What’s at stake in this race

Long Beach Unified School District is one of the largest school districts in the state and the second-largest in Los Angeles County. This election, two seats on the five-person governing board are up for grabs.

In District 1 — which includes California Heights, Bixby Knolls and North Long Beach — Maria Isabel López holds the seat. She’s the newest member of the board and has brought the rare dissenting voice to a board whose members often vote unanimously. Her challenger is former LBUSD schoolteacher Deborah Betance.

This election will be closely watched because both candidates have found themselves in the spotlight. More on that below.

What does the Long Beach Unified School Board do?

• Employs, evaluates and works with the superintendent. The board also sets the policy for hiring other personnel. 
• Establishes fiscal priorities. The board adopts the budget and the Local Control Accountability Plan (a three-year plan to connect the budget to student priorities). The board also oversees issues related to facilities and the bond money spent to pay for construction and upgrades. 
• Approves adoption of the curriculum. 
• Develops and adopts board policies. These policies govern everything from graduation requirements to safety to equity.
• Sets the direction for the district. This school board has prioritized equity and advancing educational outcomes for all students. Since 2020, this board has taken a “student outcome-focused governance” approach, which means board members make decisions based on how they will directly affect students.

You might know the school board from

Policies the board has passed

• In the fall, school board members passed a cellphone ban that went into effect across the district this semester. 
• Board members also changed how the district approaches safety by giving more power to school safety officers (to avoid involving outside law enforcement) and offering diversion to students who commit small crimes. 

Changes to curriculum

• Board members recently relaxed graduation requirements, mandating three rather than four years of math. They also added personal finance and ethnic studies requirements, in compliance with state law.

Approved cuts

• To ameliorate the district’s $70 million deficit, the board approved a cascade of cuts to mental health support, library staff, parent-support workers, nurses and hundreds of teachers.

Here are some things the school board doesn't do

• Board members don’t oversee day-to-day operations in schools and classrooms. That’s the job of teachers, administrators and school-site staff. 
• Hire, fire or manage district employees — aside from the superintendent, the only employee of the board. The school board oversees and evaluates the superintendent, and currently is leading the search process for the next superintendent. 
• The board sets the vision and policies for the school district while the superintendent implements those policies and oversees the daily operations across the district.

Fast facts about the LBUSD Board

• School board members serve four-year terms and have no term limits. Some candidates running, including Diana Craighead and Juan Benitez, have served three consecutive terms and are running for their fourth.
• Board members run as nonpartisan candidates, though the board has historically tilted liberal, based on policies and voting records.
• In 2024, each board member received a salary of $18,000, not including benefits, according to the state controller’s database of government compensation.

What’s on the agenda for next term

Long Beach Unified has had a tough year. The district is operating at a large deficit due to declining enrollment, rising costs and not enough state and federal funding. As a result, the school board has already authorized tens of millions of dollars in program and position cuts to balance its budget. And the board will have to make more tough decisions next year.

Meanwhile, the district has work to do in order to meet the ambitious academic achievement goals the school board set for June 2028. The district isn’t on track to meet most of these goals, and the board will have to strategize about how to advance student outcomes.

The board will also have to steer the district as a new superintendent takes over to lead LBUSD following Jill Baker’s retirement after serving six years in the role.

What it takes to win

Because only two candidates are running, whoever receives more votes in the June 2 primary will be declared the winner, and no general election will take place.

The candidates for Long Beach Unified School Board, District 1

Maria Isabel López, incumbent

Maria Isabel López's husband, Rogelio López, is a Long Beach Unified teacher who has been placed on paid administrative leave as the district investigates allegations he sexually abused a student decades ago. Maria Isabel López has defended her husband and questioned the timing of the complaint, which comes as she is seeking reelection. The Long Beach Post quoted Maria Isabel López calling the allegations “unequivocally and categorically false. … We look forward to the full investigation to clear his name.”

López was born and raised in Long Beach, where she graduated from Poly High and went on to receive her B.A. from UCLA. She earned her master’s degree from Harvard Graduate School of Education. López has been an educator for 20 years, serving in various roles, including teacher, administrator and English learner consultant.

“I want every student to know they belong in classrooms where they are challenged, encouraged and inspired,” López says on the LBUSD website. “That is the kind of education I continue to advocate for and champion.”

In her own words

At the time of publication, López had not yet responded to LAist’s request for comment.

More voter resources:

• Website: https://lopezforlbschoolboard.com
• Full endorsements list here.

Go deeper: 

• Long Beach Unified Board candidates discuss equity and school safety at community forum (Signal Tribune)

Deborah L. Betance, educator/student

Betance is a retired Long Beach Unified School District teacher with a master’s in education from Whittier College. She worked at Longfellow Elementary School but was suspended without pay and eventually retired following her arrest in connection to a deadly hit-and-run crash. Those charges were eventually dropped after prosecutors said they didn’t have enough evidence to continue with the case.

In her own words

At the time of publication, Betance had not responded to LAist’s request for comment.

More voter resources:

Website: None provided
Social media: Instagram

How to get involved