THE NEXT CHAPTER
“ I think the sky ’ s the limit for Michael ( Tubbs ). The guy has enormous talent and potential — he ’ d be an asset to anyone in government or maybe in the foundation world , where he could do a lot of good for somebody who has a lot of money to dispense and put into an effective program .”
STEVE MAVIGLIO Political consultant to declare bankruptcy ; it left Chapter 9 protection in 2015 when Tubbs was a councilman heading a committee on the city ’ s financial restoration . Homicides , lack of education and poverty , a trifecta Tubbs sees as intractably linked , are all significant concerns . Four years ago , Tubbs won the mayor ’ s contest convincingly , with more than 70 percent of the vote , and he quickly went about acting on his vision . If anything connects his solutions , it ’ s a sense of communities healing themselves with outside structural support .
Tubbs ’ community-based initiatives included the Stockton Service Corps , which incorporates community service to reverse poor educational outcomes in south Stockton through volunteer mentors and tutors , and Rise Stockton , which works on educating the community about creating a sustainable future by reducing greenhouse emissions . Rise Stockton is funded by a $ 10.8 million implementation grant from the Transformative Climate Communities Program overseen by the California Strategic Growth Council .
“ When I think of governance ,” Tubbs says , “ it ’ s the ultimate act of leadership because you have to merge and forge consensus , you have to allocate scarce resources and put them toward priorities .”
Says Klunk , “ I think with ( Tubbs ) something ( that ) stands out is that at least three of his major initiatives are areas where he has attracted private philanthropic support to bring resources into the community to address some of our long-standing concerns .”
In 2018 , the Spiegel Family Fund donated $ 20 million to fund the Stockton Scholars program , which Tubbs started to help underprivileged students graduate from college . Students are mentored in high school and also get assistance on completing entrance applications and , ultimately , receive scholarships rather than loans .
“ He ’ s really effective at thinking strategy for resolving issues ,” says Max Vargas , Tubbs ’ senior adviser . “ Anyone can look at a problem and try to address the symptoms rather than the causes . He ’ s very much interested in trying to resolve things entirely .”
Tubbs advocated a data-driven approach called Advance Peace to reduce violent crime . The personalized fellowship program , launched in 2017 , mentors the young men most likely to be involved in lethal firearm offenses . “ We ’ ve customized it and worked really hard on being very data driven in identifying those most at risk of being shot or shooting someone ,” Erik Jones , chief of the Stockton Police Department , says . 209 Times mocked the plan as “ cash for criminals ,” erroneously stating the program was taxpayer funded , even though it was paid for through
40 comstocksmag . com | February 2021