Central Unified School District Board appointed Hermanjot Singh to be the trustee to fill the Area 3 vacancy after former trustee Natalie Chavez moved out of the state and resigned in January 2026.
Johnathon Burrows
Central Unified School District
The Central Unified School District board appointed Hermanjot Singh to the vacant Area 3 seat through the November election.
The seat had been vacant since Jan. 23 after former trustee Natalie Chavez, who assumed the position in November 2024, moved out of California and resigned from the school board. Central Unified’s Area 3 includes Justin Garza High School, Rio Vista Middle School and River Bluff Elementary.
The remaining six-member board decided to fill the vacancy to avoid 3-to-3 split votes and opted to appoint an interim trustee, which saves the district $50,000 in costs to hold a special election.
In the last two months, Central Unified received six applications and four candidates showed up for the open interview at Tuesday evening’s board meeting.
Each candidate answered nine questions focusing on the duties of a board trustee, district priorities and student outcomes.
Five trustees voted in favor of Singh, and one member abstained. Board Vice President Joshua Sellers said he chose to abstain because he felt he wasn’t able to decide on behalf of the people in an area that he does not represent. Two student trustees also voted in favor of having Singh as a trustee.
Singh is alumnus of Central Unified schools and graduated as a valedictorian at Central West High School, according to his application.
“Growing up in a single-mother household, CUSD was more than just a place I went to school. It was a community that believed in me, invested in me, and opened doors I may not have found otherwise,” Singh wrote in his application. “That experience gave me a deep, personal understanding of what is at stake when a school district gets things right, and what families lose when it doesn’t.”
Singh earned a bachelor’s degree in political science at UCLA. He returned to Fresno to work as an education policy advocate, supporting initiatives such as dual immersion programs and housing stability. He also has served on the city of Fresno’s Parks, Recreation, and Arts Commission, according to his application.
In the open interview, Singh said there isn’t any one-size-fits-all solution, but the board should put students first and foremost when it comes to making decisions.
“We’re facing the uncertainties of federal dollars and even what direction public schools are going. I think ensuring that we’re remaining committed to school attendance, addressing chronic absenteeism, all these things are super important,” Singh said on Tuesday. “There’s no particular issue that’s the biggest facing the district, I think you have to look at them as a whole.”
Several board trustees said they value candidates who center on students and are ready to make hard decisions, especially when they need to see the district as a whole rather than merely serve the constituents in their own area.
“I’m looking for a trustee who is student-centered and can also be humble, someone who knows Central Unified and has lived that experience, someone who is not going to fade away even if we don’t appoint them, they are involved in the community, and hopefully someone who is policy-oriented,” said board Trustee Nabil Kherfan.
Singh was sworn in on Tuesday. It’s unclear whether Singh plans to run for the seat in the November election.
Central Unified School District Board appointed Hermanjot Singh to be the trustee to fill the Area 3 vacancy after former trustee Natalie Chavez moved out of the state and resigned in January 2026. Johnathon Burrows Central Unified School District
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Leqi Zhong is the Clovis accountability/enterprise reporter for The Bee. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley with a Master’s degree in journalism. She joined The Bee in 2023 as an education reporter. Leqi grew up in China and is native in Cantonese and Mandarin.