2022 Virginia Beach Elections: Questions for candidates in School Board District 9

THE INDEPENDENT NEWS

Ed. — The following are responses to questions posed by The Independent News to candidates in the election for the District 9 seat on the Virginia Beach School Board. Answers to our questions in this series generally are not edited, aside from obvious punctuation issues, spacing and formatting, or for clarity. The print edition containing our full voter guide is now on stands through this coming weekend.

News coverage about races in Virginia Beach is at this link.
News coverage about voting system changes is at this link.
Please reach John Doucette, the editor, with any questions or concerns via email.
Find the main page for the complete 2022 voter guide at this link.

ERIKA GUESS

Residence: Lake Smith
Age: 42
Occupation: Marketing Strategist
Military Service/Education: B.A. in Communication from Virginia Wesleyan University
Endorsements: Virginia Beach School Board Members Beverly Anderson and Jessica Owens and Virginia Beach Education Association (VBEA-PACE)
Website: erikaguess.com
Phone: (757) 392-7574
Email: info@erikaguessforvb.com
Social Media: @erikaguessvbschoolboard on Facebook, @erikaguessschoolboard on Instagram and @erikaforvb on Twitter

What are your specific qualifications for this office? I’m a lifelong Virginia Beach resident and VBCPS graduate. As a parent, I want all children in Virginia Beach to thrive in a safe, supportive learning environment. My career in marketing has given me the opportunity to partner with a variety of organizations at the local and national level, including tech startups, healthcare, government agencies, nonprofit, and education. These multiple perspectives have helped me develop skills that will be assets to the school board: strategic planning, communication, and an understanding of tools used in the private sector that can help students, parents and administrators work more efficiently. I’ve been talking with voters about what’s important to them, and I’m eager to apply my skills and make positive changes in our school system.

What is the most important issue facing the city schools, and how will you address it in office? The School Board needs to work with city council to create a budget that is aligned with the division’s current needs. After more than a year of virtual school, we are facing issues like learning loss that can’t be resolved using the current tools and systems–unique problems require unique solutions. With the proper resources in place, we can hire more staff, improve infrastructure, and adopt new systems and training that will get us back on track.

What are your three main policy priorities for Virginia Beach schools?

Teacher Retention is my top priority. We need to increase salaries for teachers and support staff to remain competitive with neighboring cities. We also need to ensure that schools increase the number of teaching assistants and counselors, to provide students the support they need so teachers can focus on instruction. I want to learn about the roadblocks teachers currently face, so we can find solutions that restore the joy in education.
Communication is another area with room for improvement. I want to improve school websites and social media platforms so that parents can learn what’s happening in schools, and streamline the flow of information so that parents can easily check in on their child’s progress and work with teachers. Improving internal communication between teachers and administrators could result in fewer meetings and more time for planning and instruction.
Equity is also important, especially in District 9. Though the district is funded equitably, there are performance and achievement gaps with some schools. I want to talk to families and learn how the school system can help, so that every student feels supported and sees a path for success. It’s not about lowering the bar, it’s a matter of maintaining excellence.

How can the city schools address concerns about equality and inclusion? VBCPS recently hired a new director for the office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. I’m optimistic that Mr. Harris will bring us closer to the equity goals in the 2025 Strategic Plan. According to the 2021 Equity Assessment Report, there’s disparity between our equity policies and what’s in practice, specifically: hiring, retention, and promotion of teachers of color; student discipline disparities; and student learning opportunities. Data that indicates a need for instructional tools (authors chosen, guest speakers, etc.) that are diverse. It’s also important that VBCPS utilizes the same culturally-responsive-practices for its employees that are applied to students.

Is the district doing enough to address school security and discipline? School security is important to all parents. I support enhanced security systems, including reinforced doors and cameras that allow police to monitor schools. According to the VBCPS Equity Report (November 2021), students of color are still disproportionately disciplined in VBCPS, indicating that “there is work to be done.” There’s a list of fourteen recommendations; three address “Student Well-Being.” The report cites the importance of Social-Emotional-Learning and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, and the need to ensure that staff “demonstrate their commitment to every student’s success during the disciplinary process.” Not enough faculty receive this training to implement it with fidelity.

How will you help the School Board prioritize the significant challenge of teacher retention and recruitment? We must offer competitive pay and benefits to support teacher retention and recruitment. We must also examine the balance between administrative duties and instructional time so that teachers can get back to teaching. Whether it’s hiring more support staff or streamlining our systems, teachers need more time to do their jobs. Also, the City of Virginia Beach and VBCPS need to cultivate a reputation for valuing a diverse workforce. A recruitment task force could oversee hiring initiatives, and if the local applicant pool isn’t large enough, let’s work with the city to incentivize applicants from other markets.

How do you plan to work effectively and fairly on a sometimes divided board? We are all passionate about improving education, and we must be objective in doing what’s best for students. My background in strategic planning helps me identify the right questions to ask in order to get to the root of a problem. I prefer to make data-driven decisions, and I will press my colleagues to qualify their opinions similarly. Civil discussion and respect amongst school board members sets the tone for the way business is conducted.

Should the School Board take a more active role than it has in the past in coming discussions about our local voting system following the recent appeals court decision in Holloway v. Virginia Beach? I support the ruling that led us to the current 10-1 voting system, and it affects the School Board the same way it affects City Council. Not only does it create opportunities for minority candidates in their districts, it lowers the financial threshold for candidates who no longer need to campaign city-wide. The School Board should be involved as much as they legally can be, to ensure representation and clarification for the voters they represent.

CAROLYN WEEMS

Residence: Lakeview Park
Age: 62
Occupation: Teacher, Youth Director, Business Owner
Military Service/Education: B.S., Business Administration, Clemson University
Endorsements: Attorney General Jason Miyares, State Sen. Jen Kiggans and Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer
Website: carolynweems.com
Phone: (757) 464-6674
Email: carolyn@carolynweems.com
Social Media: @weemsvbsb on Facebook

What are your specific qualifications for this office? I have experience serving on the School Board with a variety of different people. I have served on the Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC), advocating for parents to have a stronger role in the education of their children with special needs. I have led multiple committees of the School Board and have also worked with state legislators on important issues to improve public education. Recently, I was appointed to our Mental Health Task Force, a much needed resource for both students and staff. Being present and available to the people I serve is important, so I am very active in my community and am always willing to listen to anyone who wants to share their views about important issues in our schools. Because I am a small business owner here in District 9, I truly understand budgets. As a current teacher and Youth Director, I care about kids and all my decisions focus on what is best for our students.

What is the most important issue facing the city schools, and how will you address it in office? The teacher shortage is one of the biggest concerns. While improving pay and benefits are very important, when I talk with teachers, their biggest concerns are discipline problems in the schools, an overload of work/new initiatives and being overwhelmed with the expectations of “catching up” after the loss of learning from the school closures. Teachers must have support from parents and administration in enforcing discipline in their classrooms. The recent decision to prohibit cell phone use during instructional time will definitely help. We need to reduce the workload and let the teachers do what they love and what they are trained to do – teach our children!

What are your three main policy priorities for Virginia Beach schools?

We must increase vocational education opportunities for our students. Since college is not the educational path for everyone, I support a full-time vocational high school to teach the trades and durable skills necessary for our graduates to join the workforce. We also need to partner with local businesses in offering paid internships for our seniors.
I am leading an effort to open a recovery school that will help students struggling with substance use disorders to get both treatment and an education. Currently, there is nothing available like this in our area, and families must travel to other areas for these much needed services. Virginia Beach will be receiving money from a lawsuit against drug manufacturers, and I would like to use this money to fund the program.
I want to improve the inclusion model and transition services for Special Education. Virginia Beach has improved special education services in the last few years, but we can do more. In addition to classroom inclusion, students with disabilities need to have more opportunities to participate in clubs, sports, extracurriculars etc. Additionally, when students transition from elementary to secondary schools and from high school to college or the workforce, we need to provide consistent transitions to “bridge” our students into these new settings and opportunities.

How can the city schools address concerns about equality and inclusion? We must get back to the basics of empathy and teaching children to treat everyone with kindness and respect. I have tried, and I will continue to try and model this. As I mentioned, we need to improve our inclusion program for students with special needs. We need to provide resources for all, high expectations for all, accountability for all and respect for all.

Is the district doing enough to address school security and discipline? I am pleased that VBCPS has just expanded the School Resource Program to include retired law enforcement. This will help to fill the important Security Resource Officer positions in our schools. Not only do these SROs provide an extra level of security, they also build relationships with our students. I hope we can expand this to our elementary schools as well. We have also relocated our security desks and expanded our building safety audits. In regard to student discipline, we need to support our teachers as they hold students accountable for their behavior. Students and teachers deserve a safe learning environment free of major distractions.

How will you help the School Board prioritize the significant challenge of teacher retention and recruitment? As I mentioned before, in addition to improving teacher pay and benefits, we must support our teachers, improve student behavior, reduce teacher workload and respect teachers as the experts of the classroom. We must also work with the state legislature to expand the pathways toward teacher licensure and to increase out-of-state reciprocity.

How do you plan to work effectively and fairly on a sometimes divided board? Over the years, I have tried to be the voice of reason on a very divided school board. I have governed with consistent common sense. I value diverse opinions, and I debate the issues rather than attacking individuals. In doing so, I have been able to get board support for additional special education specialists, a new grading scale, stop arm cameras on the busses, opioid focussed curriculum in health classes, and hopefully – a Recovery School. Even though we may often disagree, I respect all of my colleagues and their viewpoints. I think we all have something of value to bring to the table. I will continue to be passionate and put students first. I will continue to have healthy debate with my colleagues, listen to citizens, do may own research and vote according to what I think is best for our children.