Albrecht aims to bring attention to English Language Learning as Manassas School Board member

Potomac Local News October 30, 2016 at 1:17pm

Scott M. Albrecht seeks to keep his seat on the Manassas City School Board, a position he's held since 2000.

We sent Albrecht a questionaire, and his responses are below:

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PL: What are the top three major issues facing Manassas residents?

Albrecht: We have accomplished a lot in our City schools, yet we still have further to go, including full accreditation for all Schools.

PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?

Albrecht: Achieving accreditation at all schools must be a priority. Having even one school without the accreditation as we do now does not meet our communities expectation. It takes many things within the school "system" to achieve this kind of comprehensive result, and three actions I personally want to be sure that we do not lose the focus on are: retaining our small class sizes, continuing our early learning focus by expanding our State recognized PreK program for all students (so that every student starts school with equal learning opportunities), and achieving a robust CTE curriculum at Osbourn High School (that will allow all students to be employed upon graduation with career and life skills that will make them productive members of our society).

PL: From your perspective, what is the job description of the office you’re seeking?

Albrecht: The Code of Virginia specifies the role and responsibilities of a School Board in the Commonwealth. From my perspective, first and foremost we are the link between the community and the school system. It is our job to be sure that all students receive the best education possible within the financial limitations set by federal, state and local budgets.

PL: What expertise will you bring to the office?

Albrecht: In over 16 years serving you I have learned that experience matters. With the retirement of Mr. Bushnell from the Board, there is the potential if I am not re-elected that the combined years of experience of the Board on January 1 will be about 18 years.

A Board without history and context could make bad decisions.Experience matters. My 16 years of experience in all phases of school governance and funding are needed. My specific local School Board experience includes: serving as Chair and Vice Chair, serving over 12 years on the finance committee. Representing Manassas to state and federal officials as a member of the legislative committee, helping plan, start up and lead our regional Governors School, twice as Board Chair, and serving on the education support and facilities committee, spearheading much of our long range planning and community engagement.

Additionally, if re-elected I have been honored by my peers across the Commonwealth of Virginia to be the President-Elect of the Virginia School Board Association. This will bring significant pride and notoriety to Manassas, and I would hope that in this position I can help elevate our local issues such as English Language Learning and the cost of competition in Northern Virginia. Finally, in my professional career, I am a certified Program Manager and oversee a portfolio of programs with full revenue, cost and profit responsibility for approximately $50 million annually.

PL: Do you feel that the average citizen is well informed and understands the workings of the Manassas City School Board? If not, how do you intend on improving communication with your constituency?

Albrecht: The loss of a traditional print newspaper in Manassas remains a void in community communication. Manassas is also the small news item in a major metropolitan area. Online forums and media have somewhat filled the void, and our schools have taken considerable efforts to engage parents and the community. Our Board is fully transparent in all of our budget and academic actions and actively attempts to engage the community. Despite this, I agree with the perception that members of the community could be better informed, and as a Board Member will continue to advocate for full transparency and increased use of nontraditional media with the goal of well informed and involved citizens.

PL: Have you ever made any mistakes in your public life? How have they affected you?

Albrecht: We all make mistakes in our public, private and professional lives. These mistakes help shape us. I take every success and failure as a learning opportunity.

PL: Our readers want leaders in local government. Why should they vote for you?

Albrecht: First and foremost, the citizens of Manassas should vote for me if they believe experience matters. Since my first election in 2000, I have led the Board to policy changes aimed at the success of all students.

Among my accomplishments are: eliminating artificial barriers to entry for AP and Honors classes (they are now self-registered); leading policy changes to allow homeschooled and private schooled students to attend Metz Middle School and Osbourn High School part time; advocating for all children in the City (not just enrolled students) to have access to Footsteps2Brilliance, and ingraining discipline in our planning - we now have a multi-year maintenance plan and realistic revenue and expense projections (to include new Baldwin that will open on time in December).

Many in our community say our schools are failing. I believe in our school system, the future of our children and the potential for our City. We have made significant progress in our schools, including OHS being named a Silver Medal school and in the top 16% of VA high schools by US News and World Reports, OHS receiving a Grammy School for Excellence in Fine Arts Education, and Weems being recognized as a National Urban School of Excellence. I want to build on these successes and reach full accreditation for all of our schools and have success for all of our students.

I am a recognized leader in our schools in Manassas, have positive working relationships with elected leaders throughout the City our region, and State, and if re-elected will be President-Elect of the Virginia School Board Association. This will bring significant pride and notoriety to Manassas, and result in our local challenges receiving increased statewide attention.