How Tyrone Conde went from involved parent to school board member

DOWNEY — As Tyrone Conde enters his third month as Downey Unified’s newest school board member, he reflects on the journey that led him to run for the Board of Education and how, just seven years ago, his life looked very different than what it is today.

His focus began to shift as he and his wife embarked on raising a family, with a strong desire to be present and active in their children’s education.

Now as part of the Price Panther family, with a son in fourth grade and a daughter in second grade, Conde appreciates being able to participate in his kids’ educational journey – in an even more impactful way – as the newly elected Board of Education member representing Trustee Area 1.

As with many parents who seek to be more involved, Conde explained that his motivation to attend school events, join the PTA, and now, hold a seat as a Board member, stemmed from wanting to be a driving force in the continuation of Downey Unified’s work providing a 21st Century education, focused on character, technology integration and innovation for his two children.

“When I say our kids, it first originated from my kids,” Conde shared. “As a parent, you inherently think of your own kids and what you would want and expect a teacher, school administrator, principal, superintendent, or school board to provide for your kids.

“It just got me thinking – along with the encouragement of other folks in the community who motivated me to see myself as maybe an advocate, a voice, for all our [Downey Unified] kids and to continue to make sure that we stay on the path of innovation moving forward.” With that initial thought, Conde shared about the path that brought him to Downey.

A Los Angeles County native, Conde grew up east of Downtown in Boyle Heights, as one of six children – including his fraternal twin brother – along with his mother and father, both of whom immigrated from Mexico. At a young age, his interest and curiosity in how businesses engaged their customers was evident.

“I wouldn’t say I was a ‘normal’ 12-year-old,” shared Conde. “I would see a billboard or watch a commercial and ask, ‘why did they say what they said?’ or ‘why did they pick this music or use that tagline?”

Wanting to connect the dots and follow his enthusiasm for the underlying mechanics of marketing, he pursued a bachelor’s degree in Business, and once he had some years in the workforce, continued his studies and earned a master’s in Business Administration, both degrees from California State University, Los Angeles.

As a professional, he immersed himself in all aspects of the marketing and advertisement world, including working in sales, concept design, copywriting and media planning – forging a path of success in a notoriously fast-paced industry due to something he describes as “a certain relatability to people,” that is necessary when working in this field.

A career pivot into sports marketing proved to be a fruitful one when he was hired by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2007. While working his way up within the organization, the doors for massive marketing opportunities opened as the renowned NBA team reached the finals three more times and won two more championships.

During his 11 years with the Lakers, Conde rose to the position of Executive Director of Marketing Partnerships and was privy to impactful and high-stakes career experiences.

“I was able to work on some big projects with global brands that [professionally] put me in a high-intensity level… Working with brands like Toyota, Nike, American Express, and Gatorade on marketing campaigns that we know are going to have a global reach really gave me a lot of experience in being able to manage big and stressful situations.”

When asked about his time with the Lakers, Conde shared the excitement of working for the world-renown sports franchise, without downplaying the realities of the demanding schedule, which often included working late nights and over the weekends.

It was then that Conde, with the support of his wife – whom he credits for being the catalyst and “keeping it all together” in their family – began his search for a career move that could afford him the flexibility to dedicate more time to his two children. Having already worked in marketing with Bank of America before his sports run, Conde found a new opportunity with Downey Federal Credit Union (DFCU).

Conde, who is also fluent in Spanish, has been credited for being instrumental in growing and engaging DFCU’s Spanish-speaking customer base. This feat earned him a November 2020 feature in the Downey Patriot for receiving the California and Nevada Credit Union Leagues’ Tomorrow’s Star Award which recognizes “the achievements by young credit union professionals, ages 35 and under”.

His thorough understanding of the Downey community’s needs – especially around financial knowledge and having improved and better access to banking services – gave way to the creation of DFCU’s Spanish-language website. Other community-engaging efforts Conde has overseen or been a part of include the credit union’s financial support of the Dia de los Muertos event in Downey, DFCU’s student enrichment grants and their Financial Literacy Workshops for both children and adults.

“I think the last three years have been the most rewarding of my career,” Conde happily shared about his current role. Through his professional experiences in the Downey community, Conde expressed his appreciation for the Police and Fire Departments, the staff at City Hall as well as different community organizations such as the Downey Foundation for Educational Opportunities and the Downey Chamber of Commerce.

“Working at the credit union [DFCU] has really allowed me to embed myself into the community and meet a lot of great people who want to help. People like Martha Sodetani, Linda Saldaña, and [Dr.] John Garcia, who each really have the best interest of the community in mind,” shared Conde. He further stated how Sodetani and Saldaña were both pivotal in his run for School Board.

“You hear PTA, and… you’re not really sure what to make of it,” Conde explained about his involvement at the beginning of his children’s elementary journey. “As my kids started to attend Price, I noticed that we would get notifications on what the PTA did…That’s what motivated me. The PTA’s actions were directly correlated to some of the positive educational experiences that my kids were having. So, we began attending events and meetings to get to know the parents behind the scenes.”

One of the people the Condes would come to be familiar with was current Board member Linda Saldaña, who also has children attending Price Elementary. “We crossed paths a good amount at the Price PTA. Linda is very involved.”

Making the jump from involved parent to running for School Board, Conde shared that getting to know former Board Member Sodetani was inspiring and encouraging.

“You don’t have to be around Martha more than a minute to realize how much she cares deeply about our kids and our schools.” Even confessing to asking himself if he could be “as invested as Martha was,” he shared that having several conversations with Sodetani ultimately gave him the confidence to overcome any apprehensions he had about trying to fill his predecessor’s shoes. He instead was motivated to see himself as a voice on the Board of Education to provide continued stability, high expectations, and ultimately further strengthen the work the Board has already begun.

“There’s been a lot of work done [by Downey Unified] and they deserve a lot of credit. One example that comes to mind is the gaming area. The high schools [Downey and Warren] are very competitive in gaming. And that’s trickling down to the middle schools. It even trickles down in my mind to things like Innovation Labs and Robotics in our elementary schools,” Conde shared. “I don’t think it’s all about gaming and technology but, whom are we kidding? That’s where the world has been going. That’s where a lot of jobs are and where a lot of upward innovation comes from… Whether it’s in the medical field, teaching, engineering industry or mechanics.”

“I feel like as a Board [of Education] and a Board member, it’s our job to make sure that we are in constant innovation mode… There’s a sweet spot for innovating at the proper pace, for introducing ideas at the proper pace, and making sure that we have the wherewithal to implement them properly… and that is my main goal now on the Board – to keep things moving forward at the right pace.”

The Condes – now with a few years of experience as members of the Price Panther family – are embracing all a Downey Unified elementary school experience has to offer. “My son is in Robotics, and he is currently training and trying out for the Carnival of Champions team,” Conde explained, while also proudly sharing how his daughter was very much looking forward to joining the Gardening Club in the third grade.

As Conde concludes with some reflection on his short time on the Board and the years to come, he expressed, “I have all the motivation in the world to make sure that all our kids in the district get what I want and expect my kids to have and experience. That honestly and genuinely keeps me motivated to ask questions and make sure that we stay focused.”

It’s evident that although Conde began this endeavor with the goal to support and positively affect his two children’s education, as he moves forward as a member of the Board of Education, every decision will be made with every Downey Unified student in mind as he now sees each of the district’s 22,000 students as his own.

“I’m just a normal father, person, and community member, who is doing something that I’m sure any other parent would do – do right by our kids – and I am going to do just that each and every day.”