I’m excited to add my endorsement of Megan Pillsbury to the long list of deeply committed community volunteers and education experts who have already attested to her extensive qualifications for the position.

I have known and admired Megan for many years and believe she is an excellent choice for Piedmont’s School Board. But besides liking her a great deal and knowing her to be a deep thinker and a coalition builder, I have a few specific reasons for choosing her over a slate of dedicated and well-intentioned candidates.

#1: Megan has recently retired from a long career in teaching and curriculum development. Beyond the extremely relevant experience, the Board will benefit from Megan viewing a position on our School Board as her next full time job. She’s committed to working long hours to ensure our schools provide the best possible experience for students and their families.

#2: While Megan and her husband raised three children who all attended Piedmont schools, she is not currently a Piedmont parent. She has vast experience both educating and parenting Piedmont students, but right now she doesn’t have a horse in the race. She won’t be unduly influenced by the real-time experiences of her own children and their friends; rather, she will have a broad and objective perspective and a commitment to ensuring all students develop into responsible, healthy and well-educated adults.

#3: One of the key issues our district is dealing with is attracting and retaining talented teachers. We need Megan’s years of in-district teaching experience to provide the Board with direct insight into what motivates teachers.

#4: I’ve had specific discussions with Megan about the financing that PUSD has obtained over the past two decades and have been impressed by her full understanding of the strategies and implementation of our very successful campaigns. This is in direct contrast to other candidates, who seem unable to grasp the complexity and have in one case even created a misleading and erroneous narrative about how the board was somehow led astray and chose a sub-optimal bond strategy.

Megan Pillsbury is the real deal, and I’m thrilled she’s willing to work on behalf of my kids and all the students of Piedmont to ensure our district thrives in the coming years. I hope you’ll join me in voting for her!

Laura Pochop, Piedmont Resident