I am not certain how this happened, but the year 2023 came roaring in and has passed me by. I have written 0.0 times on this dear blog of mine last year, which might be a sign that the year was filled with a bit too much. But seriously though, where did you go, 2023?
Well, what happened was…
In November of 2022, a couple of friends sat me down to ask an important question of me, “Would you consider running for school board?” I was not one to say “yes” quickly and had various people in my life that I needed to consult with prior to my even considering a “yes.” For starters I need to talk to my husband and my boss. I needed to know how this would impact my family and the church I serve, as I would need their support in this endeavor. Everyone was very supportive from the outset, and then more friends began coming forward with the same school board question. With a lot people who knew me personally and professionally (from my work in the schools and community) asking that I run, a supportive spouse, and boss, I agreed and said “yes” to running for school board.
What I didn’t know was…
How hard it is to run for school board (or any office for that matter). How much there is for you to know. How much there is for you to do. How much there is for you to fundraise. While I knew the work of serving on school board would be tough, I had a general idea and handle on what was before me. Running for office was a whole other beast idea. I was not someone running for school board because I had my eyes on future political ambitions. I was someone running for school board because I believe in the power of public education, knew the transformational power of being a listening presence in our schools, and had list of people wanting to me to be the woman to get the job done.
What I did not expect was…
That there would be five of us on the ballot for one school board seat. You heard that right. There were FIVE people on the ballot for the Fairfield District on the Henrico County School Board. Running for office in a highly sought after seat was unbelievable. I met and became friends with some incredible people along the way. I reconnected with people I had not seen in quite some time. I learned so much about the election and campaign process, and discovered this is not something that lends itself well to new people on the scene.
The outcome of the election was…
not what any of us wanted, but I remain committed to our schools. The results were:
- Write-In votes with 0.80%
- Keith W. Hicks with 9.56%
- Crystal D. Varner Parker with 17.56%
- Tommie L. Jefferson with 20.02%
- Terrell A. Pollard with 25.87%
- Ryan E. Young as the winner with 26.19%.
As you can see, the vote was all over the place with the winner taking a very slim lead.
What I did learn was…
That there are over 3,300 people in my district who believed in me as the right candidate. That people would like me to consider running for office again, whether it is for school board or something else. That there are teachers, school staff, and division leaders who believed in me as the right candidate, and that they were holding onto hope I would win*. The reality is that if those teachers, staff, and leaders don’t live in my district, it doesn’t hold as much weight when they cannot vote for me.
*Most people don’t know this, but employees in certain positions of leadership are not allow to declare or express support of school board candidates. This meant that those who were dear friends or supporters of my candidacy were not allowed to say a word about me, my campaign, or why they wanted me to win.
More than anything, I learned…
I can run for office, because I did it.
I can do incredibly hard things, because I’ve done it.
That I am committed to supporting our students, teachers, and school staff and that I won’t stop fighting for them.
I don’t know what the future holds, but I’m cheering on our new school board and holding onto hope that they will do what is best for our students, teachers, and school staff.
HebrewDawn 