MEET JESSICA

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  Hi, and thank you for visiting my page.

 

  My name is Jessica Vaughn and I am currently the Vice Chair and District 3 School Board Member for the Hillsborough County School Board. For the last three years, it has been my honor to serve this district and my community. However, there is still more work to be done, which is why I need your vote on August 20, 2024!

 

  As a 42-year Tampa resident, I am also the proud product of the Hillsborough County School system. In fact, from kindergarten until graduation, almost all the schools that I have attended have been in District 3, including the University of South Florida, which I graduated from in 2010, with my bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. 

 

After less than a year of teaching in the classroom, my son Zachariah (the love of my life) was born and I switched to working as a substitute teacher so that I could have a more flexible schedule, while also remaining in the classroom and engaging with students.  While working as a substitute teacher, I had the honor of experiencing an assortment of different classroom settings, a variety of diverse schools and engaged with plethora of students, teachers, and support staff. I love the diversified experiences that my career, as a substitute teacher of six years, provided me. Also, working with so many different teachers, administrators, and support staff members, equipped me to be a fierce advocate for supporting all our employees, and constantly advocating for livable wages, jobs with dignity and respect that educators deserve, I also hold a current teaching certificate that expires in 2025.

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  As a member of the New Tampa community, I have been a Tampa Palms resident for fourteen years, where I live with my amazing husband; my eleven-year-old son and our three adorable dogs. In 2016, I was elected to the Tampa Palms CDD Board, where I served a four-year term and helped to manage our 3-million-dollar budget. I've also served on the MPO Board, the STAZ Board, the Tampa Theater Board and Great City School Board.

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  As a parent of a neurodiverse learner, I am extremely committed to making sure we prioritize and properly support our neurodiverse and disabled students.  In 2015, I earned my “Exceptional Student” endorsement to my teaching certificate and used that knowledge to advocate endlessly for both our ESE students, as well as our ESE support staff.

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  So, who is Jessica Vaughn? I am a passionate educator, a devoted mother to a child in our public school system, an engaged community member and a dedicated school board member, who isn’t interested in being just another “politician”. Instead, I have combined my experience, my passion, and my dedication to public education into being a prepared, hard-working, reflective, fair, responsive, and productive public servant. As your elected school board member, I have repeatedly demonstrated my values of transparency, integrity, accountability, accessibility, the importance of working across the aisle, and an unwavering commitment to this district!

  Would you like to know more? If so, please feel free to reach out to me at any time. I am always available for questions and feedback.