My Story
Rep. Stonier sees public service as a calling and a responsibility. She currently serves as the House Majority Floor Leader and leads her caucus on several key issues like labor and workers’ rights, public education, health care access for children, financial literacy education, and portable benefits for Washington workers of our future. She serves on the House Appropriations, Education, Health Care & Wellness, and Rules Committees and is the first person of color to serve in 17th and the 49th legislative districts in Clark County.
Monica decided to run for office because she is passionate about keeping Clark County a great place to raise a family. Monica believes a good representative is one who listens to the community and makes decisions based on that two-way communication, advocates for ALL community members, and works toward an effective government and respectful debate.
Born at Edwards Air Force Base in California, Monica comes from a strong military family and believes we must honor our veterans for their service. Her nearly two decades of experience in public education as a middle school teacher, instructional coach, and professional development provider serves as foundational experience for her belief that equitable access to high quality education is the key equalizer for the challenges we face today.
She graduated from Kentridge High School, earned her bachelor’s degree in Psychology, her teaching certificate from Western Washington University, and her master’s degree from Washington State University Vancouver. She is proud of her Hispanic-American and Japanese-American roots, especially of her Japanese-American uncles who fought in the 442nd Go For Broke Infantry in WWII.
Professionally, Monica still works as an instructional coach in Evergreen Public Schools. She is currently focused on ensuring students who receive special services also have access to their legally protected experiences in the general education setting, and making sure they have the supports they need to be successful. Politically, Rep. Stonier is known for her steadfast advocacy for issues of justice and working across the aisle to best serve the state of Washington.
Her noteworthy and defining successes include passage of key pro-labor bills in Washington and garnering bipartisan support for Breakfast After the Bell, de-linking passage of the state test for high school graduation, and expanding health care access for students in school based healthcare centers.
Monica and her husband Brandon have been married since 2001 and have two children. She enjoys the outdoors, coaching youth sports, reading, cheering for her kids on the soccer field, and spending time with her family and friends.
Community Involvement
Current:
Chair, Financial Education Public-Private Partnership
Chair, Children’s Health One Table
Chair, Working Families Caucus
Commissioner, the NCSL Student-Centered Learning Commission
Member, Members of Color Caucus
Member, Japanese American Citizens League
Member, Evergreen Education Association
Member, Washington Education Association
Past:
Chair, Joint Legislative Taskforce on Improving State Funding for School Construction
Member, Middle Class Alliance
Member, Cascadia Tech Academy Advisory Board
Delegate, 2017 Asian American Leadership Delegation