By Clint Reilly When it comes to making informed decisions about the latest ballot initiative , candidates for public office or how to manage the current water shortage, newspaper editorial boards occupy a place of singular distinction among opinion shapers. But historically, the editorial positions that newspapers take have been the exclusive province of their publishers and staff. Regular community members rarely, if ever, participated in their deliberations . With this in mind, the owners of this newspaper joined me in an endeavor to engage the public by recruiting exemplary local citizens to serve on the editorial boards of 11 Bay Area newspapers. The citizen board members are independent and broadly networked in their communities, making them ideal conduits for local concerns . In San Jose, the Mercury News recently announced the addition of Teresa Alvarado to their editorial team. Teresa is the executive director of the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley, which cultivates philanthropic leadership in the Hispanic community. Teresa’s deep roots in the community make her ideally suited for the role. Two former small-town mayors now participate in the discussions at the Marin IJ and Contra Costa Times . Andrew Thompson of Tiburon and Laura Abrams of Orinda also bring firsthand knowledge of the Bay Area real estate market. Andrew is well known for his reputation as an independent thinker and crusader for the preservation of Mar ...
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By Clint Reilly When it comes to making informed decisions about the latest ballot initiative , candidates for public office or how to manage the current water shortage, newspaper editorial boards occupy a place of singular distinction among opinion shapers. But historically, the editorial positions that newspapers take have been the exclusive province of their publishers and staff. Regular community members rarely, if ever, participated in their deliberations . With this in mind, the owners of this newspaper joined me in an endeavor to engage the public by recruiting exemplary local citizens to serve on the editorial boards of 11 Bay Area newspapers. The citizen board members are independent and broadly networked in their communities, making them ideal conduits for local concerns . In San Jose, the Mercury News recently announced the addition of Teresa Alvarado to their editorial team. Teresa is the executive director of the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley, which cultivates philanthropic leadership in the Hispanic community. Teresa’s deep roots in the community make her ideally suited for the role. Two former small-town mayors now participate in the discussions at the Marin IJ and Contra Costa Times . Andrew Thompson of Tiburon and Laura Abrams of Orinda also bring firsthand knowledge of the Bay Area real estate market. Andrew is well known for his reputation as an independent thinker and crusader for the preservation of Mar ...