Tim Kaine will stump in Northern Virginia the day before Election Day.Â
The U.S. Senator and Hillary Clinton's Vice-Presidential running mate will come back to George Mason Univeristy in Fairfax on Monday.Â
From the campaign:Â
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Robyn Williams is seeking a seat on the Manassas City School Board.
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Williams: 1. All schools must be fully state accredited 2. Every child deserves a great education from Special Ed to our most academic achievers 3. Consistent communication.
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
Williams: Every school must be fully accredited. It is my first and foremost priority to ensure all the schools in Manassas City are fully accredited. All of the Manassas City Public Schools are fully accredited except for Metz. There is a tremendous amount of work that needs to be done. We are too small of a district to have a school-of-choice program, but I envision grouping more of our same skilled set students together to obtain the greatest impact and excel our passing rates, not just to the minimum requirements, but to higher levels. I would like to see a working partnership with teachers. Teachers are who touch our children on a daily basis and have the most impact on our success as a district.
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Seaberg was appointed to the Board in June following the resignation of Ellen Purdy.
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Seaberg: Community engagement, school environment, advancing student success.
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
Seaberg:Â We can foster communication, engagement and leadership in the community with clear and accessible information, additional outreach measures to the families that need it most, and continually working to build more leaders that are representative of our community.
Expand the culture of caring with programming throughout the division to foster positive mental health for our students and staff and to elevate respect for self and others.
Expose all students to a variety of career opportunities. Expand CTE options for students and working partnerships with businesses through internships and externships.
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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).
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.
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Jones: The city must diversify its tax base. This is the single biggest issue facing our city, as all we do is based upon available tax revenue. Our schools, police, fire, and public works department depend on city resources to accomplish their respective missions.
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
Jones: Smart development. The city should engage the business community to develop available real estate in the city in such a way that increases and diversifies our tax base, while not increasing demand for city services. This is action the city is already undertaking. The city has a great opportunity to work with private industry to develop the land into both commercial property and age-restricted housing, neither of which increase demand on our school system, our single biggest city expense, while both increase tax revenue.
Jones: The Mayor is first and foremost the city and all its departments' leadership in and out of Manassas Park. In addition to that, the Mayor is to be an advocate and ambassador for the city when working with other locales, state and federal officials.
PL: What expertise will you bring to the office?
Jones: I have over 25 years experience serving Manassas Park residents. In addition to my service in the U.S. Navy and as the current Mayor I have served in a variety of positions: Member and former Chairman of Manassas Park School Board Vice-Chairman of the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Committee Member of Flory Center Small Business Council Commissioner on Northern Virginia Regional Commission Human Resources and Facilities Director for a Defense Agency with offices across the nation.
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Mark Wolfe is running to keep his seat on the Manassas City Council. Spending eight years on the council as Republican. this is the first time he seeks office as a Democrat.
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Wolfe: Improving our schools, enhanced economic development and involving our citizens in planning for the future of Manassas.
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
After gaining citizen input, we can begin implementing programs and budgetary choices consistent with the vision expressed by the citizens.
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She and her opponent Dana Rienboldt aim to replace Emily Fallon who is sentenced to serve one year in prison after she stole more than $23,000 from the Anne E. Moncure Elementary School PTO, while she was the president of the organization.Â
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Decatur: Responsible Fiscal Management, School Safety, Competitive Pay Scale for all employees
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
I'd like to discuss the possibility of a cash capital fund for our schools, which will help eliminate overestimating of budgetary needs, and greedy spending practices. We will develop a hierarchy of needs and direct funds toward the most necessary and appropriate matters annually.
First and foremost, ensuring that Stafford County is compensating our teachers and staff members appropriately as planned for in the market-based compensation plan. We need to develop replacement cycles for updating equipment including school buses and technology.
And finally, we need to continue and further develop sharing resources within the county which will improve our spending practices and reduce waste countywide. I’d like to add a resource officer in each middle and high school to improve relations and increase security as well as add a resource officer in each elementary school, as our county does not currently have one at any elementary school.
Decatur: The role of a school board member is to be the voice for the residents in their community. When brought together as a unified whole, the school board cohesively serves the county, helping the school system to operate efficiently and provide students with the best education possible for the taxpayers’ dollar. I believe each member should each bring unique experience and expertise along with a creative approach, and the wishes of the members of the community we represent to create and uphold a school system that stands out in the Commonwealth.
PL: What expertise will you bring to the office?
Decatur: I have 10 years of experience in managing schools, creating and balancing the schools’ budget, working with the accreditation process, school meals programs, hiring and training teachers and ancillary staff members, and building successful relationships with parents, students, and school systems throughout Virginia.
I also have the interpersonal skills necessary to facilitate an open dialogue that will begin to repair the relationship between the school board, board of supervisors and residents of our county. We simply must work together cohesively and responsibly to ensure that we make decisions for our county that will benefit all of us for many generations to come.
If I felt that those interests were being handled properly within our district, I wouldn’t be here asking for your vote. When irresponsible decisions are made in local government, they will directly affect our lives and when we’re talking about the school board, those decisions will directly affect my child’s education.
The mismanagement of millions of our tax dollars may not have affected the student’s in our county during the years in which it happened, however when we failed to give raises because that money was missing from the county’s budget, many wonderful teachers began leaving Stafford County and taking jobs elsewhere.
You will hear that the School Board was not given accurate information, however, I believe that it was the job of the School Board to cross check any reports they received to ensure all information was accurate and valid. When that failed to happen, repercussions became imminent for future students in our county, including my son and his peers.
I will not focus on the problems but rather the solutions that will set our school system back on the right path. I have the experience necessary to do so as well as an open mind and a fresh approach that will not only set us on the right path but will move our district ahead of all others in our educational practices.
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Kiefer: Envisioning and shaping the future for student achievement, ensuring safe, nurturing learning environments and workplace, and communicating with key stakeholders.
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
• Make every school a strong center of learning for students to reach their full potential
• Fight to make sure achievement is about rigor, innovation & hands-on experiences, not just tests
• Equip students with real world skills and critical thinking needed to thrive ensure safe, nurturing learning
Environment & Workplace
• Continue positive changes in class structure to provide more supervision during class transitions
Kiefer: "At the center of the universe is a loving heart that continues to beat and that wants the best for every person. Anything we can do to help foster the intellect and spirit and emotional growth of our fellow human beings…that is our job. Those of us who have this particular vision must continue against all odds. Life is for service." - Fred Rogers
For me, this quotation resonates as I think about the attributes I feel a School Board member needs to possess: selflessness in thinking about all students, passion for the mission of the improvement of our children holistically, and commitment to be in the service of others. For me, the job description is NOT a politician (even though it's an elected office). Instead, I view it as being a public servant committed to the mission of preparing our children for their futures through good governance, sound stewardship of resources and strong, cascading leadership at all levels of the division.
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O'Hanlon: Communications, safety, and curriculum.
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
O'Hanlon: As a school board member you represent the community in advocating for the best educational opportunities for our children.
PL: What expertise will you bring to the office?
O'Hanlon: I am the parent of five children who have all gone through the Manassas City Schools, the youngest currently a senior. I have been an active volunteer in the schools for 25 years. Additionally, as a retired senior auditor, I have the ability to work for solutions in areas of underachievement. I can ensure the resident's investments are properly utilized.
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Richie-Folks: N/A
PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues?
Richie-Folks: I will be responsible for collecting the taxes for the city and making sure that they are deposited in the designated financial institutions. I will also be responsible for operating the city treasurer's office and managing the staff.
PL: What expertise will you bring to the office?
Richie-Folks: I have 35 years of experience in finance, accounting, managing over 30 employees, managing multi-million dollar budgets, investing $100,000 for [American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists (AASECT)], owned my own construction company, I also developed procedures to bring delinquent accounts current, and I have received awards for providing excellent customer service. I was promoted to General Manager for a worldwide corporation [Sodexo] where I was responsible for managing the division's budget of $5 million.
I have done research and spoke with other City Treasurer's around the Northern Virginia areas, and I have some innovative ideas that I would like to bring to the Manassas City Treasure's office. I would like to make it more accessible and have more online services to help make the process of paying taxes simple.
I know that there is a new system that is being installed and will become operational in January. If I am elected, I will be a part of the installation of this system and will be able to make sure that these services will be looked into and if cost-effective put in place.
I would also like to accommodate our senior citizens and make paying taxes easier and accessible for them and the disabled. We live in a world of technology, and everything can be done online, and I want our citizens to be able to take advantage of that when paying their taxes.