Sacramento State professor Francisco Reveles will serve as an alternative voice to the current candidates in running for California State Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2010.

Reveles serves as the department chair for Educational Leadership & Policy and is the only non-politician running for the office.

The Superintendent serves as the spokesperson and oversees the statewide K-12 education system.

Duties of the office include implementing education policies and standards, providing leadership through mandates and program development, as well as advocating and facilitating efforts to improve education.

The election is nonpartisan, although most previous officeholders have served as prominent Republican or Democratic lawmakers.

Reveles said that as an educational practitioner and university researcher at local, state and national levels, he was compelled to run for the position due to his dissatisfaction with the state of education in California and the political dynamics that drive the current educational paradigm.

“We seem to be locked into what I call a survival mode in education that has not and will not serve our children in the long run,” Reveles said.

Although Reveles shares a strong passion for education, his lack of political experience and funding may hinder his chances at winning the election against more heavily financed and recognizable candidates.

Reveles will be running for the position against some well-endorsed and known former statewide office holders.

Candidates who have announced they are runningso far include, Senator Tom Torlakson (D-Antioch), State Senate Majority Leader Gloria Romero (D-East Los Angeles), and Assemblywoman Betty Karnette (D-Long Beach).

Executive Director for the Center for California Studies at Sac State, Tim Hodson, said excessive funding and endorsements are vital in this type of campaign.

“If you cannot raise 2 to 3 million dollars then you are not a viable statewide candidate,” Hodson said.

Despite these disadvantages, Reveles’s colleagues believe his role as an experienced educator gives him a better understanding of core education principles than a politician.

Communication studies professor Barbara O’Connor said some politicians might not grasp the essential needs of students since they do not have hands-on experience in a K-12 education environment.

“They don’t have a real sense of what it’s like in a classroom,” O’Connor said.

Reveles has a strong leadership background and has worked with a wide variety of children including gang members and dropouts.

Associate professor for educational administration and policy studies Hazel Mahone said Reveles’s experience working directly in education may give him a great deal of credibility.

“Educators already have a fundamental understanding of what determines good and bad education,” Mahone said.

She said Reveles’s experience, as a teacher, principal, university professor and the department chair of the Sac State educational leadership program may bring needed change to the position of state superintendent.

Mahone believes his innovative nature will bring a lot of insight to the position.

Reveles has created an agenda for primary areas he would like to target if elected State Superintendent.

His agenda includes addressing the dropout issue and devising ways to decrease the dropout rate among students.

Reveles said he desires to continue working to adhere to and maintain high educational standards, as well as accurate data gathering and assessment.

He also emphasized the need to continue to educate and financially support teachers.

Finally, he said he would like to focus on leading and facilitating the dissemination of the best practices in the prevention of school violence and highlight interventions, especially those addressing gang violence.

Reveles said that through 30 years of working with community leaders and educators from diverse cultures and socio-economics levels, he has gained a valuable perspective as the only candidate with the practical and sustained experience to make a real difference.

“Dr. Reveles is a 21st Century educator,” Mahone said. “He is bilingual, can relate to all groups and realizes that demographic changes require bold leadership for all citizens.

Evelyn Bigelyaizen can be reached at [email protected]