Behind the shadows of the presidential election on November 5, Hayward Unified School District (HUSD) held their school board election. In the tight race for three open seats, Sara Prada, Peter Bufete, and Austin Bruckner Carrillo have secured chairs on the board.
Bufete and Prada, who were previously on the board as President and Vice-President respectively, had to rerun for their positions. Trustee-elect Bruckner Carrillo will be replacing Trustee Joe Ramos who had been on the board for a short term of two years.
All three elected members were endorsed by the Hayward Education Association (HEA). Prada was the first parent in about 20 years to be a member of the school board. Bufete was the only candidate that went to school in HUSD.
A close runner-up for a seat was Luis Reynoso—who had been on the school board for many terms beforehand—with 195 votes less than Bruckner Carrillo. Before all the ballots were accounted for, the results portrayed that Reynoso had won a seat over Prada, but the winners were clarified after all votes were counted.
Bruckner Carrillo, a resident of Hayward for a decade, has been heavily involved with the community as chair of Hayward’s Community Services Commision, an advocate for many human rights, and co-founder of a long-running LGBTQ+ organization in Alameda County. He mentioned walking 191 miles himself in the month of October going door-to-door to promote his campaign.
“I’d like to build a school board I believe our community should be proud of,” said Bruckner Carrillo.
He emphasizes supporting teachers and students who may be homeless, attacked for their sexual identities, or victims of domestic violence. He said his main goal was for every student to graduate from high school.
The school board members will be sworn in on December 16. Bruckner Carrillo is to be sworn in by Mt. Eden art teacher Carrie King. King and Bruckner Carrillo worked as colleagues in his LGBTQ+ advocacy.
Bruckner Carrillo advises HUSD students to “be engaged.”
“Don’t be afraid to stand up for what you believe in,” said Bruckner Carillo. “Don’t ever let anyone tell you you’re wrong.”
