Riverside Unified School Board Election Results

Riverside Unified School Board Election Results Announced for Trustee Areas 2, 3, and 4
Posted on 11/12/2020
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On Tuesday, November 3, 2020, three school board seats were up for election for the Riverside Unified School District (RUSD). Mr. Dale Kinnear was elected to represent Trustee Area (TA) 2. Dr. Angelo Farooq was re-elected to represent TA 3. Mr. Tom Hunt was re-elected to represent TA 4. Mrs. Patricia Lock Dawson, who previously represented TA 2, was elected Mayor of Riverside. 


Kinnear has had a long career in education having served as a teacher in RUSD and a principal at Riverside Polytechnic and John W. North High Schools. Kinnear will serve TA 2 and will begin his first term on December 11, 2020. 


“I’m honored by the support I received from the community.  The Riverside Unified School District was my home away from home for 23 years,” shared Kinnear. “It’s been a pleasure reconnecting with so many former colleagues, administrators, classified employees and certificated staff alike.  It’s also been a joy interacting with former parents and students.  I look forward to my continued involvement.”


Trustee Farooq was re-elected and will serve his second term on the school board. Farooq serves as Chairman of the California Workforce Development Board and has been an appointee of the Governor on the board since 2013. As Chairman, he leads the largest workforce development system in the country under the vision of the Governor and the Secretary of Labor. 


“I am honored to continue serving another term on the Riverside School Board as we thoughtfully govern during these historically complicated circumstances,” Farooq shared. “Our students deserve equitable access to a high quality education and we will continue to meaningfully collaborate with our community, parents, and employees to fulfill that responsibility. Everyone has had to endure extraordinary accommodations but we are compelled to meeting this challenge together to preserve the future our students will lead.”


Trustee Hunt was first elected to the Board in 2007. During most of his tenure, he has served as a delegate representative to the California School Boards Association. Hunt founded and directs the consulting firm, Hunt Public Relations, which serves the government relations, public affairs, and strategic planning needs of Inland Southern California-focused land development interests. 


Hunt expressed, "I am very grateful and proud of the confidence the voters of TA 4 have placed in me by this re-election. The work the Board has before it will continue to focus on all aspects of COVID which has shattered the educational delivery model that we are accustomed to in K-12 education with direct teacher-to-pupil classroom instruction. We continue to explore improved technology and communication tools to assist students and parents. I look forward to working with my colleagues including newly elected Trustee Dale Kinnear, and the stellar staff of RUSD under the leadership of Superintendent David Hansen. "


Trustee Lock Dawson owns her own environmental consulting firm, PLD Consulting, and created the Santa Ana River Trail and Parkway Partnership. Lock Dawson has served in a number of community and government organizations. She served on the RUSD Board of Education since 2011 and will now go on to serve as the 18th mayor of Riverside beginning December 8, 2020.


“Congratulations to board members Tom Hunt and Angelo Farooq on their reelection and welcome our newest trustee, Dale Kinnear.  I will miss my colleagues who I consider friends and wish them well addressing the challenges that lay ahead,” remarked Lock Dawson. “I am proud of our attention to student mental health and look forward to continuing that work in my new role as Mayor. Thank you to our teachers, staff, students and families for entrusting me with the awesome responsibility of serving on the board.  Thank you for your patience and support over these last nine years!”


About Riverside Unified School District:
Riverside Unified School District is the 16th largest school district in California, serving nearly 42,000 students in 50 schools in Riverside, California. The District serves a large portion of the City of Riverside as well as unincorporated areas of Highgrove and Woodcrest in Riverside County.