When Dianne Jacob arrived on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors in 1993, she received a less than warm welcome from the incumbent supervisors and entrenched county bureaucrats.
A Jamul resident and former Spring Valley elementary teacher, Jacob had jousted with the county for more than a decade, objecting to a few development projects in East County. She also campaigned as someone who would challenge the status quo and bring more accountability and community focus to county government.
She laid out two initiatives during her first address at a board meeting: one, to bring a citizen-based budget approach to a county that was on the verge of financial ruin and, two, to shutter the El Cajon jail nicknamed the “Styrofoam palace” and instead reopen the East Mesa jail, which was sitting vacant while costing the county about $2 million a year.
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As 2020 winds down, so does the political career of Supervisor Dianne Jacob, who retires from the San Diego County Board of Supervisors next month after seven consecutive terms 28 years representing District 2.
In addition to many other efforts over the years, Jacob leaves her mark on the county’s community living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, as well as the family caregivers who tend to their needs.
Jacob, who was born and raised in San Diego, attended Grant Elementary School in Mission Hills before moving to La Mesa, where she went to Rolando Elementary School, La Mesa Junior High and Helix High School. She went on to earn her degree in elementary education and a teaching credential at San Diego State University.