School board candidates disagree on value of equity
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| School board candidates Karl Frisch (Providence) and Ricardy Anderson (Mason). |
One Fairfax, a framework adopted unanimously by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and School Board in 2016, calls for proposed policies and programs to be considered in terms of their impact on equity.
That’s particularly important for Mason District, which needs more resources to address pockets of poverty than more affluent areas.
Yet four of the Republican-endorsed candidates running for the school board denounced One Fairfax at a forum hosted by the Camelot Civic Association Sept. 17.
Andrea Bayer, the GOP-endorsed school board candidate for the Providence District, said she opposes One Fairfax because it is “ambiguous and authoritarian.”
At-large school board candidate Vincent Palathingal, also endorsed by the Republicans, called One Fairfax “disastrous for education.”
GOP-endorsed candidate Cheryl Buford, running for an at-large seat on the school board, blamed One Fairfax for encouraging school boundary changes and busing. That’s a big issue for Republicans who have unfounded fears that the school board will bus poor non-white children to schools in affluent areas.
Actually, as some of the Democratic candidates point out, One Fairfax is a declaration that all residents deserve an equitable opportunity to succeed, regardless of their race, color, sex, nationality, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or where they live.
One Fairfax was approved unanimously by the school board, noted Abrar Omeish, an at-large candidate endorsed by the Democrats. She said it’s important to make sure kids are challenged and have access to resources no matter where they live.
Palathingal also spoke against giving students free sanitary napkins, calling it “offensive” to suggest “immigrant children don’t know how to care for themselves.” Pricsilla DeStefano, the third GOP-endorsed at-large school board candidate, criticized schools for introducing too much technology, which makes it harder for parents to help their children.
Tom Pafford, who’s running for the Mason District on the school board, spoke about the sole issue he’s focused on: the need for schools to ban boys from girls’ bathrooms.
Pafford, who is so extreme the Fairfax County Republican Committee refused to endorse him, continues to insist that being transgender is purely a mental condition and that, despite scientific evidence to the contrary, biological sex and gender identity are not separate things.
Pafford’s opponent, Ricardy Anderson, a former teacher, principal, and school district administrator endorsed by the Fairfax County Democratic Committee, said schools with more needs need more support. “This is what One Fairfax does for kids here in Mason District,” she said. “My focus is to ensure all students have an opportunity to thrive and excel.”
As an immigrant herself, Anderson said she understands what immigrant parents are struggling with. She wants to improve access to all parents and supports needs-based staffing to “ensure schools are right-sized and balanced.”
At-large candidate Rachna Sizemore Heizer, also endorsed by the Democratic committee, said she became an advocate for special-needs students after struggling to ensure equal treatment for an autistic child. She said the school system should focus on students’ strengths – “what they can do, not what they can’t do.”
Karl Frisch, the Democratic-endorsed school board candidate for the Providence District, said too many teachers are leaving Fairfax County for other areas that pay more. “We have to do more to retain teachers, and it’s not just about pay, it’s about the respect we give them or deny them,” he said. “Teachers are the single best investment we can make in our schools.”
Frisch said the Providence and Mason school board members need to work together, especially on issues like the upcoming renovation of Falls Church High School.
Gary Aiken, the Republican candidate running against Mason Supervisor Penny Gross, spoke in favor of boundary changes – for voting precincts. He called it odd that one side of King Arthur Road is in one precinct and the other side is in another.
Aiken also said that a neighborhood affected by a redevelopment proposal, such as the Inova Center for Personalized Health, should be required to have representation on a citizen task force, even if the project is in a neighboring district.
Gross, who’s represented Mason District on the Board of Supervisors since 1996, said she is the only candidate with the experience and knowledge to do an effective job. “We’re making a lot of progress,” she said, citing her work on transportation, sidewalks and trails, education, the economy, the environment, water quality, the tree canopy, and safety.
Gross also spoke on behalf of Lee Supervisor Jeff McKay, who’s running for chairman of the board. She said “Jeff is smart; he is solid, he has the strength of his convictions, and he has experience.”
Joe Galdo, the Republican running against McKay, spoke about the burden of high taxes, while also saying he wants to address traffic and overcrowded schools.
Del. Vivian Watts (D), who is running for re-election in the 39th District, said her driving motivation in Richmond is to “get things done,” no matter who gets the credit. She spoke about the need to fix traffic congestion by providing more transportation options.
16 responses to “School board candidates disagree on value of equity”
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So Galdo wants to address traffic and overcrowded schools BUT lower taxes? Did he fail math class?
"GOP-endorsed candidate Cheryl Buford, running for an at-large seat on the school board, blamed One Fairfax for encouraging school boundary changes and busing. That’s a big issue for Republicans who have unfounded fears that the school board will bus poor non-white children to schools in affluent areas."
THERE WILL BE NO BUSING. I don't know if that's just propaganda, paranoia, or ignorance (perhaps all three), but it is not even on the table.
The FCPS school boundary policy has not had a comprehensive review since *1986*. It's LONG overdue. Chill out, people. Get a grip.
–kda
At one level, One Fairfax is apple pie – after all, who could be against "equity." The fact, however, is that the School Board has spun its wheels to no great effect over the past year trying to figure out what One Fairfax might mean for school boundaries. Meanwhile, budding politicians like Ricardy Anderson make clear that, for them, One Fairfax just means Mason District getting an ever-increasing and disproportionate share of the FCPS budget.
It shouldn't surprise anyone that people elsewhere in the county, who send their kids to overcrowded schools and to classes with far more students than the typical classroom in the Mason District, are pushing back. If this trend continues, Fairfax County will split apart, as the northern and western parts of the county won't accept the continued neglect of their neighborhoods and schools in favor of areas like the Mason and Lee Districts.
Oh, please – they are more than happy to throw money at Mason and Lee to keep the undesirables firmly out of their realm. Concentrating all social services, including increased school spending, in one or two area of the county is NOT equity.
LOLOLOL… Oh, yes, please tell me how "neglected" the northern and western areas of the county are.
Omg please go on about the neglect of schools in Vienna, I must know.
Class sizes in Title I schools are in the high teens to low 20s. In non-Title I schools, elementary school classes of 28-30 are extremely common.
So what? There are entire poverty-stricken counties in Virginia that offer a very high percentage of their students free preschool, lunch, and small class sizes, and other needed services. Who pays for all of this? Fairfax County, northern Virginia, along with the federal government. Get your head out of your ass.
All this shows that One Fairfax has been a giant waste of time because no one is ever going to agree on what's fair. A lot of whites in Mason think "equity" requires the low-income residents in Annandale and Bailey's Crossroads spread out across the entire county, whether or those residents want to attend schools in Vienna or Chantilly, and more money spent in Mason than anywhere else. Those who live elsewhere in the county think "equity" would call for roughly equal class sizes and spending as much on schools facilities in their districts than has been spent in recent years in Mason (Glasgow, Mason Crest, Bailey's Upper, planned expansion of Stuart, etc.) One Fairfax provides no roadmap as to how to resolve those competing interests.
I'd like to see the One Fairfax policy address the disparate educational achievement of male students. This fall, approximately 57% of the students in college will be female, and only 43% male, based on data from the U.S. Department of Education. This is a continuation of a trend that started 40 years ago and shows no sign of slowing. One Fairfax needs focus on why young men are failing to pursue higher education and start programs to encourage boys to go to college, and measure the success of the program based on whether there's an equal number of boys going to college.
Boys must suffer for the sins of their fathers. There is a gender pay gap and until that is fixed, the boys must suffer the consequences.
Oh, thanks for explaining that. I was under the impression that men had paid for their sins with their lives, being the gender most likely to die in war, workplace fatalities and the top 10 cause of death. I'll know there's equality when men and women have the same life expectancies.
We also like to drink beer and wheelie down the street on our bikes without helmets…so we got that shortening our life expectancies too.
Stop blaming the victims of poor judgement. 😉
Gary Aiken, the Republican candidate running against Mason Supervisor Penny Gross, spoke in favor of boundary changes – for voting precincts. He called it odd that one side of King Arthur Road is in one precinct and the other side is in another.
Yep, both sides of the roads should definitely be in the same precinct. That will force America to be one precinct earning the sobriquet "United States of".