Board of Directors Spotlight: Meet Clark Shueh

Please share why you volunteer on the Board at Visions In Education.

I am inspired by Visions In Education’s Vision, Mission, and Values! Children are our future! I volunteer my time, unique talents, backgrounds, and experiences to advocate for them as a meaningful way to contribute to education, bring about a positive, long-lasting impact, and make a difference in the lives of students and families within the community.

What is it about Visions that made you want to be part of our school community?

I met Visions In Education Superintendent Steve Olmos at the San Juan Education Foundation Gala. I learned that Visions is a free, non-classroom-based public charter school that serves over 7,200 TK-12 students in 9 counties. It offers students flexible and personalized service through their Independent Study, University Prep, and Home School programs. I was intrigued and wanted to learn more.

Over the next week, I researched and learned about Visions’ leadership team, teachers, and staff, the innovative use of technology and educational approaches, and the flexibility of education options beyond traditional public schools. Visions is legit with a long, solid track record.

What drew me in was how well Visions served its diverse and inclusive student demographics, including many special needs kids with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). I can fully relate because my son had an IEP throughout his high school years. I am grateful that he is successful because of the partnership and support we received.

How might you describe the difference that our teachers and staff are making by meeting the individual and unique needs of each student?

Each student is unique. Visions teachers and staff understand this and work together to address the social-emotional and academic needs of each student. They employ the appropriate tools, resources, and techniques, including Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), synchronous instruction, educator cohorts, grade banding, and service-based solutions.

What is one way that Visions is making a difference in our community from your perspective?

Communication is key to connecting with our community, and Visions does this brilliantly through The Wire. It is the central newsletter and one-stop shop for our community to stay informed on important announcements, events, stories, news, resources, helpful links, and connections to social media.

As a member of the Board, you have an important policy and oversight role to ensure the school is achieving its mission. How would you describe your role in holding Visions accountable for meeting our goals to a variety of stakeholders, including families, staff, and taxpayers?

As a Visions Board member, I have a fiduciary duty to act in the best interest and benefit of our stakeholders, holding Visions accountable to meet our goals and to achieve the mission. I would hold Visions to facilitate clear and transparent communications, collect/analyze/report on relevant school performance data, implement stakeholder feedback channels, establish performance targets and accountability measures with a focus on the goals, conduct regular evaluations and performance reviews against the goals, ensuring financial transparency and stewardship with public funds, and foster engagement and collaboration amongst stakeholders.

What are you most passionate about? How are you able to pursue that passion by serving on our Board?

I am passionate about technology and data and how they play a critical role to inform and help drive Visions’ goals and policies. Visions’ LPAD Student Support System is the clever technology that provides a secure single point of entry for students, parents, teachers, and administrators [and] that integrates and streamlines programs and platforms. Visions’ use of Data-Driven Instruction encapsulates a robust set of ongoing practices that focuses on assessing student learning, analyzing assessment data, and adjusting instruction in response to the assessment data in intentional cycles. These capabilities make a geek like me happy, and I will continue to support them as a Board member.

Please share a bit about your background, family, and what you like to do in your spare time.

My family immigrated to America from Taiwan when I was six years old. I spoke only Mandarin when I started first grade and was immersed in an English-only classroom. I struggled at first, but the more I practiced speaking English, the quicker I learned. In high school, I became interested in technology and enrolled in the Electronics Academy program. I graduated college with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and [have] worked in the High-Tech industry for the past 30 years.

My wife is a 3rd-grade public school teacher, and my son is studying Computer Science in college. My passion for STEM has had a generational influence.

In my spare time, I volunteer with the Folsom Lake Symphony, Bayside Church Folsom, City of Folsom Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), Intel Medical Emergency Response Team (MERT), lead an Intel PC Pals team, and lead a music jam band. My hobbies include computers, coding, gaming, STEM, music, painting, photography, culinary arts, HAM radio, medical skills, motorcycling, mountain biking, SUP [stand-up paddle boarding], snowboarding, backpacking, various individual and team sports, reading, writing, finance, and gardening.