School Board member Sarah Smith will not seek re-election next school year. The Leesburg District representative made the announcement at the Tuesday, April 24, School Board meeting, saying she is dissatisfied with the direction of the board and administration.
"Unfortunately, I have not been able to get four other members to agree with my perspective very often," Smith said.
IN A LETTER addressed to Superintendent Edgar B. Hatrick April 11, Smith requested the superintendent provide her information regarding the personnel department’s current expenditures for the recruitment budget, however, Hatrick provided last year’s figures.
Hatrick said the data was not available because contracts have not been signed, but Smith said letters of intent have already been issued. She was also upset about the amount of time it takes to get information from the schools' administration.
"It took me a week to get the 2005 budget, which was not what I wanted," Smith said. "Do all board members have this much wait time to get information?"
Smith said she is concerned about how much the school system spends on recruitment of new teachers.
"I began my service on this board with a deep sense of dedication and ethics," Smith said. "I came and I will leave without political involvement or deals."
Despite the fact that she won’t run again, Smith said she will remain dedicated to the children and parents of Loudoun County.
"It is apparent that I have been able to make the impact on the Loudoun County public-education system that I had hoped for based on my over 30-years experience in Loudoun County as an educator with masters degrees in curriculum instruction," she said.
SMITH WAS elected to the School Board in 2003, defeating Tom Marshall. Marshall has filed paperwork to run for the Leesburg District seat again.
"I will have further comments for media at a later time," Smith said.