Hayward City Council appoints Bonilla to replace Márquez
Earlier this month, the Hayward City Council appointed Planning Commissioner Ray Bonilla to replace the council seat vacated by Elisa Márquez, who was recently appointed to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to replace the late Richard Valle.
The Hayward City Council voted unanimously to appoint Bonilla to the seat after he received several supportive comments from members of the public and fellow planning commissioners. Bonilla had recently applied to fill a vacancy on the council and was among the handful of finalists interviewed for the seat, though Planning Commissioner Dan Goldstein was appointed instead.
“Ray was a very strong interviewer during that process and was the second-highest vote-getter and I am happy to honor the rankings of that night,” said Council Member George Syrop.
Bonilla was born and raised in Hayward and is a graduate of Tennyson High School and Cal State East Bay. He currently serves as the head of global business continuity and crisis management at Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook.
“I can’t imagine someone more qualified at a time when there’s going to be four new council members up here,” said Council Member Julie Roche. “I think it’s critical that we have somebody with this level of experience with the city.”
Hayward Unified school board picks new superintendent
The Hayward Unified School District has a new superintendent that was born and raised in the East Bay.
Earlier this month, the district’s Board of Education voted 4-1 to approve the appointment of Jason Reimann in closed session, with Board Clerk Joe Ramos opposed. Reimann will be replacing interim Superintendent Chien Wu-Fernandez, who has been serving for the past 10 months, beginning July 1. Reimann thanked the school board for selecting him and said he was prepared for all the opportunities and challenges that come along with being in a community as diverse as Hayward.
“Every Hayward student deserves excellent academic opportunities and social emotional support to be prepared for success within and beyond school,” Reimann said in a press release last week. “I am very excited to continue the amazing work that Hayward teachers and educational partners have been engaged with for the past several years. With such a diverse community, dedicated teachers and brilliant students, the years ahead hold tremendous opportunities for success. I look forward to meeting with staff members, parents and the community over the coming weeks to begin hearing how we can collaborate to build something special.”
Reimann has worked as an administrator at various school districts across the East Bay, including serving as the principal of De Anza High School and his alma mater El Cerrito High School. Since 2017, he has been the assistant superintendent of educational services at the Castro Valley Unified School District.
