Prime Poway Woman No. 21: Linda Vanderveen

Also Read: Highlighting 31 Prime Poway Women

Ensuring that the thousands of children in the Poway Unified School District are receiving the quality education they deserve is the reason Linda Vanderveen is a Prime Poway Woman.

Vanderveen, a PUSD board member since 2000, has lived in Poway for 28 years. She moved to the area with her husband for the schools and quickly became involved in the PTAs, served as the president of the Palomar Council PTA and was soon elected to the Board of Education of one of the best school districts in the country. Not only that, Vanderveen was the co-chair of the committee that built the Boys and Girls Club in the city and has been involved in improving the Palomar Hospital and Pomerado Hospital.

Her work with the school district and the accomplishments of her students are what she is most proud of.

“The thing of which I'm the most proud though, is choosing, along with my fellow board members, the stellar superintendents, Dr. Don Phillips and Dr. John Collins, who have been charged with running the award-winning Poway Unified School District,” she said. “Under their guidance, we passed two bonds to upgrade and renovate our oldest schools, and now every student enjoys equity in facilities and technology, no matter which school they attend. Our test scores continue to rise, in spite of the most severe budget cuts in history and our collective goal is to make sure every student graduates college ready.”

Vanderveen—who noted that “28 years later people are still moving” to Poway for the schools just as she did—said she most admires the suffragettes.

What does Women's History Month mean to you?

“Women's History Month means sharing that history and the stories of women who laid the foundation for them to start that fight and the women who came after them, building the framework that allows women to fully contribute to society.”