Grace Mah Is New President of County Education Board

The following information was provided by the Santa Clara County Office of Education:

The Santa Clara County Board of Education has elected Grace H. Mah as president for the coming year, and Dr. Michael Chang as vice president.

The unanimous vote at the board’s Wednesday meeting followed the induction ceremony for four board members: Leon Beauchman, Joseph Di Salvo, Anna Song and Mah, all of whom maintained their seats after the November election.  (Darcie Green, who was appointed to the board in October, was inducted on Nov. 7.)

Mah was nominated by Julia Hover-Smoot, who had been vice-president.  In her remarks, Hover-Smoot explained that she would not accept a nomination to be president because of time constraints.

Also at the meeting, the board approved a countywide charter petition for Summit Public School: Denali, and made changes to its 2013 meeting schedule, including adding a meeting on January 23.

Mah was appointed to the board in 2007, and first won election in 2008. Previously she was a board member of the Palo Alto Family YMCA. She also has been a parent volunteer at Hoover and Ohlone Elementary Schools in Palo Alto, serving on school site councils.  She succeeds Joseph Di Salvo, who was board president the past two years.

Chang was elected to the board in 2010. He is a faculty member, department chairman and founder of a leadership institute promoting civic education and student success at De Anza College. He has served as a council member and two-term mayor of Cupertino, and board member and president of the Cupertino Union School District.