New School Board head aims for better APS-community relations

Arlington’s new Faculty Board chair for 2022-23 has tacitly acknowledged frayed relations involving county leaders and the constituents they serve, and in remarks kicking off his tenure appeared to check with the two sides to perform toward repairing them.

“I’ve seen neighborhood belief in our governing establishments erode,” Reid Goldstein reported all through 6 minutes’ well worth of remarks following currently being tapped as Faculty Board chair July 1. The general public, he acknowledged, has heaped “criticism and cynicism” on those people in power, such as faculty-technique leadership.

“We know our worries,” Goldstein acknowledged. “I invite the community along [to work toward] a greater level of performance. Provide your energy, your skills. If you’re prepared to add, there is a route to do so.”

As had been envisioned, Goldstein was tapped by colleagues to do well Barbara Kanninen for the coming calendar year. Cristina Diaz-Torres was picked as vice chair for the 12 months.

It will be a 2nd change at the helm for Goldstein, who previously chaired the School Board in 2018-19.

In his remarks, Goldstein – who in contrast to much of the past year selected to don a jacket and tie for this conference – praised Kanninen as chair for her “Herculean job” primary the Faculty Board for the duration of a 12 months that noticed faculties come back to life immediately after COVID shutdowns.

“I’m optimistic that we’re headed into a university year without a major threat to community health,” the new chair reported, speaking of a “post-pandemic” world.

Goldstein, an Arlington resident for approximately 40 a long time, was elected to the College Board in 2015 and re-elected in 2019.On this December’s departure of Kanninen (who is not looking for re-election), he will grow to be the board’s senior member.

About 4-fifths of the university system’s once-a-year finances comes from the County Board, which this yr made a decision to hold the economic spigot wide open up by not lowering tax charges despite spiraling will increase in house values.

In the course of his tenure on the College Board, Goldstein often has talked the chat and at times walked the walk of a fiscal hawk. He has questioned approval of pricey new amenities when a backlog of maintenance assignments for present structures exists.

In his remarks, Goldstein named for a additional nimble school process with much more efficiency. He also claimed that, with the faculty method all of a sudden seeing pupil-system advancement prices much down below what was projected just a couple several years in advance of, “we can change our capital-improvement assets to renewing and refurbishing current more mature amenities.”

(That claimed, the school process also is embarking on one particular of its most costly capital assignments ever in the new Arlington Profession Center campus.)

Kanninen’s departure from the dais at the close of the year is likely to impression the stability of power on the College Board, which in spite of being solely filled by Democrats has found substantial factionalism in recent decades.

People maintaining score have seen Kanninen and Nancy Van Doren spar for the hearts and minds of other board users. With Van Doren’s departure in 2020, it now appears to be Kanninen and Mary Kadera facing off most often, despite the fact that Diaz-Torres also appears to be to be carving out a niche for herself and emerging as a drive, as nicely.

It’s almost a provided that University Board is the most thankless political put up in Arlington, potentially any locality for that matter. Arlington University Board customers have been criticized by some after heading into a defensive crouch at the onset of COVID, enabling the faculty method to descend into months of on the internet studying that many concern lasted as well extended and induced much too much damage to students, academically and psychologically.

On the other hand, the board was hit with criticism from all those who felt it was not heading far enough to safeguard students from the pandemic.

When the pandemic strike, some moms and dads resolved to go their small children to other localities, to house-schooling or to non-public or parochial faculties, and some of these learners have by no means returned. The university system over the earlier two year also has seen an exodus of academics, help staff and even prime-degree administrators.

Arlington Faculty Board customers, far too, have been leaving in droves: Van Doren and Tannia Talento departed in 2020 right after rather short tenures of 6 and four several years Monique O’Grady remaining in 2021 just after a one four-year phrase and Kanninen tried to transfer up to County Board in a 2020 distinctive election but was defeated in the Arlington County Democratic Committee’s nominating course of action.

No matter if Goldstein opts to request a new phrase in 2023 stays to be noticed. As for now, even so, he suggests he is completely ready to lead the overall body for the coming 12 months.
“I appreciate the vote of self-confidence by my colleagues,” he claimed.

Goldstein’s path to a Faculty Board seat proved the energy of persistence:

• In 2008, he ran for the Democratic endorsement in a 6-applicant industry, slipping to Emma Violand-Sánchez and Libby Garvey.

• In 2012, he once again threw his hat into the ring in seeking appointment to the remaining months of Garvey’s phrase, just after she experienced been elected to County Board, but was not picked from among a area of 16 aspirants.

• In 2015, on the other hand, Goldstein defeated Sharon Dorsey in the Democratic nominating procedure that opened up immediately after two-expression incumbent Abby Raphael declined to run once more. As normally is the circumstance in Arlington, the Democratic endorsement served as the de-facto election, as Goldstein cruised to a common-election victory in 2015 and then to re-election in 2019.

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Like other elected bodies and the public in typical, the Arlington University Board appears to be winging it as situations dictate and moods strike, when it comes to masking in the period of COVID.

For the July 1 organizational meeting, all five Faculty Board associates moreover Superintendent Francisco Dúran were being on the dais (one thing that hasn’t happened in some time), and all but Kadera have been mask-free.

In current months at each Faculty Board and County Board conferences, masks have been on, masks have been off, though some board customers have been in particular person and other individuals have been on-line.