vacaville Unified School District Board of Trustees Area 4 seat, after leading the vote tally in the special vacancy election held Tuesday.

As of 9:13 p.m., the Solano County Registrar of Voters released their final vote totals for the evening, which showed Kelly ahead with 453 votes. Dave McCallum followed with 416 votes, and Michael Martin came in third with 119 votes out of a total 988.

Vacaville Parents United, a local interest group for parents, held a petition drive to force this special vacancy election. The election cost the district an estimated $113,000 to the district, which Superintendent Ed Santopadre said would come out the district’s general fund.

Source: Lindsay Kelly leads race for VUSD Trustee Area 4 – The Vacaville Reporter

By Richard Bammer

Who among three candidates will win a seat to represent Vacaville Unified’s Trustee Area 4 on Tuesday?

That’s when voters will decide the outcome of a special election for a post vacated by a petition drive earlier this year.

Those seeking the seat are former VUSD trustee David McCallum, 63, a local radio broadcaster who was appointed to the governing board when another member resigned but was forced out by the petition drive. Others are Michael W. Martin, 41, a local real estate broker; and Lindsay Kelly, 44, an insurance claims adjuster.

Source: Who will win VUSD’s Trustee Area 4 seat? – The Vacaville Reporter

By Richard Bammer

The Vacaville Teachers Association has endorsed a UC Davis dean and former school teacher as a candidate in the VUSD Trustee Area 6 special election on Dec. 19.

Amy Tran Russell — a senior assistant dean for student affairs, earned two master’s degrees — an MBA from UCD and one in education from UC Santa Cruz. She also earned a bachelor’s degree in history from UCD, according to a teachers union press statement sent to The Reporter on Wednesday and information in her candidate statement.

Russell, 43, started her career teaching social studies for the Benicia Unified School District and coaching track and field. She then worked with high school students as part of a youth leadership development program for five years.

Source: VTA endorses experienced educator for VUSD trustee post – The Vacaville Reporter

By Nick McConnell

With in-person voters in Vacaville Unified School District’s area four back from the polls after a special vacancy election in September, voters in area six will be gearing up for their own trip to the ballot box on Dec. 19.

The two elections are to replace Dave McCallum, who was appointed as area four trustee earlier this year, and Amy Tran Russell, who was appointed as area six trustee in July.

Lindsay Kelly, Michael Martin and McCallum are running for the Area 4 seat, and John Gardner, assistant registrar of voters for Solano County, said the window to file for the area six election will open on Monday, Aug. 28. The elections were forced by petition drives held Vacaville Parents United, a group that has been voicing concerns regarding VUSD issues over the past few years.

Source: VUSD area six election to be held December 19 – The Vacaville Reporter

By Nick McConnell

With in-person voters in Vacaville Unified School District’s area four back from the polls after a special vacancy election in September, voters in area six will be gearing up for their own trip to the ballot box on Dec. 19.

The two elections are to replace Dave McCallum, who was appointed as area four trustee earlier this year, and Amy Tran Russell, who was appointed as area six trustee in July.

Lindsay Kelly, Michael Martin and McCallum are running for the Area 4 seat, and John Gardner, assistant registrar of voters for Solano County, said the window to file for the area six election will open on Monday, Aug. 28. The elections were forced by petition drives held Vacaville Parents United, a group that has been voicing concerns regarding VUSD issues over the past few years.

Source: VUSD area six election to be held December 19 – The Vacaville Reporter

Lindsay Kelly has a very personal reason for seeking a seat on the Vacaville Unified School District board.

Her experience with her son’s special-education needs – which she feels were not met at Vacaville schools and resulted in her returning him to Dixon, where he had more personal assistance and success – motivated her to run.

Kelly, an insurance claims adjuster, said she once had a dream of being a teacher after getting a degree in biology, and the school board would provide her an opportunity to serve a role in education. She also thinks her experience analyzing complex issues in the insurance business will serve her well as a trustee.

Source: Kelly wants Vaca Unified focus back on education | News | dailyrepublic.com

By Cecil Conley

Michael Kitzes looks forward to the day when he can preside at a Vacaville Unified School District Governing Board meeting with seven trustees seated at the dais. If he is holding his breath for that, it is time to exhale.

Kitzes had hoped all seven seats would be filled after the special election Sept. 12 that decides who will be the Area 4 trustee. That would have guaranteed Kitzes of playing with a full deck at a Sept. 21 board meeting.

Source: Second trustee faces recall – The Vacaville Reporter

Dave McCallum wants to serve, again.

The former Vacaville Unified School District trustee is hoping to win back a seat during a special election scheduled for Sept. 12 for Trustee Area 4.

McCallum, 63, was actually appointed by the board to fill the seat left vacant with the resignation of Cecil Conley, but a protest petition filed with the Solano County Office of Education forced the special election.

Source: McCallum looks to return to Vacaville Unified board | Vacaville-Dixon-Winters | dailyrepublic.com

A live-streamed candidate forum for the Vacaville Unified School District Trustee Area 4 special election is set for 7 p.m. Wednesday.

“All three candidates – Lindsay Kelly, Michael Martin and Dave McCallum – are expected to take part in the forum, which will be moderated by Nolan Sullivan and Ciana Vasquez Pimentel. Questions will be posed by adults and students who live in the school district,” organizers said in a statement.

Kelly is an insurance claims adjuster. Martin is a real estate broker. McCallum is a broadcaster.

Source: Streamed candidate forum set for Vaca schools Trustee Area 4

By Nick McConnell

Michael Kitzes looks forward as president of the Vacaville Unified School District Governing Board to welcoming a new board member this evening. Two applicants are vying for the Area 6 seat left vacant when Kelly Welsh resigned from the board in May.

Tracee Stacy would not be so new after having served on the board from 2016 to 2020. She was unseated by Welsh three years ago. The other applicant is a newcomer, Amy Tran Russell. Each will make her case to join the board and one will do so by the end of the meeting, which begins at 6:30 p.m.

Candidates will be invited to give a statement, Superintendent Ed Santopadre said at the board meeting in June, and answer questions from the five board members. The board will then deliberate before announcing the appointment. Ranked choice voting will be used to select the new member.

Source: VUSD board to appoint Area 6 trustee – The Vacaville Reporter

By Nick McConnell

The Vacaville Unified School District Board of Education met Thursday to discuss summer business, the process for appointing a new member of the board, and other items at their regularly scheduled board meeting.

The board set its next meeting for 6:30 on July 18, when it will hear from applicants for the open school board position and vote on their replacement. The board will select questions for the candidates over the coming weeks and will use ranked-choice voting to select from the applicants.

Applicants will be asked to give an opening statement according to Superintendent Ed Santopadre, and will then be asked questions. The application period closes at 5 p.m. on July 13, and candidates will be verified to live in the area they represent before the meeting.

Source: VUSD board discuss appointment, look forward to next school year – The Vacaville Reporter

By Richard Bammer

In a September special election, three Vacaville residents will seek a seat on the Vacaville Unified governing board, a post recently vacated by a petition drive.

Among those wanting to be the next trustee for Trustee Area 4 is former longtime VUSD trustee David McCallum, a local radio broadcaster who earlier this year was appointed to the governing board when another member resigned but was forced out by the petition drive. The other two are Michael W. Martin, a local real estate broker; and Lindsay Kelly, an insurance claims adjuster, according to information on the Solano County Registrar of Voters website.

Assistant Registrar of Voters John Gardner last month confirmed that the election, estimated to cost the district $113,000, will be held on Sept. 12 in the mostly rural north Vacaville trustee area.

Source: In September special election, three will vie for VUSD trustee seat – The Vacaville Reporter

By Nick McConnell

The Vacaville Unified School District’s governing board chose at its regular meeting on Thursday to appoint a replacement for former trustee Kelly Welsh rather than hold a special election for the remainder of her term, which ends later this year.

The board also appointed new Superintendent Ed Santopadre as its secretary, and trustees heard his first report as superintendent after he recently took over the position. Several members of the public attended the meeting and spoke in favor of making an appointment to avoid the cost of a special election.

The meeting opened with Santopadre’s comments to the board, in which he highlighted graduation send-offs for seniors of each of the area high schools. Santopadre also introduced three staff members in new positions, including Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources David Robertson, Dean of Learning Support at Ernest Kimmie Jordyn Adcock and Principal of Hemlock Elementary Joanna Adams.

Source: VUSD trustees appoint replacement for ex-trustee Welsh – The Vacaville Reporter

The Solano County supervisors on Tuesday authorized the registrar of voters to run a special election for the Trustee Area 4 seat on the Vacaville Unified School District board.

The school board had appointed David McCallum to replace Cecil Conley, who resigned, but a protest petition was filed with the Solano County Office of Education to force the special election.

Among the issues are parental concerns about the district developing what they believe is a critical race theory or equity policy without public input.

Source: County will conduct special election for Vacaville school district

By Richard Bammer

It is definitely an off-year election year, but some Vacaville Unified voters in Trustee Area 4 will definitely be going to the polls anyway for a special election in September, marking their ballots to pick a school district governing board member to fill a seat vacated by a petition drive.

John Gardner, Solano County’s assistant registrar of voters, confirmed Wednesday that the election, estimated to cost the district $113,000, will be held on Sept. 12 in the mostly rural north Vacaville trustee area.

In a brief interview in his County Government Center office in Fairfield, Gardner said he received the election petition on May 5 from Solano County Office of Education officials, then ROV employees reviewed and validated petition signatures, and, on May 11, reported back to the SCOE. On Tuesday, officials there sent a formal letter to Gardner with the election date.

Source: VUSD petition drive leads to September special election in Trustee Area 4 – The Vacaville Reporter