Open Letter to Parents, Friends and Community Members

By Mark G. Intrieri

I would like to elaborate on a few points about my background and ability to serve on this Board as well as touch on some of the issues raised during this campaign.

The candidates present a diverse set of choices for voters and offer differing qualifications for the job. The reason I decided to run is because I have a unique, specialized and valuable background in the law, particularly the law applicable to schools. Running a school district successfully is a very difficult undertaking which involves complex legal issues in every area of school district operations. There is no area of school district operations which is not governed by a variety of statutes (State and Federal) as well as case law, all of which dictate what a district can and cannot do. From the No Child Left Behind Act to complex statutorily imposed school funding formulas (Prop. 98), teacher evaluation and discipline requirements imposed by the Education Code, the bidding and negotiation of vendor contracts, the provision of Special Education Services, labor negotiations, construction, real property sale or lease, and even the procedural functioning of a board meeting itself is dictated by statute (the Brown Act).

This is my background and training. I represented school districts throughout Northern California in all these areas for ten years and continue to specialize my practice in several areas which touch upon school district operations. I am proud to say that in 2004 I was voted by my peers in the legal profession as one of the top 100 lawyers in Northern California.

So the reason I am running is very simple. I can bring my expertise to the service of this District and help achieve the critical goals which we all want to achieve.

While I have not been as involved as some of the other candidates (Marc and Liz particularly, whose effort and contributions I applaud) I have volunteered my time with the Franklin Dad's Club on many occasions at many events. I also have coached my son's flag football team for three seasons. I have also recently trained and volunteered as an AYSO referee this past year (8 and under) when they were short-handed.

We have lived in Burlingame since 1986 and my three children are now progressing through this District (3rd grade, 1st grade and pre-K). My wife Katie and I are committed to this community and this School District. I have absolutely no political aspirations. Rather, I simply want to volunteer myself and work to make this District excellent. My wife has been very involved with this District in many different ways too long to list here, and while I do not want credit for her good work and effort I do want people to know that we have been, and will continue to be, very involved as a family in this community and in this District.

Here are my views of some critical issues:

1. This District will always have budgeting restrictions imposed by insufficient levels of state funding and will never be able to provide the highest level of service in all areas unless new and creative methods of increasing stable and predictable sources of revenue are explored. We cannot wait for the State to wake up and decide to adequately fund education. Last year California was 44th out of 50 states in education spending. We have to do it ourselves.

2. Salaries and benefits make up 76% of the District's current budget expenditures. The remaining 24% must be prioritized to maximize the benefit across all grade levels. My priorities are:

• Class size reduction is imperative across all grade levels; and
• Incentives directed toward attracting and retaining the best teachers (beyond mere salary increases) must be explored.

In order for this District to continue to improve we need to establish a short list of achievable goals and implement a plan to achieve those goals one-by-one in the near future without jeopardizing the District's financial stability. This requires both creative forethought and solid reasoned decision making day-to-day. I think my background has uniquely prepared me to do this job well.

Thanks for your consideration and for your collective interest in the success of our District.

Best regards,

Mark Intrieri