I am the youngest of three brothers born to a US Forest Service officer and a teacher. Raised in San Bernardino, California, I attended Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic School, Cajon High School, and Cal State San Bernardino where I earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics. I worked to pay for my university education as a camera salesman at FEDCO, a busser and waiter at Lucy’s Mexican Restaurant, and a soccer coach at Cajon and Aquinas high schools.I am a member of the Lone Pine Paiute Shoshone Tribe in the Owens Valley of California, a lay minister at Catholic parishes in the United States and the Philippines, and an amateur travel filmmaker, photographer, and writer.
Children should have the opportunity to go to a good school regardless of income level. Parents want a say as to where and what their children are taught. The market for charter schools has increased steadily over the years which suggests an appetite for school choice and the possibility of a robust consumer-driven educational system. I am interested in learning more about these more innovative ideas.