This election season, Orinda voters will decide between competing visions for the Orinda Union School District.
Four candidates are contending for three seats on the Orinda Union School District (OUSD) board. Challenged by John Chabalko and Chloe Aftel, incumbents Katie Shogan and Edda Coleman will have to defend their seats as they work through differing ideas about critical issues such as traffic, artificial intelligence, screen time and school funding.
AI: Friend or foe?
One major issue in education is the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and how the candidates aim to control it.
“Who is [AI] serving?” questioned Aftel, who expressed concern over AI replacing students’ fundamental skills. “If students aren’t taught proper skills, how are we serving them?
Studies have shown that AI can undermine youth foundational skills, according to an NPR report. Yet its efficacy as a helpful tool has already impacted K-12 education, reports Education Week, transforming how students and teachers approach education. For those like Shogan, approaching AI means treating it like a tool – one that students can learn to use.
“We understand it’s not going away,” said Shogan. “AI should be used safely. It has a lot of potential as a tool for differentiation. But it should not replace thinking, creativity and problem-solving. Students and staff shouldn’t use it all the time.”
But for challenger Chabalko, AI is a technology best left at home.
“There’s no reason why an elementary schooler needs to be using AI,” Chabalko said. “It’s good to be exposed [but] they’re learning the fundamentals at school.”
As school districts in Los Angeles and New York place temporary bans on AI, Aftel mirrored his concerns, arguing against any AI training below fifth grade. Both she and Chabalko agreed that AI could greatly benefit students at home, but limited supervision could lead to problematic exploration and exposure for children.
“Teachers will need direct instruction as to how to judge the veracity of machine learning,” said Aftel.
According to incumbent Coleman, an OUSD policy addressing AI is already in the works.
“We have to prepare our children for the future. We’re observing and looking at everything,” Coleman said. “We should wait to be sure a solution is evidence- and reason-based, and supports students.”
Traffic woes
School-based traffic is one of Orinda’s biggest headaches, especially on Moraga Way, where commuters and traffic slow to a crawl before and after school. Though OUSD recently shifted school hours to alleviate traffic, many have argued that it had an opposite effect. Despite this, incumbents Shogan and Coleman defend the decision.
“Schools should focus on instructional time, not traffic,” said Shogan, who said she had yet to hear any complaints about the traffic. “Everyone is trying to put their heads together to work this out. Student outcomes and learning need to take precedence.”
For Aftel, more could have been done to address the traffic issue.
“At least make the gesture to talk to those affected,” said Aftel. According to her, the district could have engaged in “broader community dialogue.” But after the changes, she believes attention should be placed on what conclusions can be drawn – a sentiment Chabalko echoed.
“I’ve talked to a lot of parents with strong feelings,” said Chabalko, who remembered often being stuck in traffic while driving his kids to school. “But to turn that into objective metrics is difficult. [OUSD] needs to look into it.”
For Coleman, there is a “collegial atmosphere” about addressing traffic and other school-related problems.
“We’re in good standing with everybody,” she said. “We’re working in a collaborative way to make Orinda thrive.”’
Screen time
Cell phone use and screen time are issues parents and schools are continually wrestling with.
“Screens should be used responsibly,” said Chabalko, who worked in the tech industry for 25 years. “I’ve been inundated with tech my whole life … it’s exhausting.”
Once hailed as revolutionary, schools are now questioning screen time as a negative influence on cognitive development. In June 2025, OUSD banned the use of cell phones in all its schools, telling students to store their devices during school hours.
“It’s a pretty reasonable policy,” said Shogan. “We have not received much pushback on it … it’s almost appreciated.”
Coleman agreed, saying “Cellphones are a distraction … students don’t need them.”
Coleman said she didn’t give her daughters a phone until they reached high school. To her, the answer to screen time is a pen and paper.
But she realizes it’s a complex issue.
“Nobody has the right answer right now. Everybody is doing different things,” Coleman said.
But Chabalko had a slightly different opinion. Though he’s in support of the current cell phone policy, he argued there’s more nuance to it.
“The space is ever evolving,” he said. “There needs to be explicit guidelines from the board and instruction from staff to manage it. Having a stance against phones is not a good solution.”
Future funding
Funding remains a critical issue for many school districts, and OUSD is one of them. In a district with one of the lowest per-student funding rates in the state, local funding has kept OUSD running, but Aftel feels the district could do more internally.
“We really need to do budget reform,” she said. She highlighted how OUSD had spent between $350,000 and $500,000 on legal fees, as well as significant money on building renovations over the summer.
“I’d love to know where the money is going and why. What renovations are necessary and which ones are just nice?”
Coleman has a more positive view of the district’s funding.
She points to two bond measures, E and I, that allocated $105 million for capital improvements like renovations, new buildings and more. With much of the funds spent or accounted for, there’s concern another bond issue might be necessary in the near future. But for Coleman, OUSD shouldn’t be asking for more support yet.
“We’re not going out for a bond anytime soon,” Coleman said. “We need to finish what we started. We’re very good stewards with the bond measure and managing it.”
Besides the bond measure, local parcel taxes are vital for OUSD. In March 2023, voters approved Measure Z, a seven-year parcel tax to fund teacher salaries and more.
Should the district consider another parcel tax before the Measure Z tax expires?
“I don’t think we’re at a point where [a parcel tax] is on the table,” said Shogan. Coleman agreed, believing it would be “premature.”
“We’re very limited,” Coleman said. “We will stretch every penny here and the parents and communities will keep supporting us.”
But support, according to Aftel, is earned not given. In her opinion, any discussion about funding relies on communication and transparency between the district and parents – a relationship she believes needs fixing.
“There’s so little, if any exchange about how to better serve our children,” Aftel said. “There’s no cumulative interest in what people are thinking and no good mechanisms for parents to question the district.”
For Chabalko, the need for funding is ever-present and one that should address crucial facility improvements.
“Nobody is going to take issues with a roof that doesn’t leak,” said Chabalko, who worked on OUSD’s parcel tax committee. “There’s a large backlog of facilities projects that need to be supported by a bond. We need to go back in the future for one.”
