Stanislaus County Superintendent of Schools Scott Kuykendall was among the newly elected county officials who were sworn into office on Jan. 3 inside the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors’ Chambers. The ceremony marked the start of Kuykendall’s second four-year term at the position after he ran unopposed during the June 7 California Primary Election.
Also sworn into office were these re-elected officials: Treasurer-Tax Collector Donna Riley, Sheriff Jeff Dirkse, new District Attorney Jeff Laugero, County Clerk-Recorder Donna Linder, County Auditor-Controller Kashmir Gill, County Assessor Don Gaekle and county Supervisors Mani Grewal and Terry Withrow.
Having served as superintendent since 2019, Kuykendall has overseen a staff of over 1,150 and a budget of over $301 million. The Stanislaus County Office of Education provides direct instructional programs and support services to the 25 school districts in Stanislaus County, including Ceres Unified. The office also provides regional programs and services in a seven-county area.
“Children are society’s greatest gift, and there is no greater responsibility than their care, protection and education,” said Kuykendall at the ceremony. “I am proud of what the County Office of Education’s 1100 committed employees accomplish daily, serving many of the most vulnerable students in our communities.”
On the Stanislaus County Office of Education website, Kuykendall has shared a list of some of his goal for his second term. He hopes to “engage parents through effective outreach and help them prepare their children for school, increase the number of county residents with a high school diploma, build a training center with the assistance and expertise of business leaders to provide job seekers with skills needed for the many good-paying jobs that often go unfilled, and boost the number of college graduates to address shortages in fields including education and healthcare.”
Additionally, three re-elected board members, Chinyere Nnodim-Jack of District 5, Alice J. Pollard of District 2, and Kim A. Rose of District 1 were sworn into office at the Dec. 13 Stanislaus County Board of Education meeting. Officers for the December 2022-23 term were also elected at the meeting. Chinyere Nnodim-Jack is chairperson and Kimberly Spina is vice-chairperson, Kim A. Rose will serve as representative to the Stanislaus County School Boards Association, Alice J. Pollard will serve as representative to the County Committee on School District Organization, and Mary Ann Sanders will serve as representative to the Education Foundation of Stanislaus County Board.
Kuykendall graduated from Cal Stanislaus State University in 1994 and then obtained teaching and administrative roles at Gustine, Delhi and Johansen high schools up until 2006. After serving as the director of educational services at Modesto City Schools from 2006 to 2011, Kuykendall joined the Stanislaus County Office of Education where he was a division director of career, charter and alternative education and was assistant superintendent before taking on his current role in January of 2019.
District Attorney Jeff Laugero replaces Birgit Fladager who was first elected in 2006 after the retirement of former District Attorney Jim Brazelton and she served 16 years in that capacity.
In a statement dated September 14, Fladager addressed her staff at the District Attorney’s Office: “We have accomplished quite a lot in the last 16 years and faced many challenging obstacles. Our many accomplishments include: creation of the Stanislaus Family Justice Center to better serve victims in our community; establishment of the Fire Investigation Unit to ensure professional arson investigations; use of technology to make the office more efficient, capable, productive and safe from cyber-attacks; and, of course, hiring the most dedicated and competent prosecution team anywhere. The obstacles included: a multi-year major economic recession that led to a 25% reduction in staffing; massive and ongoing changes to the criminal justice system which many of us fear are going too far and too fast without allowing a meaningful assessment of their effectiveness and consequences.”
Staff reporter Christopher Correa contributed to this report.