I am a parent with three children in Fairfax public schools.

While all of the candidates are committed to improving the quality of education in Fairfax, only three of the six candidates have children in our schools today.

As a parent I know how decisions will impact directly on our daily lives.  It is a perspective I will bring to the Board.

For example, when Fairfax County considered moving school start times I knew how difficult it would be to rearrange all of the other activities – sports, arts, religous school – to adjust to the proposed changes.  I knew because we looked at our calendar and saw the challenges our family would face.

Additionally, the proposal would have had a larger impact on parents with children in multiple schools.  This was clear to me because my daughters, who currently leave for school at the same time and return within 20 minutes of each other, would have left 30 minutes apart and returned an hour apart in the afternoons.  This would have greatly impacted the ability of my daughters to attend after-school programs – and posed additional logistical challenges for my wife and I.

When “Town Halls” were originally scheduled to secure public comment – none were scheduled in the City.  I reached out to both City and County School Board Members and together we were able to add a date for a “Town Hall” at Providence ES where City residents could more easily attend.

In another example of where direct involvement raises awareness: when one of my daughters chose to attend Mosby Woods ES this year as part of the Advanced Academics program, we were concerned that she would lose the foreign language classes provided at Providence which we find so enriching.  My wife and I worked with other parents, the schools and the City of Fairfax to make arrangements for City students attending a County school to take the language as an after-school program.  Someone not in this position may not have been aware of this issue.

When the County makes decisions that affect all City residents, I will speak up and ask the tough questions on behalf of all those who will feel the impact.  As a parent with kids in the schools, I will feel these impacts directly and be able to ask the questions all parents are asking.  As a parent who is at the bus stop every morning and in our schools on a regular basis, I will hear the concerns of other parents – and of our kids – and be a voice for all of us when decisions are made.

The two incumbents retiring from the Board this year both have children in our schools.  It is important for parents with kids at a City of Fairfax school continue to have a strong voice on the School Board.  I will continue that tradition.

-Jim