A Voice for Students: Meet Jalen Oben, Student Board Trustee for the 2026-2027 School Year

Please join us in welcoming Jalen Oben as the Student District Advisory Committee (SDAC) Student Board of Education Representative for the 2026-2027 academic year!

Mr. Oben is a 12th grade student at Newbury Park High School, and is the first student to serve in this role from NPHS. He is a dedicated community leader, having served on CVUSD’s Student District Advisory Committee (SDAC) for more than a year. He was also recently elected to the SDAC Chairperson position.

Throughout the District, Mr. Oben also serves as the Vice President of Newbury Park High School’s Associated Student Government and recently concluded his tenure on CVUSD’s Measure I Bond Oversight Committee. Outside of his District work, Mr. Oben is a Student Intern at Westminster Free Clinic, a private, nonprofit community healthcare center serving the working poor and uninsured residents of Ventura County. Additionally, Mr. Oben recently had the opportunity to deliver a TEDx Talk on Gen Z’s use of grit, challenging perceptions about the generation’s alleged lack of it and exploring how grit will shape its impact on an ever-changing world. 

As the Student Board Trustee, Mr. Oben hopes to engage in a multitude of community topics, emphasizing the voices of everyday students. He believes that the student perspective is the most fundamental pillar in fulfilling our district’s goals and wants to ensure that CVUSD remains a leading source for providing youth with the tools to innovate and make a meaningful impact on society.

This is the eighth consecutive year that a student from the Student District Advisory Committee (SDAC) will serve as a Student Board of Education Representative.

SDAC is made up of approximately 3-7 students from each high school site. The Student DAC representatives meet once a month with CVUSD Assistant Superintendents and Directors to discuss policies, events and important topics concerning students and the district. More about the mission/purpose of SDAC and the scheduled meeting dates for the 2026-2027 school year is available on the dedicated SDAC webpage: www.conejousd.org/SDAC.

SDAC welcomes student input at their meetings via public comment. Students can also communicate with SDAC via their Instagram, and through outreach to any of the SDAC representatives from CVUSD's five high school sites.

Welcome, Mr. Oben, we look forward to having you on the dais for the 2026-2027 school year!