In Virginia, county school boards are composed of at-large members, plus one member from each district in that county. They are elected to four-year terms and serve as the leaders of the school district by setting the policies and choosing the leadership of public schools, among other duties. The Albemarle County Public Schools Board has seven members, one from each of its six districts, and one at-large member.

Rebecca Berlin and Joann McDermid are the two certified candidates running to represent the White Hall District on the Albemarle County Public Schools Board. Berlin currently serves on the Board, and was appointed in 2022 after the resignation of Dave Oberg. This race has had a lot of local news coverage, some of which is shared at the end of this Q&A.

Charlottesville Tomorrow designed this questionnaire based on over 200 responses we received to a voter survey. Berlin answered these questions by email. McDermid declined to respond to these questions and deferred voters to the Sept. 11 Crozet Leadership Team Candidate Forum.

Like many school districts, Albemarle County Public Schools is struggling to hire and retain teachers. How would you as a school board member propose addressing this issue?

Rebecca Berlin: I support collective bargaining for teachers and staff. I voted to support it in our spring School Board vote and am proud that I was able to be a part of this important discussion as a School Board member. As a former teacher, I understand how important it is for teachers and staff to have a voice in decision-making for schools and the school system. I am proud of the raises that the Board has been able to provide to teachers and staff, but I know that while that is very important, the results of the ACPS engagement survey for teachers and frontline staff show that we must do more than just provide raises. I believe collective bargaining will be another important step in showing support for teachers and staff.

I have been deeply concerned with our teacher and staff shortages, particularly the unfilled special education positions at many of our elementary and middle schools during the 2022-2023 school year. I support sign-on bonuses and retention bonuses for critically-needed positions, including for special education teachers and assistants. I am very proud of the work that was done through the “build our own” program that provided training for staff and assistants to receive provisional certification and be hired as special teachers for the 2023-2024 school year. The program is the Teacher Opportunity Program and Supports (TOPS). Teacher’s aides work with UVA to earn the credits they need to earn their license. There are eight people in the program now and if all goes well, they can become fully licensed teachers within two years. It is not up on the school website yet but it is shared in internal connections communication.

I would like to grow that program and make sure the coursework and training are accessible to all who are interested, including parents and community members if possible.

[Editor’s note: The 2022-2023 ACPS annual Human Resources report references a “Grow-Your-Own” program to recruit teachers.]

I would like to expand internship opportunities for high school juniors and seniors within ACPS so that they are exposed to future jobs within the school system. Lastly, I would like to see if there are ways within our budget to financially support staff and teachers who are interested in adding endorsements in this and other critical need areas so that they do not need to pay out of pocket.

Joann McDermid: McDermid declined to respond.

This district is having a similar issue with staffing bus drivers. How would you propose addressing this issue?

Berlin: I support collective bargaining for teachers and staff, including bus drivers. I voted to support it in our spring school board vote and am proud that I was able to be a part of this important discussion as a School Board member. As a former teacher, I understand how important it is for teachers and staff to have a voice in decision-making for schools and the school system. I am proud of the raises that the Board has been able to provide to bus drivers, but I know that while that is very important, the results of the ACPS engagement survey for staff show that we must do more than just provide raises. I believe collective bargaining will be another important step in showing support for bus drivers. As a school board member, I have spent time meeting with bus drivers, but I believe we need to spend more time listening to them. We do multiple visits to schools each year but we also must start riding the buses to hear and see what the drivers see. We must then listen to what they think will make the position more sustainable and not just try to solve it for them without their input.

McDermid: McDermid declined to respond.

The Bellwether report, presented to the Board in June, pointed to the disparities students of color and economically disadvantaged students are facing in their studies. What would you do to support efforts to bridge the gaps? Are there approaches you’ve supported in the past?

Berlin: The Bellwether report was a comprehensive analysis of the root causes of the failure of our school system to meet the needs of our Black and Brown students. In addition, it laid out the best approach I have seen to address what needs to be done to fix it. I support the entire report but am especially drawn to these four strategies:

1) Increase the instructional rigor of all tasks to ensure they are aligned to the SOLs [Standards of Learning state assessments] and increase the number of formative assessments so that we can continually monitor progress.

2) Revamp the instructional materials for reading and Algebra 1 to ensure we have high-quality instructional materials that include the best-researched methods.

3) Provide teachers professional development on the new materials but also on differentiation, use of data, student-centered learning and the science of reading. This training needs to be provided for teachers, assistants and administrators.

4) Revise the district logic model and organizational chart to make sure all decisions are focused on achievement and we have specific accountability measures and processes in place.

[Editor’s note: Here are the Virginia Department of Education Standards of Learning assessment results for Albemarle County Public Schools.]

McDermid: McDermid declined to respond.

There’s been an increase in violence, particularly gun violence, within the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County. What steps do you think the district should take to keep students safe and supported in school?

Berlin: Every time I receive an emergency alert during the school day, as a mother, community member, and School Board member, my heart stops due to the threat of gun violence. As a mom and community member, I support strong gun safety legislation in our state, but I know we are far from the protections needed to keep our students and families safe. I am interested in seeing what we are able to do as a school system regarding gun safety education in the community, including the possible provision of gun lock boxes for families.

Last, I know that our central office, in collaboration with local law enforcement, has increased the number of preparation conferences and drills to make sure we are as prepared as possible. I support the continuation of this collaboration.

McDermid: McDermid declined to respond.

Youngkin recently released updated model policies that define how school officials should treat transgender or gender nonconforming students — for example requiring teachers to get parental consent before calling students by names or pronouns that are not on official records. Do you support adopting this policy?

Berlin: I absolutely do not support adopting Younkin’s model policy. Because at this time, there is not an effective date on the policy, we do not need to do anything. I stand 150% behind ACPS’ current policies.

McDermid: McDermid declined to respond.

The county has seen a steady increase in migrant, refugee and immigrant populations over the past years. Do you support helping these students get up to speed? How?

Berlin: This year the school board approved eight additional English Learning positions bringing our total to 43.65. We now have positions (at least partial) at every school in the county. These positions help to support our students as they join our school community. We must make sure that these positions work hand in hand with school administrators, general education teachers, special education teachers, and reading specialists to ensure the new students have a comprehensive approach to services to provide them what is needed to succeed.

[Editor’s note: ACPS confirmed that it has 43.65 full-time equivalent English Language Learning teachers, a combination of full- and part-time positions that add up to this number.]

McDermid: McDermid declined to respond.

Are there any other important issues facing the school district that you’d like voters to know about?

Berlin: As an early childhood teacher, researcher and advocate for more than 25 years, I know that the best way to prevent achievement gaps is through high-quality early childhood experiences prior to K-12 education. This can be through home visiting programs, parent connection programs, and school- or community-based early childhood programs. High-quality preschool does not mean bringing kindergarten down to three- and four-year-olds. High-quality means a play-based, curriculum-rich classroom with supportive teacher-child interactions that promote social emotional and cognitive growth while supporting parentings through welcoming engagement.

ACPS has both Virginia Preschool Initiative classrooms and Early Childhood Special Education programs. These are mostly funded through state and federal dollars with some local dollars. Some districts in Virginia, such as Charlottesville City, have invested more local funds to increase the numbers of three- and four-year-olds participating in early childhood education programs as an effort to support children and families before they would typically enter the K-12 system. Another way ACPS could provide additional early childhood support would be to provide extended day or EDEP [Extended Day Enrichment Program] services to the children in the early childhood programs, as right now the reason some families do not send their children to the VPI [Virginia Preschool Initiative] program is that they require a longer day due to their work schedule. It is also important for the district and elementary principals to partner with community early childhood programs such as MACAA [Monticello Area Community Action Agency] Head Start and community preschools to support those programs in providing high-quality experiences to children and families as they are the pipeline to our school system.

McDermid: McDermid did not submit a response to this question.

More about the candidates to represent the White Hall District on the Albemarle County Public School Board

• Berlin’s campaign contributions from the Virginia Public Access Project
• McDermid’s campaign contributions from the Virginia Public Access Project
• A video of Sept. 11 candidate forum, including Berlin and McDermid, with Albemarle County School Board candidates, hosted by the Crozet Leadership Team and Crozet Gazette 
• A report in the Daily Progress about McDermid’s campaign announcement in April 2023
• A report in the Daily Progress on a September candidate forum host by the Senior Statesmen of Virginia, which McDermid declined to attend
• A conversation with Berlin from early October on NBC 29
• A reflection on Berlin’s interim service in the Crozet Gazette
• A report on Berlin’s appointment in Western Albemarle High School’s student newspaper, The Western Hemisphere
• A report on Berlin’s appointment to the Board in the Crozet Gazette

As you get ready to vote, here are some key dates and links from the Virginia Department of Elections:

Polls in Virginia close at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 7, night. The Virginia Department of Elections will publish election results in real time, as they arrive from precincts around the state. To view them, head to this link. These are unofficial results until they are certified. Here’s more about how to get election results.

• Sept. 22: First day of in-person early voting at your local registrar’s office.
• Oct. 16: Deadline to register to vote, or update an existing registration. You can also register after this date, and on election day, but you will vote with a provisional ballot, could take longer for officials to count because they will verify your eligibility.
• Oct. 27: Deadline to apply for a ballot to be mailed to you. Your request must be received by your local registrar by 5:00 p.m.
• Oct. 28: Voter registration offices open for early voting.
• Nov. 4: The last day of in-person early voting at your registrar.
• Nov. 7: Election Day. Here is where you can find your polling place.

Need to know if you’re eligible to vote? Here are resources from the Virginia Department of Elections.