Wilma Tom Hashimoto has spent more than three decades working with children in the Central Valley two largest school districts, from building nearly two dozen preschool playgrounds to creating early learning curricula for young learners.
Hashimoto, now the executive director of CASA of Fresno and Madera counties, says her extensive experience as a nonprofit leader, school administrator and classroom teacher makes her the best choice to represent Clovis Unified’s Area 2 on the school board.
At CASA, Hashimoto leads the nonprofit’s advocacy efforts for the welfare of children in the foster care system. Hashimoto has deep roots in Clovis Unified, as well. She began her teaching career at Nelson Elementary School and served as a school administrator in the Clovis Unified and Fresno Unified districts.
Hashimoto is one of three candidates vying to replace outgoing Trustee David DeFrank, who is not running for reelection. This election’s most competitive seat on the Clovis Unified school board also features Janet Kardashian, a longtime teacher in the district, and author Molly DeFrank, a mom of six students enrolled in the district.
The Fresno Bee sat down with Hashimoto to learn about her journey. Here are five questions for Hashimoto. Answers are edited for clarity and length.
What is your experience as an educator?
I have 34 years of experience educating children. I started off in 1990 being hired by the first superintendent of Clovis Unified, Dr. Floyd Buchanan, at Nelson Elementary. Then I helped reopen Pinedale Elementary, where I was a first-grade teacher. Then I went to Clovis Primary, which is now called Clovis Elementary. My daughter was born in 1996 and after that, I became the coordinator of child development for CUSD. I helped to build 20 preschool playgrounds. I’m proud of that because early learning is so important.
I was awarded the Crystal Award, the highest honor they give to educators, in my 18th year at Clovis Unified. I was kidding with Larry Powell (a pastor and Fresno County’s former superintendent of schools) that other people have the certificates but I don’t have one. Then he goes, “You have a job offer.”
I became the director of early learning. He allowed me to work with the Packard Foundation to develop a transitional kindergarten program, and then we created the quality rating improvement system, a rubric for early learning. Then, I met former district superintendent Mike Hanson through a project on early learning, and I became the assistant superintendent there. I also worked at Fresno Pacific to do a study about how children learn math and science.
I’ve been the executive director at CASA of Fresno and Madera Counties since 2018. Our core mission is to have trained special advocates to represent children in the foster care system. It’s our journey alongside children who have been removed from their homes and that they’re placed in other homes.
What makes you want to go back to Clovis Unified and become a trustee on the board?
I got married in 1985 and moved to Clovis, and ever since then I’ve been with Clovis Unified. It wasn’t until recently that I moved out to north Fresno, but it’s still within Clovis Unified. When the seat became available, I thought about it long and hard, and turned to my faith. I’m an educator who’s been in the classroom, I’ve been at a school site. I understand children’s needs. I’m a child advocate. For 34 years, I’ve worked in different systems, and I’m already involved with the community and have served at multiple organizations and boards.
In my current role I’m part of the ecosystem that is working with 50 or 60 agencies to wrap arms around our community, our children, and their families. I want to take that experience and that knowledge to Clovis Unified. They’re doing a phenomenal job, but I hope to add value as a board member.
What is the expertise you would bring to the board?
It would definitely be the fact that I have experience as an educator, an administrator and an advocate for children. I was “Mother of the Year” in 2022. I only have one child, but I have actually taken in youth, informally, such as children who just needed about six months to land with their foster parents. It actually has been a blessing and eye-opening to see what kids need. So I bring all these different facets.
I am also a board member for various boards and commissions, so I know my role, the expectations of me and my responsibilities. I know my boundaries, and what I mean by that is supporting the superintendent and the administration. We need to work together. My quote has always been, “My North Star is that we make decisions every day at this job based on what’s best for the kids.” It’s not what’s best for Wilma, not what’s best for office staff. We’re advocating for children.
What are the issues you would like to address, if elected?
We know that COVID, that online instruction, didn’t work for a lot of children, especially for my foster youth. We heard a lot about the older children watching the younger children at home. Three years down the road, now we need to get back to the focus of academics. Getting back to the roots of the problems. For younger children, it might be interpersonal skills. The other part is mental health. Here at CASA, we train our staff and advocates to identify the triggers of adverse childhood experiences. It’s more prevalent than prior to COVID. Let’s do it hand-in-hand with the mental wellness of all the kids.
I believe that the superintendent and the cabinet are already addressing that. As a board member, my role would be to support the superintendent and the cabinet.
There are seven of us working as a team, seven of us with different perspectives, and figuring out what we are looking at, what’s the law, what’s the intent of the law, and what are options beyond what we’re presented with.
What role do parents play in their child’s learning?
In an ideal world, there is a beautiful relationship between children and parents where we’re able to parent, meaning guide them. They can come to us. We laugh with them. We celebrate with them. We also cry with them, and we lift them up. That’s what most parents do, but we know that is not universal.
We are guiding them to say why it’s important to get to school, the importance of showing up, the importance of being respectful, the importance of being punctual. In the schools, we need to ensure we are evening out the playing field to make sure there’s access for all children to Advanced Placement classes, club sports, all those different opportunities.
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