Civic Leadership: Influencing Education Policy

Women have a key role to play in all areas of civic leadership, whether that be city, county, state or federal. With remote learning and an increasing socio-economic divide, education is a top policy topic. Join two candidates on the November ballot for local county Board of Education seats, and former advisor to the US Department of Education, to talk about the state of education locally and beyond. We’ll also hear about each woman's career journey in civic leadership and why you should consider it.

Chelsea Bonini, Commissioner, San Mateo County Commission on Disabilities

Chelsea is dedicated to improving educational opportunities. Chelsea was a kindergarten and first grade teacher, and she is now the Executive Director of Not Without Us and an attorney. Chelsea served on the school board for the San Mateo-Foster City School District, and most recently, Chelsea was appointed to the San Mateo County Commission on Disabilities and the Personnel Commission for the San Mateo County Office of Education. If elected to the San Mateo County Board of Education, Chelsea plans to focus on countywide solutions for adequate and equitable education funding, access to an excellent education for all kids, accountability for providing special education & mental health supports, and early interventions to halt the school-to-prison pipeline. Chelsea lives in the City of San Mateo with her husband of 19 years and her two sons, ages 12 and 16.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelseabonini/

Nancy Poon Lue, Co-founder, Advanced Education Research & Development Fund

Nancy Poon Lue is the Co-Founder of the Advanced Education Research & Development Fund, which focuses on accelerating innovations in learning. She previously served as Executive Director at the venture capital firm GSV, where she oversaw the launch of their education accelerator and network relations for their education portfolio. Prior to moving to Silicon Valley, Lue was a senior official in the Obama Administration where she led the U.S. Department of Education's strategic planning and performance management initiatives, including the development of the federal agency's five-year strategic plan. She also worked as a Principal at The Advisory Board Company and as Vice President of Strategic Planning for Edison Learning. Lue graduated with honors from Harvard College and Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is a Presidential Leadership Scholar and a Senior Fellow with the American Leadership Forum Silicon Valley.

Grace Mah, Co-founder, Strong Start Coalition

For the past 13 years, Grace Mah has proudly served on the Santa Clara County Board of Education. Grace is running for re-election so she can continue her work as an advocate for the students, parents, and teachers of Santa Clara County. She stands for equal access to an excellent education for all students. Grace's 22 years of commitment to the community includes being the initiator for a language immersion program in Palo Alto, volunteering at Mountain View and Palo Alto schools, and being the Board President for Stevenson House. Grace has a B.S. from Caltech and an M.S. from UC Berkeley. She worked 18 years in high tech as an engineer, sales representative, and project manager.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracehmah/

Mayah Curtis, Senior Principal, Solutions+Innovations, Commercial Services, IQVIA

 Mayah Curtis is a Senior Principal in Commercial Services at IQVIA,leading the innovation and commercialization of new AIML offerings across U.S.businesses and in global partnerships.. Her experience is in healthcare analytics and technology consulting.  Mayah holds a Master of Business Administration from Georgetown University, and a Bachelors from College of the Holy Cross.  She serves as VP on the San Francisco City College Foundation Board and Director on the CMR Institute Board. She serves as a Girls, Inc. Women of Impact, and mentor with SHE-CAN (advising young women from post-conflict countries to become leaders who change their nation).