Moon is running for the school board

Fairfax County school board candidate Ilryong Moon says he can bring the voice of experience to the board, which is important because only five of the current members are running for re-election.

Moon was on the school board for 20 years. After a four-year break, he is running for an at-large spot in the November election.  

“For a school system like ours, it truly does require somebody with experience to work along with people coming in with brand-new, fresh perspectives,” Moon said. “That’s why we have 12 members – to ensure there are people with different backgrounds, different perspectives, and different mindsets working together.”

The community is invited to Moon’s re-election campaign kickoff on March 11, 3-5 p.m., at the Korean Community Center, 6601 Little River Turnpike, Annandale, 2nd floor.

Moon was an at-large member of the school board from 2004 to 2019 and served two terms as board chair. Before that, he represented the Braddock District on the board from 1996 to 1999.

In addition to his extensive experience, Moon says he will bring “a vast amount of knowledge and a unique background to the board, having been raised in poverty and been an ESL student.”

As an immigrant who came to the U.S. from Seoul, Korea, as a 17-year-old, “I’ve had to overcome so many obstacles. I had to study hard. My parents, who lacked English language skills, worked hard to support our family,” he said. “Education meant everything to us.”

Related story: Rachna Sizemore Heizer is running for the Braddock seat on the school board

Moon graduated from Alexandria City High School (formerly T.C. Williams), earned a bachelor’s degree from Harvard, and a law degree at William and Mary. He is currently an attorney at Moon, Park & Associates, based in Annandale.

“As a teenager, I believed that by working hard and focusing on education, I would be able to achieve the American Dream,” he said. “And that’s the kind of dream I want every student in Fairfax County to be able to achieve.”

The biggest issue right now is getting the system back up to speed following the challenges associated with the Covid pandemic, he said. “Unfortunately, no one anticipated the pandemic and we weren’t prepared.”

With so much divisiveness in the county over numerous issues, Moon said, “I want to bring people with diverse opinions together, people who might have felt left out of the discussion, so we can focus on what’s really important – our students.”  

Some of the issues he intends to work on include recruiting and retaining the best teachers, fairly compensating school employees, providing a safe and healthy learning environment, and improving the school system’s support of parents so they can better help their children at home.

“Fairfax County Public Schools is an excellent school system, but it can be better,” Moon said. “I want to continue my efforts to help all of our students be well prepared to enter the next phase of their life when they graduate.”

Moon ran for the Braddock slot on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2009 and lost by just 89 votes to Republican candidate John Cook.