Aliso Viejo Mayor Pro Tem Ross Chun Endorses Gary Pritchard

ALISO VIEJO, CA —Aliso Viejo Mayor Pro Tem Ross Chun announced Thursday that he has endorsed Capistrano Unified School District Board Member Gary Pritchard’s candidacy for Aliso Viejo City Council this November, in a press release shared with Patch.

Chun, a longtime fixture in Aliso Viejo, has served the City, its residents, and business community for the last 16 years as a member of the Aliso Viejo City Council, the announcement read. Chun also serves as President of the Orange County Division of the League of California Cities, has twice been elected as chairman of the Transportation Corridor Agencies (TCA), and has been elected to the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Regional Council.

“I am proud to endorse Dr. Gary Pritchard for City Council,” said Aliso Viejo Mayor Pro Tem Ross Chun. “As a member of our Capistrano Unified School District Board, he brings almost a decade of experience with him in serving our community, supporting our schools, and keeping our families and children a top priority. He is a proven leader with the ethics, integrity, and knowledge to represent our City of Aliso Viejo fairly, effectively, and with dedication.”

As for Pritchard, he responded to the endorsement, saying:

“I am deeply honored to receive Mayor Pro Tem Chun’s endorsement,” stated Gary Pritchard. “He has represented Aliso Viejo with honesty and fairness throughout his entire distinguished career in public service. I look forward to working with him as a member of the City Council to support initiatives to encourage local economic growth and meaningful city planning that will keep our property values high and families safe and secure.”

Gary Pritchard has served as Aliso Viejo’s representative on the Capistrano Unified School District Board for the last 8 years where he has successfully fought to restore stability, attract top quality teachers, and assure district tax dollars were efficiently spent on safe, well-maintained schools for our community’s children. He also currently works as a Dean at Cerritos College, where prior to his administrative appointment, he served as a Professor for 14 years. His teaching experiences additionally include serving as an adjunct and visiting lecturer at UC Irvine’s School of Social Sciences; the Claire Trevor School of the Arts; and at California State University, Long Beach.

Gary Pritchard holds a Ph.D. from University of California, Irvine (UCI); a Masters degree from the Claremont Graduate School; a Bachelors degree from Chapman University; and a Management Develop Program certificate from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education. A longtime homeowner in Aliso Viejo, he lives with his wife -- a pediatric nurse and military veteran, and their children in the Vista Pointe Ridge area of town.

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Photos, courtesy Gary Pritchard