Tell us about your experience living in Charlottesville.

My family and I moved here about a year and a half ago, when my husband retired from the Air Force. We have previously lived in Hawaii, Germany, South Korea, Hampton, VA North Carolina, and Texas.  We were able to buy our first house which is old and needs lots of work, and we enjoy doing renovation projects together.  We live right down the street from Woodbrook Elementary, and love all of the activities that are going on around the area every weekend.  Some of our favorite things about Charlottesville are the vineyards, downtown mall, great libraries, and University events.

Tell us about your family.

My husband, Marshall, and I have been married for 11 years, and we have two children.  Our daughter is 10 years old, in 5th grade at Woodbrook Elementary and loves to do Irish Dance. Our son is 7 years old, in 2nd grade at Woodbrook, and currently obsessed with soccer.  My husband works in military intelligence, and I am a teacher.  I’m not currently working because I wanted to have time to focus on the school board campaign, and you can’t be a board member and an employee of the school system at the same time.  Last year I worked part-time at Agnor-Hurt Elementary school providing reading intervention tutoring.  

What does Charlottesville mean to you?

To our family, Charlottesville represents hope and a fresh start.  A year before we moved here my husband received a devastating medical diagnosis that cost him his Air Force career.  Within a few months of him getting sick we were homeless, jobless, and had to move in with our family in NC.  We really struggled with losing our plans for the future and didn’t know where we would end up.  I had grown up coming to the Charlottesville area to visit our family members who live here, and always loved Cville- so I encouraged my husband to look for jobs in this area.  He finally got a job offer and we were able to move here and start our life again.  I was able to find a part-time job, and our kids are so happy knowing that we don’t have to move again for a long, long time. So, to me, this place represents stability, family, and home.

Why did you decide to run for School Board?

I have taught in five different school systems over the years, because as a military family we moved quite a lot.  I taught in Raleigh, NC, Newport News, VA, Ramstein, Germany, Kaneohe, HI, and here. In each place I worked, I noticed that the members of the school boards had little to no experience in public education- and the decisions they made reflected that. I believe that I have a unique combination of assets to bring to the table: I am a career educator, having been a teacher since 2003.  I have three education degrees.  I have worked in this school system, and my children are students in Albemarle County schools.  All of these give me a valuable perspective to share as a board member.

I thought about trying to get a full-time job now, and perhaps running for school board in the future, but I knew that once I started working full-time again, it would be much harder to give up the salary and benefits to be on the school board, which only pays $6000/year. This seemed like the perfect time- my children are still young, I’ve gained enough teaching and life experience to have some great insights to share, and I can always go back to the classroom, which I truly love.

What changes do you hope to bring? 

I hope to serve as a strong advocate for what is best for our schools based on student, family, and teacher input, and I want the decisions the board makes to be informed by better communication with our community as a whole.  I want to push the county staff to really examine every school in our system to ensure that we are giving each school not just the same things, but what they need so their students can succeed.  I want to expand our pre-k program so that we can serve every student who qualifies, because that is proven to lead to better outcomes for all students.  I want to raise teacher pay to recruit and retain the best talent, but I also believe we should pay a living wage to all hourly workers like bus drivers, custodians, and after school care providers.

Overcrowding, especially at AHS, is an issue, what do you plan to do about it? 

My first classroom back in 2003 was a trailer, so I definitely understand the pitfalls of using temporary solutions to address overcrowding.  We need to be more proactive, especially in the fastest growing areas of the county, which are the northern and western feeder patterns.  We have enrollment projections and recommendations from the Long-Range Planning Advisory Committee that should be used to create expansion and construction plans that relieve the overcrowding at Albemarle HS, as well as our urban ring elementary schools as soon as possible.

What makes you different from your opponent? 

My experience working in five different school systems is extremely unique, and no candidate or current board member can offer that perspective.  The main differences between me and my opponent are that I have spent my entire career in public education, I have worked in Albemarle County Schools, and my children are Albemarle County students.

Many students don’t pay attention to School Board elections, why do you think it is important for them to be informed?

Every decision the school board makes affects the students of this county somehow.  Whether they are cutting money from the budget, approving staffing numbers, creating the calendar for the next school year, or deciding which school will get expanded next- students should always be paying attention to the issues that the school board is discussing.  Get to know each candidate, and their priorities and experiences.  Come to a school board meeting and say something during the public comment time about what you think are the most important things the school board should know.  Consider trying to serve on the school board yourself someday!  

What else do you want the people to know about you? 

I’m just a regular person. I’m not a politician, and had no idea how to run for office when I decided to start this campaign. It’s important to know that the majority of you (high school students) are going to grow up to be regular people, and the majority of our community (voters) are just regular people too.  It doesn’t take anything fancy or impressive to make a difference and serve your community.