Attorney Seeks School Board Seat
The first to throw his hat into the ring for the Tracy school board election in November is Dan Arriola, a county deputy district attorney and West High School alumnus.
Three seats on the Tracy Unified School District Board of Education will be on the November ballot. The terms of Jill Costa, Walter Gouveia and James Vaughn are all ending. So far, none of the three have announced whether they will run for re-election.
Arriola, a 26-year-old Tracy resident, has lived in the community since he was a child and attended local schools from kindergarten through his graduation from West High in 2007.
After high school, he earned a bachelor’s degree from University of California, Los Angeles, in 2011 and a law degree from University of Southern California’s Gould School of Law in 2014.
“I faced a lot of challenges to pursue an education,” he said during a telephone interview Wednesday. “I know how tough it is when there are obstacles to overcome. I want to provide as many opportunities as possible so all students can succeed.”
Arriola said one of his goals as a trustee would be to create a centralized source promoting scholarship help for students to continue their education after high school, in collaboration with schools and local nonprofits.
For graduates going directly into the workforce, Arriola said he wanted to help them be better prepared and build a competitive résumé.
He also said he would try to improve community engagement with the school board and make himself available to residents on a regular basis, not just during meetings.
In addition to his position as deputy district attorney for San Joaquin County, Arriola serves on the Tracy Youth Advisory Commission and is the chairman of Young Professionals of Tracy, a Tracy Chamber of Commerce group. He also sits on the boards of directors for the chamber, the one.TLC School for Homeless Children in Stockton and the Jose M. Hernandez Reaching for the Stars Foundation.
Arriola will have a campaign launch event at noon May 21 in front of West High School, 1775 W. Lowell Ave., followed by a meet-and-greet and campaign barbecue at nearby Zanussi Park, 1500 Promenade Circle.
For information: www.danarriola.com
