Updated Nov. 20, 2024
Voters in the San Lorenzo Unified School District have approved a $195 million bond measure for school modernization and improvement by a two-thirds margin and reelected Board of Education member Alicia Gonzalez in the district’s first contested trustee-area election, according to unofficial results.
Previously, SLZUSD trustees, or board members, were elected at large. Gonzalez was a candidate in new Area 5, apparently defeating fellow member Penny Peck, who sought her fourth four-year term. Two board candidates ran unopposed: newcomer Dorothy Lee in Area 2 and incumbent Kyla Sinegal in Area 3.
Bond Measure Q received 66.4% of 23,418 district votes reported so far in the Nov. 5 election, as announced on Nov. 15 by the Alameda County Office of Elections, well above the 55% threshold required in California school district bond elections.
Specific projects will be determined with citizen oversight, but the district has pledged to spend the funds on six areas of need: health, safety and security; repair of aging schools, all more than 60 years old; career technology in classrooms, heating, cooling and ventilation; and new and improved classrooms and other student facilities.
“I want to thank our San Lorenzo Unified Community for supporting our schools,” Superintendent Dr. Daryl Camp said. “These additional dollars will allow us to improve learning conditions for our students.”
Measure Q’s annual impact on property owners within SLZUSD is estimated at $60 per $100,000 of assessed property value, the taxable value placed by Alameda County. By law, bond funds must be spent on schools and cannot be taken by the state. An independent citizens’ oversight committee will be established to ensure that bond funds are spent as intended.
Following the board election, the newly composed board will have its first meeting on Dec.17, when incoming members will be sworn in.
Gonzalez and Peck had to face off because both reside in the newly created Area 5, which spans the southern end of the school district. The unopposed newcomer, Lee, a Hayward teacher with a child at Hesperian Elementary School, was automatically elected in Area 2, which covers the Manor neighborhood of south San Leandro.
Said Lee, “I’m looking forward to working collaboratively with the community, district staff and my fellow board members in transforming San Lorenzo Unified into a top-notch, destination school district.”
Incumbent Trustee Sinegal was also elected by default in the new Area 3, which includes the Ashland community. She will serve her third term.
The board’s remaining incumbents are current board president Samuel Medina and Juan Campos. Both live in new Area 4, which will be up for election in November 2026. The new Area 1, which includes the northwest side of Castro Valley, will be open for new candidates in 2026.
The move to trustee-area elections was made in alignment with the California Voting Rights Act, effective last year, which prohibits at-large election to help ensure fair representation of minority voters from racial and ethnic groups -- often clustered in larger numbers within a given geographic area. The law directs that trustee areas be drawn to give appropriate influence to these groups while maintaining roughly equal population across all trustee areas.
The SLZUSD board adopted the new trustee-area districts on April 16 following multiple public hearings and lengthy discussion of possible configurations and their impact. The district’s total population is 83,160, and each trustee area includes approximately 16,600 people. Of that total population, approximately 39% of residents are Hispanic/Latino, 31% are Asian/Pacific Islander, 17% are White and 10% are Black.
Gonzalez, who received 63.9% of the 3,620 votes cast in Area 5, according to unofficial results, said she is humbled that voters elected her to continue serving SLZUSD. She expressed great respect for Peck.
"To every parent, teacher, staff member and community member: thank you for your support and for trusting me to champion the values we all hold dear," Gonzalez said in a statement. "This is only the beginning of a journey to create lasting, impactful change in our schools. Let’s continue to work together to build a school district that reflects the best of San Lorenzo."
Peck's last Board meeting as a trustee was on Nov. 19, where she received an extended tribute for her service. Board members all expressed their tremendous appreciation and gratitude to Peck for being a role model of dedication and integrity, not only on behalf of San Lorenzo Schools but toward the greater community as a whole.