Dr. Susan Salcido | Credit: Courtesy

Santa Barbara County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Susan Salcido officially announced her bid for reelection Monday. 

“Amid widespread change, our children deserve a tested, trusted, courageous leader with the experience and knowledge needed to guide us forward. It would be my privilege and honor to continue this work,” said Salcido. “Now is the time to build upon our successes and to actively expand the impact of our services on behalf of every child in our county.”

Salcido is now in the running against Christy Lozano, a Santa Barbara Unified teacher who recently announced her intentions to run for superintendent of schools. Lozano has taught in the district for 18 years, though a lawsuit filed by former Democratic consultant Mollie Culver alleges Lozano does not have all the proper credentials to run for the position, specifically the Administrative Services Credential required of any superintendent of schools — an allegation Lozano denies. The suit further asks the county registrar of voters to remove her name from the ballot for this reason. 

Salcido has spent five years so far in her role as County Superintendent, overseeing 20 school districts and 70,000 students. She has a laundry list of supporters from the education and leadership communities of Santa Barbara, including Congressmember Salud Carbajal; Senator Monique Limón; Hilda Maldonado, Kate Ford and Laura Capps from the Santa Barbara School District; and the superintendents of the Ventura County, San Luis Obispo County, Kern County, Goleta Union, Cold Spring, and Montecito Union school districts. 

“Dr. Susan Salcido is an extraordinary and gifted superintendent,” said Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley. “Through times of crisis such as the Thomas Fire, Montecito debris flow, and throughout the pandemic, I’ve felt reassured and heartened to have Superintendent Salcido as a trusted and respected leader at the helm of Santa Barbara County schools.”

UPDATE: This story was updated on March 29 to include information about Salcido’s opponent, Christy Lozano.


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