Petitions to recall school board members gain support
Virginia | June 21, 2021
The Open FCPS Coalition began a recall effort for three Fairfax County School Board members in October of 2020. At large member Abrar Omeish along with Dranesville District Representative Elaine Tholen and Springfield District Representative Laura Cohen are the members on which that effort focuses.
The issues with the school board members arose during the pandemic when children were not allowed to be in the classroom full time. “Last fall, when COVID was a serious concern, the school board sent out a survey asking if parents wanted their kids to be virtual or in person for class,” said Open FCPS Coalition member Saundra Davis. “Fifty percent of parents said yes we want our children back in person. And then the school board said they would be doing all virtual learning. They ignored the science and the feedback.”
The Open FCPS Coalition is a non-partisan group of parents who wanted their children to be in person for the school year of 2020 to 2021. And when the school board did not listen to their concerns, they decided to take action. “These school board members are using their position as a steppingstone for their career. They did everything but open the schools, they were not putting the kids first,” Davis said. “These board members are not qualified or performing for the kids. They are leading in fear.”
The petitions which the Open FCPS Coalition started have garnered many signatures over the last several months. Their petition to remove Dranesville District representative Tholen is less than 500 signatures away from being complete. Springfield representative Laura Cohen’s petition is more than two thirds of the way of being complete. Once the petitions have enough signatures, the case will be evaluated by a judge. “The way they handled opening the schools was not what we wanted and that is why we want them removed. Not for other reasons,” Davis explained. ..
(Excerpts from the Fairfax County Times)