Portola Valley: Three in running for school board seat Portola Valley: Three in running for school board seat (October 19, 2005)

By Marjorie Mader

Almanac Staff Writer

Three candidates, all fathers who have children at Ormondale School, will be interviewed Wednesday, November 2, by the Board of Trustees of the Portola Valley School District for appointment to an open seat on the five-member board.

The public session begins at 8:30 a.m. in Room 1001 at Corte Madera School at 4575 Alpine Road.

It will be a "round robin interview," said Superintendent Anne Campbell, explaining that trustees will ask questions to be answered by each of the candidates, and there will be opportunities for follow-up questions.

The board plans to make a decision at a meeting on Friday, November 4, starting at 8 a.m. at Corte Madera School.

The three applicants are:

** Joe Androlowicz of Woodside, technical training manager at Hewlett-Packard.

** Donald Collat of Portola Valley, a partner and chief strategist for Ernst & Young.

** Brad Turner of Portola Valley, CEO of Through the Lens (photography).

Mr. Androlowicz, in the most detailed application, says he would bring more than 19 years of professional and technical education experience to the board. He says he supports "partnerships and larger programs that lend to the growth and quality of the educational experience."

Mr. Collat says his family moved to Portola Valley so his daughter could attend the schools, and they could participate in a community with values that reflect theirs. A former professor of finance at Harvard Business School, he cites his long-standing interest in learning and his experience formulating strategic plans.

Mr. Turner, a 19-year resident of Portola Valley, says he and his wife look forward to having children in the school district for 12 more years. Besides providing the fundamental education critical for a child's success, he says, the district should teach social responsibility, tolerance, acceptance and compassion, providing students with "life skills that will enhance and go beyond academic training."

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