Candidates for School Board at a PTA Council forum Oct. 3. Photo: Natalie Orenstein

Berkeleyside wants to help you get to know your 2018 candidates for Berkeley City Council and School Board. This week, we’ll publish questionnaires with the candidates daily.

See all 2018 election coverage on Berkeleyside.

Q&As with School Board candidates follow. We asked candidates to respond to some of the most significant issues facing the district — budgetary challenges, racial disparities and school safety — and asked them to share their other priorities. Learn why each candidate is running, why they think they are qualified, and how each plans to be accountable and accessible to constituents. Each questionnaire points to places you can find more information on the candidates.

Five people are running for the three district-wide School Board seats: incumbent Ty Alper, a UC Berkeley law professor; teacher Ka’Dijah Brown; realtor and activist Norma J.F. Harrison; entrepreneur and professor Abdur Sikder; and Julie Sinai, chief strategy officer at LifeLong Medical. A sixth candidate, instructional technician Dru Howard, qualified for the ballot, but she did not respond to multiple inquiries from Berkeleyside and did not show up to a recent candidate forum.

Click the following links to read questionnaires with each candidate.

In the coming weeks, we’ll have more stories on the key Berkeley races and ballot initiatives to help readers make informed decisions about the potential leaders and policies that could help shape Berkeley’s future. In the meantime, don’t forget to sign up for exclusive election updates by text from the Berkeleyside team.

The deadline to register to vote online or by mail in Alameda County for the Nov. 6, 2018, election is Monday, Oct. 22. This year, for the first time, folks can also go into the Registrar of Voters office (1225 Fallon St. in Oakland) to register and cast a ballot up through election day. You can’t leave with the ballot, however: You must fill it out in the office. (Stay tuned for further details on this new development.)

Other resources

See complete 2018 election coverage on Berkeleyside. Read all the 2018 candidate statements.

Berkeleyside is Berkeley, California’s independently-owned local news site. Learn more about the Berkeleyside team. Questions? Email editors@berkeleyside.org.