County Board of Education Appoints 2023-24 Student Members

The San Diego County Board of Education confirmed the appointment of the 2023-24 student board members during the April regular board meeting. The first students will begin their service in May.

Student board members give a voice on the board and share their experiences and perspectives. They are recognized at board meetings as a full member, seated with other members of the board, and allowed to participate in questioning presenters and discussing issues. Student board members receive all materials presented to board members, except those related to closed sessions.

More than 40 students from across the county submitted applications, and after a rigorous selection process, the following students were selected.

Board District 1 

• Hadeel Jawad, San Diego High School (Board Member) 
• Isabella Guerrero, San Diego MET (Alternate)

Board District 2 

• Nicole Lasure, O'Farrell Charter School (Board Member) 
• Daniela Galvan, Castle Park High School (Alternate)

Board District 3 

• Isabella Ostmeyer, Helix High School (Board Member) 
• Malia Lebhar, Grossmont High School (Alternate)

Board District 4 

• Otoniel Mendiola, Orange Glen High School (Board Member) 
• Nethra Gopalakrishnan, High Tech High North County (Alternate)

Board District 5 

• Aaron Combs, Canyon Crest Academy (Board Member) 
• Beatrix Alexander, Oceanside High School (Alternate)

The student board members will each attend two consecutive board meetings, beginning with the District 1 student representative for May and June. The District 2 student representative will serve August and September; the District 3 student representative will serve October and November; the District 4 student representative serves January and February; and the District 5 student representative will serve March and April.  

Student members are recognized as a full board member and can participate in questioning presenters and discussing issues. They can also cast preferential votes, a formal expression of opinion recorded in the minutes, on all matters except those subject to closed session discussion. Student board members can also make motions that may be acted upon by the county board, except on matters dealing with employer-employee relations. 

The application window for the 2024-25 student board members will open in February 2024. Check www.sdcoe.net/studentrep for details as they are available.