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Three candidates vie for school board position
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| Robert Martinez |
Incumbent Pete Cholakian is the only Fowler Unified board member facing competition in his reelection bid
By Josh Lopez
Editor
Three incumbents on the Fowler Unified School Board are seeking reelection this year, though only one of them is running contested.
Fowler Unified School District is split into two areas. One basically corresponds to the area around Malaga Elementary, with two representatives, and the second is the town of Fowler and surrounding area, with three representatives.
Among these three in Fowler, incumbent Pete Cholakian is the only candidate whose term will expire, and the only one who runs contested. Jerry Turner and Henry Murietta, the other representatives whose terms will expire, are running without any opposition.
Voters will decide during the Nov. 3 election on Tuesday if they will retain Cholakian, or elect one of two other Fowler residents.
Hollis Magill, a resident with experience as a substitute teacher and in business, is the only one of these two officially on the ballot. Fowler resident Robert Martinez, a deputy with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, is running as a write-in candidate.
Pete Cholakian
Originally a transplant from Los Angeles, Pete Cholakian moved to Fowler in 1977.
When he first joined, Cholakian, 61, had never worked in education, but he did have experience with children.
“I’ve been involved with kids since my kids were born,” Cholakian said.
Cholakian’s three children all attend Fowler schools growing up, and he became involved in sports programs and 4-H
Cholakian said he originally ran for a position on the Board because he wanted to make a difference.
He’s since served on the Fowler Unified School District Board of Education for 16 years.
“Hopefully over the last 16 years I’ve made some contributions,” he said.
Cholakian, who works at Fowler Packing, comes from a business background. He holds a degree in business administration from Pepperdine University.
He when he joined on the board, he learned the processes were different from business, and he didn’t realize all of the intricacies of the system before he was elected.
“It’s not that you learn it so much as that you understand it more,” Cholakian said.
His decision making process is to simply work for the students.
“You need to be honest and you need to represent all the children,” Cholakian said, “all the kids.”
He said he’s going to run for reelection as many times as he can.
“Until it’s not fun anymore,” Cholakian said. “Until I don’t think I can make a difference.”
Hollis Magill
Hollis Magill isn’t new to Fowler’s education system. She worked as a substitute teacher for FUSD for two years, and much of the time she was also a special education aid.
Since then she worked as a human resources director for 13 years, giving her business experience as well. She’s also worked for Fresno County.
Magill, 40, said the District has run its programs and education system well, but she wants to offer her own experience to the equation.
“They’ve done a great job,” Magill said of the Board and District. “I’ve been very pleased with how they are. I just thought I’d offer a fresh perspective.”
Magill moved to Fowler from Dinuba in 2003. She has two children, and they both attend Fowler schools.
She said she wanted to run for a position on the Board after she became interested in where her children were getting their education, and how it was being delivered.
“It’s something I’ve been interested in,” Magill said, “having the background in both working for the school district, and having children in the school district.”
Magill said an important part of serving on the Board is working well with others, so that everyone can accomplish the goal of helping the students.
“You need to be able to work as a team with administrators, with teachers, with parents, with students.”
Magill also has experience with the Parent Teacher Organization in Fowler, and has worked with Marshall Elementary School’s school site committee.
Though Magill believes the current District is doing a good job, she said private contractors working with the District should be fingerprinted if they’re around children.
She said the recent incident where the District discovered a sex offender was working with them as a contractor showed an area for improvement in the hiring process. She believes this change is either in progress or has already been implemented.
She believes the Board will benefit from her business experience and enthusiasm, and she wants to work with them because her children will be in the District for a long time.
“I care about the children,” Magill said. “I want a healthy school district. I want a functional school district.”
Robert Martinez
Martinez, 43, is a lifelong Fowler resident. He attended Fowler schools and graduated from Fowler High in 1984.
He’s been a deputy with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office for 18 years, and has a son who recently graduated from Fowler High, as well as a stepdaughter who is a current student.
He said he’s coached youth sports in town since he graduated, including baseball and football.
Martinez has a son with special needs, and because of this he learned about special education laws and said he will bring that experience to the Board.
Martinez was the parent who discovered a private contractor working with the District was a registered sex offender. He brought the information to the District’s attention, and the District fired the contractor quickly.
But Martinez said he was disappointed with how the District handled the matter afterward, as they didn’t send information to parents about the incident for more than a month.
Martinez said the delay was unacceptable, and he’s seeking election to make the District better.
“I think it’s time for a change,” Martinez said.
He said there are other areas he would like to evaluate, such as making sure student discipline is fair.
Martinez decided late to run for the Board, and missed the deadline to register to be on the ballot. He’s running as a write-in candidate, and he knows the odds are against him.
“I think it’s a long shot for me to be elected,” Martinez said, “but it’s not gonna stop my fight.”
Martinez said if he isn’t elected, he’ll form an advocacy group to watch the District’s actions and hold them accountable for their decisions. He said he wants to be a voice for parents who are unsatisfied with how things are.
“So, this is not gonna go away because of the election,” Martinez said. “I’m not gonna go away. I’m gonna be here a very long time.”
Fowler Unified School District is split into two areas. One basically corresponds to the area around Malaga Elementary, with two representatives, and the second is the town of Fowler and surrounding area, with three representatives.
Among these three in Fowler, incumbent Pete Cholakian is the only candidate whose term will expire, and the only one who runs contested. Jerry Turner and Henry Murietta, the other representatives whose terms will expire, are running without any opposition.
Voters will decide during the Nov. 3 election on Tuesday if they will retain Cholakian, or elect one of two other Fowler residents.
Hollis Magill, a resident with experience as a substitute teacher and in business, is the only one of these two officially on the ballot. Fowler resident Robert Martinez, a deputy with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, is running as a write-in candidate.
Pete Cholakian
Originally a transplant from Los Angeles, Pete Cholakian moved to Fowler in 1977.
When he first joined, Cholakian, 61, had never worked in education, but he did have experience with children.
“I’ve been involved with kids since my kids were born,” Cholakian said.
Cholakian’s three children all attend Fowler schools growing up, and he became involved in sports programs and 4-H
Cholakian said he originally ran for a position on the Board because he wanted to make a difference.
He’s since served on the Fowler Unified School District Board of Education for 16 years.
“Hopefully over the last 16 years I’ve made some contributions,” he said.
Cholakian, who works at Fowler Packing, comes from a business background. He holds a degree in business administration from Pepperdine University.
He when he joined on the board, he learned the processes were different from business, and he didn’t realize all of the intricacies of the system before he was elected.
“It’s not that you learn it so much as that you understand it more,” Cholakian said.
His decision making process is to simply work for the students.
“You need to be honest and you need to represent all the children,” Cholakian said, “all the kids.”
He said he’s going to run for reelection as many times as he can.
“Until it’s not fun anymore,” Cholakian said. “Until I don’t think I can make a difference.”
Hollis Magill
Hollis Magill isn’t new to Fowler’s education system. She worked as a substitute teacher for FUSD for two years, and much of the time she was also a special education aid.
Since then she worked as a human resources director for 13 years, giving her business experience as well. She’s also worked for Fresno County.
Magill, 40, said the District has run its programs and education system well, but she wants to offer her own experience to the equation.
“They’ve done a great job,” Magill said of the Board and District. “I’ve been very pleased with how they are. I just thought I’d offer a fresh perspective.”
Magill moved to Fowler from Dinuba in 2003. She has two children, and they both attend Fowler schools.
She said she wanted to run for a position on the Board after she became interested in where her children were getting their education, and how it was being delivered.
“It’s something I’ve been interested in,” Magill said, “having the background in both working for the school district, and having children in the school district.”
Magill said an important part of serving on the Board is working well with others, so that everyone can accomplish the goal of helping the students.
“You need to be able to work as a team with administrators, with teachers, with parents, with students.”
Magill also has experience with the Parent Teacher Organization in Fowler, and has worked with Marshall Elementary School’s school site committee.
Though Magill believes the current District is doing a good job, she said private contractors working with the District should be fingerprinted if they’re around children.
She said the recent incident where the District discovered a sex offender was working with them as a contractor showed an area for improvement in the hiring process. She believes this change is either in progress or has already been implemented.
She believes the Board will benefit from her business experience and enthusiasm, and she wants to work with them because her children will be in the District for a long time.
“I care about the children,” Magill said. “I want a healthy school district. I want a functional school district.”
Robert Martinez
Martinez, 43, is a lifelong Fowler resident. He attended Fowler schools and graduated from Fowler High in 1984.
He’s been a deputy with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office for 18 years, and has a son who recently graduated from Fowler High, as well as a stepdaughter who is a current student.
He said he’s coached youth sports in town since he graduated, including baseball and football.
Martinez has a son with special needs, and because of this he learned about special education laws and said he will bring that experience to the Board.
Martinez was the parent who discovered a private contractor working with the District was a registered sex offender. He brought the information to the District’s attention, and the District fired the contractor quickly.
But Martinez said he was disappointed with how the District handled the matter afterward, as they didn’t send information to parents about the incident for more than a month.
Martinez said the delay was unacceptable, and he’s seeking election to make the District better.
“I think it’s time for a change,” Martinez said.
He said there are other areas he would like to evaluate, such as making sure student discipline is fair.
Martinez decided late to run for the Board, and missed the deadline to register to be on the ballot. He’s running as a write-in candidate, and he knows the odds are against him.
“I think it’s a long shot for me to be elected,” Martinez said, “but it’s not gonna stop my fight.”
Martinez said if he isn’t elected, he’ll form an advocacy group to watch the District’s actions and hold them accountable for their decisions. He said he wants to be a voice for parents who are unsatisfied with how things are.
“So, this is not gonna go away because of the election,” Martinez said. “I’m not gonna go away. I’m gonna be here a very long time.”
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