Ahead of the November general election, the Southern California News Group compiled a list of questions to pose to the candidates who wish to represent you. You can find the full questionnaire below.
Name: Germaine Neumann
Age: 52
Current job title: Estimator (Heavy Civil Construction)
Incumbent: No
Other political positions held: None
City where you reside: Anaheim
Campaign website or social media: germaine4education.com
What are the top two needs of your school district, and how are you prepared to address them? (Please answer in 200 words or fewer.)
The greatest needs in Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD) are restoring resources and support to classrooms and reversing the decline in academic achievement.
First, our classrooms and school sites need to be the district’s priority. During years of stronger budgets, AUHSD expanded its district office and relied heavily on consultants, while classroom needs were not given the same attention. The 2024 decision to eliminate more than 250 classroom positions exposed the consequences of those priorities. If elected, I will use my MBA and 20+ years of accounting, finance, and construction management experience to scrutinize district contracts, spending, and future budgets to ensure resources reach students and educators first. That means protecting teachers, maintaining manageable class sizes, and providing schools the support they need.
Second, we must restore academic excellence. California state testing shows AUHSD students are dramatically below the state standards in math and English language arts, resulting in the lowest rankings for our neighborhood schools. Families are taking their kids to other school districts, private and charter schools with higher ranks. I will demand measurable academic goals, transparent accountability, and targeted support where students are struggling.
Anaheim families deserve neighborhood schools that every parent is proud to choose.
To you, what is the role of a school board in education? Is it driving policy, being involved in curriculum, something else entirely? (Please answer in 200 words or fewer.)
As a passionate volunteer in our Anaheim schools for the past 14 years, I believe the school board’s primary role is to provide leadership, direction, and accountability for the district. The board sets policy, establishes priorities, approves the budget, and most importantly, hires and evaluates the superintendent who is responsible for the district’s day-to-day operations.
While board members should not manage individual schools or dictate curriculum, they must understand what is happening in our classrooms and listen to the people closest to our students—parents, teachers, staff, and students themselves. Maintaining open communication with the school community is essential to effective oversight.
A board cannot fulfill its responsibility if it ignores concerns simply because they are difficult or inconvenient. Accountability means asking tough questions, examining the data, and making decisions based on what is best for students—not simply defending the status quo.
I also believe healthy turnover strengthens our democracy. Long-term service is commendable, but bringing new voices and perspectives to the board helps ensure that our elected representatives continue to reflect the evolving needs of the community they serve.
How do you feel artificial intelligence is, or isn’t, safe in the classroom? In what instances should it be expanded in the classroom? What about when it should be limited? (Please answer in 200 words or fewer.)
I do not believe artificial intelligence is ready for broad use in K–12 classrooms. Recent reports about AI systems behaving unpredictably, cybersecurity concerns, emotional dependence on AI companions, and instances where chatbots have provided dangerous advice to children should give us pause. When the technology itself is still evolving, our children should not be the testing ground.
I am particularly concerned that the Anaheim Union High School District has invested so heavily in AI over the past six years without sufficient evidence that these tools improve student learning. As a mother of a recent graduate, I have seen firsthand how AI has complicated academic integrity and learning. I have also followed concerns raised by researchers and professors at institutions including the University of California system, Princeton, and Harvard about AI’s potential effects on critical thinking and cognitive development.
AI may eventually have appropriate uses—as a limited instructional tool, for accessibility, or to help educators with administrative tasks—but it should never replace teachers, human interaction, critical thinking, or authentic student work. Until we have stronger evidence and meaningful safeguards, we should proceed cautiously, not rush to expand AI in our classrooms.
How do you believe schools can better teach or engage students in civil discourse? How would you like to see your district tackle this issue? (Please answer in 200 words or fewer.)
I believe schools can better teach civil discourse by giving students more opportunities to interact with one another and less reliance on screens. Students need opportunities to talk, listen, disagree respectfully, ask questions, and learn from perspectives different from their own. When students engage in meaningful classroom discussions and collaborative activities, the walls between them begin to come down, and they feel connected to something bigger than themselves.
Teachers play a critical role in creating these environments. That is why maintaining reasonable class sizes is so important. Teachers cannot effectively facilitate meaningful discussions, understand different perspectives, and ensure every student has a voice when classrooms are overcrowded.
I would like to see our district intentionally create more opportunities for student dialogue, collaboration, debate, and community-building across schools and backgrounds. We also need to strengthen our schools so families feel confident choosing their neighborhood schools. When families leave because they no longer believe their local school meets their child’s needs, enrollment declines can contribute to greater racial and socioeconomic separation. Strong, welcoming schools that serve every student well are essential to both academic success and a healthy, inclusive community.
Some school districts around California are recruiting teachers by building subsidized housing. How would you suggest your district could better attract — and retain — educators? (Please answer in 200 words or fewer.)
Affordable housing can be an important tool for attracting and retaining educators, especially in a high-cost region like ours. AUHSD is already exploring this opportunity at the former Hope School site on Knott Road in Buena Park. With 19 acres currently unused, I believe exploring housing for teachers and other district employees is a smart way to put an existing district asset to work for our employees and community.
But we cannot expect housing alone to solve our retention problem. The 2024 teacher layoffs, approved by the current district leadership, caused real damage to our schools. The administrative hearings and the potential of losing hundreds of classroom educators created uncertainty, disrupted relationships, increased workloads, and damaged morale. The effects are still being felt by teachers and staff today.
We need to rebuild that trust. That means investing in competitive compensation, manageable class sizes, classroom resources, and meaningful support for educators—not expanding bureaucracy at the expense of our schools.
As a school board member, I will fight to make sure our resources go where they belong: Every Student, Every Classroom, Every Day. We must make AUHSD a district where educators feel valued, supported, and want to stay.
What experiences and priorities do you bring to this role? What have you learned in prior leadership roles that makes you the person for the job? (Please answer in 200 words or fewer.)
For more than 14 years, I have been an active parent leader in AUHSD, including 14+ years of PTA leadership and involvement at our school sites since my son’s first day of preschool. I have learned that effective leadership starts with listening, building relationships, bringing people together, and keeping students at the center of every decision.
I also bring professional expertise that is unique to this role. As an MBA and a leader in heavy civil construction, I manage multimillion-dollar contracts, analyze complex budgets, and hold projects and stakeholders accountable. That experience gives me the financial knowledge and discipline to understand and scrutinize AUHSD’s $565 million budget while ensuring our classrooms, not bureaucracy, remain the priority.
My leadership has included building the Anaheim High School Aquatics Booster from the ground up and supporting our Spanish Dual Immersion Booster. Through PTA and school-site leadership, I have worked with families from diverse ethnic, racial, cultural, and gender backgrounds to find common ground and advocate for student success.
I bring the perspective of a parent, the experience of a proven community leader, and the financial expertise to ask tough questions and demand accountability. Most importantly, I will put Every Student, Every Classroom, Every Day first.
If your campaign had a mascot, what would it be and why? (Please answer in 200 words or fewer.)
The pencil!
Why? Because if you’ve been to one of my campaign events, you’ve probably seen people posing with a giant pencil! It has become our unofficial campaign mascot—and one of my favorite photo props.
But this pencil has a story. It was made by a mom I’ve known for more than 14 years. We met through our kids’ education, and over the years, we’ve supported each other, our children, and our schools. So for me, the pencil represents something much bigger than a cute photo opportunity.
It represents learning, creativity, hard work, and the power of putting pencil to paper and figuring things out for yourself.
And honestly, we’re at an interesting crossroads. Will we continue to make sure students master the fundamentals of reading, writing, math, and critical thinking, or will we rush headfirst into educating through AI before our kids have mastered the basics?
I’m not anti-AI. I’m pro-education first.
AI should be a tool in a student’s toolbox, not doing the student’s work.
So yes, bring on the giant pencil. Let’s keep our kids thinking, learning, and creating.
Bonus question: What is the best book you’ve read this year? Explain why you found it compelling.
I usually read several books a year, but the one I’ve spent the most time with this year has actually been the “Orange County Registrar of Voters Candidates Handbook.”
I know that may not sound like a typical “best book,” but it has honestly been one of the most eye-opening things I’ve read. As a parent and longtime Anaheim resident, I had never fully understood just how complicated it is to run for elected office. Between the rules in the Candidates Handbook and the California Fair Political Practices Commission’s “Local Candidates Campaign Disclosure Manual,” I’ve learned that running for office is far more overwhelming than most people realize. It can feel mind-numbing at times.
We often hear that our democracy is meant to work best when regular people, our neighbors, parents, teachers, and local residents, step up to serve. But after reading through all of these regulations, I can also see why so many everyday people feel discouraged from running. The process is complicated, time-consuming, and difficult to navigate without a lot of support.
That is especially concerning when it comes to local offices like school boards. These positions should be filled by people who are closely connected to our schools and community. Too often, though, we see career politicians backed by political networks and special interests, while ordinary residents, especially parents, are left on the sidelines.
Reading these materials has made me even more convinced that if we are serious about strengthening democracy, we need to make our election system easier for everyday people to understand and participate in. A grassroots campaign like mine is taking on a very established political machine, and that experience has only reinforced how important it is to open more doors for local people. Just as I host a pre-meeting before every school board meeting to help my community better understand the agenda, I believe we should also be helping everyday Anaheim residents better understand the election process, so they can feel empowered to run for local office too.