Mary Jo Carreon is a former elementary school teacher who is currently running for a position on Pleasanton Unified School District’s school board. With her experience as a teacher in Pleasanton, she puts students and Pleasanton families first. 

She taught second grade at Alisal Elementary School for the past twenty years and has enjoyed her time educating students to make a difference in the world.

“She definitely made Alisal memorable because she was so kind to me and really helped me when I️ was in the second grade. I️ think she will do amazing if she is elected. She has been teaching for so long and has so much experience. She will take that experience and the knowledge that comes from it and apply it to her job,” said Gracie Quinn (‘22).

Carreon recently retired due to COVID-19, but has ambition to continue serving the city of Pleasanton in a similar way.

“I didn’t want to bring the virus home; I felt it wasn’t safe so I retired three years early, and so I was so sad. I really wanted to continue to serve the students of Pleasanton and families of Pleasanton because I love teaching so much and I love all the relationships that I’ve established, so I wanted to continue to serve this great community that we live in. It was a hard decision to retire so I felt like I could continue giving back in a different role,” said Mary Jo Carreon.

Carreon’s love for teaching, her students, and their families translates into a compassionate educator who wants to help the community for the better.

“I really loved being a teacher, it was my favorite thing because I love to teach them how to read, but I just love the relationships that I established with the students, and the [relationships] with the families, that really means a lot to me. I really feel like I can bring those skills to the school board. I feel like I’m pretty good at getting along with people, so I’d be able to get along with people on the board and people in our communities,” said Carreon.

Her specific goals if elected are to keep Pleasanton safe during the COVID-19 period. Her prime concerns reflect her understanding of the dangers of the virus, and a need to prioritize safety over rushing to reopen schools.

“I want to keep everyone safe during COVID. That’s one of my main concerns, I don’t want us to go back too soon, and then what happens in other states, where they all got sick. That would be the worst, so I want to make sure that everyone is safe and then when it’s time to go back we do it in a great way,” said Carreon.

In a broad spectrum, Carreon wants to connect the district with Pleasanton families on a more personal level in order for everyone to understand what the school board is doing.

“One of the things that I want to make sure is that we have really good communication between the school district and the community. I think sometimes there’s a lot of theories or speak that people don’t understand, and so I really want our community involved, I really want people to be understanding of what’s going on and to be more involved, so I think open communication and I want to make sure that everyone is heard, that’s what I really want to work on,” said Carreon.

Amador seniors are welcome to help volunteer for Mary Jo Carreon’s campaign, and earn senior service hours while delivering posters.