By Dianne Anderson

Voters are ready to grab their ballots off the kitchen countertops hidden under the stack of bills, mail them in, drive them in, or walk them into their polling places.

If they’re not, they should be. Their local candidates answer to the people.

With the Primary a few weeks away, contenders for education seats are all lined up and facing off against some of the harder questions of the public education system, like accountability, equality, career technical education, and support for underserved youth.

RAY CULBERSON — San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools

Ray Culberson is no stranger to the labels “controversial” and “independent.”

In fact, he intends to shake up the status quo.

A staunch student advocate for nearly 20 years, he is running against the “educational machine,” where he says insiders work from the same playbook rather than for the good of the students.

“What people don’t realize for the county superintendent of schools, there’s a machine that they put together and only a few people could get in there. So there were Black people that could have ran, and were better, but they were afraid or intimidated because they worked for the county,” he said.

Culberson served almost two decades as the Director of Youth Services for SBCUSD overseeing discipline and safety, and is very concerned about efforts to downplay educator misconduct, sexual assault on campuses, and school safety. He argues that those issues have caused costly lawsuits, and he also cites a 2023–24 survey showing that classroom disruptions are hurting well‑behaved students and creating a ‘pressure cooker’ of teacher burnout.

If elected, Culberson wants to show that seeking office means having no fear.

“You have to attack the machine,” he said, adding that even today’s younger generation is intimidated.

Proficiency and accountability are his top priorities. He said that the county’s 86.2% graduation rate masks critically low proficiency scores, running at only 28% in math and 42.66% in English Language Arts.

For starters, he said reforming education and getting people to do the right thing for the kids will also help stop the mounting complaints.

Culberson said the landmark equity complaint filed against the county in 2020 by Public Advocates and the ACLU of Southern California on behalf of local community groups ICUC and COPE shows the system needs fixing.

That complaint alleged that the county failed to properly oversee about $300 million in Local Control Funding Formula dollars intended for high‑needs students. A 2021 California Department of Education ruling later found that approved plans shortchanged those students by more than $166 million in services.

“Every day, School Districts settle lawsuits for students who have been abused and violated because of Educator Misconduct. Now, parents have to worry about Educator Misconduct at school as well as school shootings and bullying. Educator Misconduct must stop,” he said.

Understanding that college isn’t for everyone, Culberson wants to prioritize vocational training, work ethic, and union partnerships. With his background in gang intervention, sports leagues, and restorative justice, he plans to improve safety by strengthening partnerships between schools, law enforcement, faith leaders, and community organizations. He also advocates for housing and mental health initiatives to tackle student homelessness.

“It’s that you can’t let the machine just dictate who the citizens are going to vote for,” he said.

MALIHA WILLIAMSON — Riverside County Board of Education Trustee, Area 1

Among her top priorities, Maliha Williamson wants all students to have access to a good quality education, build more career pathways, and ensure that all teachers and staff under the Riverside County Office of Education feel supported.

She is concerned over attacks on public education, teacher retention, and efforts to erase the histories of underrepresented groups from school curricula.

Maliha Williamson

“The biggest issue in the race is candidates who sit on charter boards also running for county board of education. The trustees on Riverside County Board of Education decide on charters and having an association with any of the charter schools and then serving on the county board of education creates a conflict of interest,” she said.

Growing up in the Oakland Unified School District, she says diverse studies and civil rights education shaped her perspective, inspiring her to become the first female engineer in her family. Having benefited from public schools herself, she holds deep respect for the daily work of teachers and is concerned about continued cuts to school funding.

“The trustees serving their constituents need to keep up with the challenges and uncertainties and come up with innovative ways to address those challenges. With my engineering background, I do just that,” said Williamson, who also serves as an ambassador for the Women in HVACR (heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration) group to encourage more women to enter the industry.

She is a chemical engineer, an HVACR technical sales engineer, and president of the Riverside County chapter of the National Organization for Women. She wants to expand STEAM and Career Technical Education programs, promoting financial and media literacy.

If elected, she will be the only engineer on the Riverside County Board of Education.

Pushing for greater transparency, another big concern is advocating for more compassion in county level decisions involving student transfers and expulsions. Beyond her engineering career, she mentors at-risk youth and founded Dream, Achieve, Lead, a nonprofit providing tutoring, mentoring, and scholarships for local students.

In her previous campaign for Trustee Area 7 in 2024, she was thrilled to host a meet-and-greet with civil rights advocate and educator Jane Elliott, revered for her famous 1968 “Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes” exercise to demonstrate the impact of racism.

“I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would come face-to-face with Ms. Elliott, let alone have her as a guest of honor at my meet-and-greet,” Williamson had said.

She believes her practical background makes her uniquely qualified to advocate for families.

She serves on advisory committees for two local colleges to guide curriculum and hands-on experience for student success.

“I have a strong background in working with students and families. A practical approach, coupled with an extensive understanding of working with students is what makes me the best candidate for the Riverside County Board of Education, Trustee Area 1,” she said.

OLIVER UNAKA — Riverside County Board of Education Trustee, Area 1

For Oliver Unaka, public education is personal and he leans heavily into his own lived experience.

From being a homeless foster youth in Los Angeles wearing borrowed clothes, he emerged to become a husband, father, community leader, and educational administrator, and he credits education as the bridge that transformed his life.

Oliver Unaka

“My journey from being an emotionally unstable, unhoused, and transient youth to a trusted, well-respected family man, and educational leader is a testament to what is possible when a community invests in its children, and when voters elect the right representatives to reflect and steward our shared-community values. I am running for the Riverside County Board of Education to scale that success for all children within our county,” he said on his website.

He advocates robust career and technical education, wants to expand pre-apprenticeship programs and strengthen partnerships with organized labor unions to connect students directly to trade careers.

“My goal is to ensure that whether a student is starting from a place of strength or a place of struggle, they have a Riverside County education that acts as a launchpad for their ultimate potential.

With over 20 years of experience in K–12 and higher education, Unaka says he has helped secure or manage nearly $500 million in public education funding throughout his career. If elected, Unaka says his platform will focus heavily on supporting vulnerable, unhoused, foster, and “twice-exceptional” students.

He said he views his candidacy not just as a professional goal, but as a personal responsibility to pay his blessings forward.

“I am running to ensure that every student in Riverside County has the door of opportunity held open for them — a door that is kept ajar through fiscal accountability and with the strategic educational leadership they deserve,” he said.

To walk in, drop off signed mail-in ballot, or stand in booth to vote, see

San Bernardino County ROV Locator: https://meg.rov.sbcounty.gov/

For more information on the candidates:

See Ray Anthony Culberson https://rayculberson.com/

see Maliha Wiliamson at https://www.maliha4rcoe.com/

see Oliver Unaka at https://www.voteunaka.com/