Edwin Borques

District: Baldwin Park USD
Position Seeking: Governing Board Member

Question 1: Please share a meaningful experience you had with art (visual, dance, drama, music, media arts) while growing up.

My life has been shaped by the arts. I was discovered by a scout and was acting, modeling and performing right out of high school. I have worked with great talent such as Sade, Jennifer Lopez, Justin Timberlake and many others. I have done TV commercials, film and been in magazines all over the world. I was the first male model ever for Dolce & Gabbana and was the love interest/sailor for Sade's worldwide hit, "No Ordinary Love."

Question 2: What kind of creative solutions would you suggest to support student outcomes such as English language development, closing the achievement gap, and preparation for college and/or meaningful careers?

Every kid is different. Lets give every kid the chance to succeed. Some creative solutions would be more field trips and extracurricular activities to places like the new Broad Museum in downtown LA, Disney Hall to hear the Philharmonic and opportunities in dance, drama and the arts. Once we develop and nurture kids in what interest them, then the sky is the limit. I am a student of the BPUSD and I made it to USC, my dream school. We need to mentor and motivate kids and they will feel more empowered to think outside the box.

Question 3: What do you think should be the role of the School Board in ensuring that students have access to a broad range of study?

The School Board should be front and center in producing well rounded students that are ready to succeed in the real world. We hear too much talk about Common Core and Smarter Balanced. I want a renewed focus on the Arts. I want kids that can not only compete with their neighbors from Day 1 but can hold their own on an international level as well.

Question 4: In light of the Local Control Funding Formula and development of district Local Control Accountability Plans (LCAPs), what are your creative solutions for achieving goals in the eight priority areas?

We hear all this talk about not having enough funding and/or stagnant funding that doesn't change year over year. Lets meet and work with our more established philanthropists and create games, events, even competitions where schools and classes work on murals together (as 1 example) and the winning school gets a grant or aid or gets to paint the winning selection in some prized area of Downtown LA to be cherished and remembered for years to come.

Governing Board Member

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