Sully District School Board representative Kathy Smith has been involved with PTAs since 1990 and was an elementary-school teacher, for seven years, before then. So, considering her long-term involvement with schools, it's no wonder she's running for re-election.
"I have a strong, knowledge base of education, I'm in touch with the community and I've been involved with Fairfax County schools for years — and I think that's what's important," she said. "You have to be committed to this. It has to be about kids and families — not political aspirations — and this is what I want to do."
Smith, 48, of Chantilly's Poplar Tree Estates community, has served on the board, a year, filling out the term of Gary Reese, after he became the 67th District delegate. She's hit the ground running and taken her job seriously.
"I learned how things work, and I've gone out into the schools and met with principals and PTAs and heard their concerns," she said. "I really try to look at the big picture on issues and see how they affect the whole community."
Smith is especially proud that the School Board was able to reduce by 6.3 percent the amount of money it needed to request from the county. "When the School Board budget first came out in January, the amount the School Board requested from the [Board of] Supervisors was 7.9 percent more than the previous year," she said. "The fear was that the School Board was going to lose $10 million this year — and $30 million in the FY 2004 budget from the state."
BUT AS THINGS TURNED OUT, neither Gov. Warner's budget nor the General Assembly affected K-12 education. "So I made a motion at the Feb. 13 School Board meeting that funds be reallocated to reduce the transfer amount [from the county to the schools]. It was about $18 million."
Since then, the county executive's budget gave the schools a 6.03-percent increase — about $3 million. Said Smith: "That's so much better than last year, when we were screaming $60 million-$70 million."
That's why, although she's a Democrat, she wants the community to know that she's cautious and responsible when it comes to money. "The minute you get a Democratic label, people try to say you're a tax-and-spend person," she said. "But I understand that we are spending people's hard-earned money to support their schools, and I want to make sure we spend it in the best way possible."
Smith also tries to take everyone's opinion into consideration — even those who don't call her. "You have to make what you feel is the decision that's in everybody's best interests," she explained. "For example, I was one of the four on the Board who voted against extending the school day [to make up for the days lost to snow]. I feel like we had a commitment to the community to hold to the school calendar that was voted on before I was on the School Board."
Another controversial issue was the Communities that Care Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Although students will take the survey, no School Board money was spent on it — the Supervisors funded it. Although much attention has been given the fact that it contains some sexual questions, only nine of the 169 total questions deal with that topic.
"And every parent whose child was chosen for the survey has the right to opt him or her out of it," said Smith. The survey's main purpose, she said, is to determine the amount of adolescent alcohol, tobacco and other drug use and the related behaviors of delinquency and violence.
It's important to do the survey, she explained, because "We have limited county money to provide services to kids. And this way, [when we get the results back], we can focus the money where it's needed most." Furthermore, she added, to get grants to deal with whatever the results show, "you have to have data to back up the grant request — and the survey provides the data."
SMITH HAS ALSO WORKED CLOSELY with Westfield High Principal Dale Rumberger and Facilities Planning staff to deal with overcrowding there. Instead of getting more modular units, a 24-room addition will be built onto the school and 100 seats will be added to the cafeteria.
Having discovered that "money drives everything," Smith already has a Sully budget committee of about 10 people — parents of children from different age groups and backgrounds — examining the budget and giving her their input, from all points of view. This week, they'll meet with the school system's chief financial officer to discuss their findings.
As Sully's School Board representative, Smith has received positive feedback from the close relationships she's built with residents and school personnel, and she wants to keep it up.
And as a mother, she can identify with parents' concerns. Son Brian, 18, is a freshman at Syracuse University; Kyle, 16, is a Chantilly High sophomore; Andrew, 14, is in eighth grade at Rocky Run Middle; and Stephanie, 12, is a Poplar Tree Elementary sixth-grader.
"I still have kids at three levels, and I think it's important for School Board members to have children in the schools," said Smith. "And I'm committed to making sure that our school system stays as strong as it is."