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The two candidates running for the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District board’s Area 3 seat offered different views on district issues ranging from student safety, parental involvement and protections for transgender students at a Monday public forum hosted by Livermore Vine. The two also demonstrated different approaches to the role of board member, with candidate Deborah Gibson saying she would govern based on her “biblical values” and candidate Angela Brady saying she would prioritize ensuring a safe and respectful environment for all students.
Brady, a district parent and data analyst, and Gibson, a retired teacher, are vying to represent residents in north Livermore and those living north of the city’s border on the five-person school board. The winner would serve a four-year term through 2030.
As the district’s first by-trustee-area election, there are no incumbents.
Brady introduced herself as the daughter of a retired public school teacher, a public-school graduate and the parent of two children attending schools in Springtown.
She said she is running for the board seat because every child deserves access to high-quality public education in a safe, welcoming and supportive environment.
As a district parent, Brady said, she has seen high and lows in the partnership between families, educators and district leadership.
Families deserve clear and accessible information about district decisions, policies and expenditures, she said.
In addition to transparency, Brady said she is committed to student safety and wellbeing as expressed through the district’s affirmation that “All Kids Are Our Kids.”
Work must continue, she said, to make sure “every child feels safe, respected (and) supported. This includes LGBTQ+ students and others who may be vulnerable to bullying, discrimination or exclusion.”
Gibson in her opening statement said she would advocate for parents, prioritize academic achievement, promote fiscal responsibility, support safe schools and restore trust with the community.
“I am a Christian, and I will vote according to biblical values,” she later said. “More than answering to the voters, I answer to God.”
Gibson said she has regularly attended school board meetings for the last two years, initially to pray over the city, board and teachers and to ask for God’s intervention.
Deborah Gibson is running for the Area 3 seat on the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District board in the district’s first by-trustee-area election. (Photo by Chuck Deckert)
At those meetings, Gibson said, she noticed the need for more parental involvement and transparency.
“I will be a voice for families who feel unheard and encourage meaningful parent involvement in school board decisions,” she said.
Before becoming a teacher, Gibson said, she worked as an insurance underwriter for Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co. She has also served on the board of the Livermore Pregnancy Resource Center and His Nesting Place, a pro-life nonprofit Christian church and home for pregnant women in Long Beach.
“Every student deserves to learn and participate in school activities in a safe, fair and respectful environment,” Gibson said.
The most important issue for Area 3 is academic excellence, Gibson said, adding that families send their children to school to get a good education that will enable them to become a productive citizen upon graduation.
Brady pointed to transparency and the communication of available services as top issues. Families can’t utilize services they don’t know about, she said. By better informing families, the district can also learn about what services are missing from current offerings.
For respondents to an online survey from Livermore Vine, the most common community concern was student safety.
Recalling earthquake drills from her time in school, Brady said, “It’s a very different concept now. It’s more complicated.”
Students are also dealing with safety-related issues “younger and younger,” she said.
“The support systems need to address that change,” Brady added.
The Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District currently partners with Horizons Family Counseling, a division of the Livermore Police Department, for youth and family services such as counseling and education.
Brady said she wants to see Horizons Family Counseling services brought to the elementary-school level.
Bullying was top of mind for Gibson.
“Its a different world than when I was a kid,” she said.
Children should not have to worry about what other people are saying about them, Gibson said.
She said she’s had her own recent experiences with what she called bullying, pointing to a social-media comment Area 2 candidate Tara Boyce made on a Livermore Vine story about Gibson’s candidacy in which Boyce called Gibson a “dangerous human.”
The social media post was no longer publicly visible as of Oct. 1, but Boyce confirmed with Livermore Vine that she believes Gibson is unsuitable for the school board.
“I was kind of surprised to hear that from her, but that is exactly what these kids are having to deal with,” Gibson said.
Brady and Gibson also waded into the national conversation on transgender students’ use of school facilities and participation in athletics, a subject complicated by conflicting rules on state and federal levels.
Under federal civil rights law Title IX, sex-based discrimination is prohibited in schools and educational programs that receive federal funding. The law no longer protects individuals from discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender and gender expression, given a Sept. 28 decision from the Trump administration to officially rescind these protections.
However, the California education code protects students from discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender and gender expression. Under state law, students use the facilities and participate in athletics aligned with their gender.
Gibson questioned the existence of transgender individuals.
Boys cannot become girls and vice versa, she said.
“I am absolutely against these children having to be in locker rooms undressing in front of other kids of the opposite sex,” Gibson said.
She acknowledged the conflict between federal and state law.
“I can only pray that this will get straightened out with new people that are going to be in office,” Gibson said.
Brady said the school board is obligated to follow state law.
“I would feel no hesitation in making sure that the protections that are currently allowed are enforced,” Brady said.
She criticized the idea that it’s enforceable to have student-athletes play on teams that align with their sex.
“How would you propose to confirm this?” she asked.
The goal is to build citizenry and community, she said, and “you can’t do that if you are violating the trust and privacy of your children.”
The school board seat is considered a nonpartisan office.
Brady is endorsed by the Tri-Valley Democratic Club, Alameda County Democratic Party and the East Bay Stonewall Democratic Club.
The Tri-Valley Republicans consider Gibson as having a conservative slate, according to the club website, but Gibson said she has not received any endorsements.
Brady has also been endorsed by the Livermore Education Association, California School Employees Association, Livermore Advocates for Public Education, departing district board members Steven DrouinandEmily Prusso, board member Craig Bueno and Alameda County Board of Education board President Cheryl Cook-Kallio.
The Sept. 28 forum also featured the Area 2 candidates and Area 4 candidates answering the same questions. In her closing statement, Boyce singled out Gibson, saying public schools are intended to be agnostic.
“I don’t want somebody on the board who uses their biblical ideals to make decisions,” Boyce said. “That frightens me because biblical ideals only apply to a small portion of the world’s population.”
Boyce was the final speaker, so Gibson did not rebut.
At the forum, candidates also addressed questions regarding the district’s financial footing, the use of artificial intelligence, the status of facility maintenance and the work of Superintendent Tony Limoges.
A recording of the forum will be posted on Livermore Vine.
