I am running for the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) school board to end mediocrity and inequity in our schools and free teachers from administrivia. Here are my thoughts on the approaches I would adopt when trying to fix these serious issues. I will really appreciate if you would connect with me with your thoughts and suggestions on how we can improve our public schools.

Empower/Trust Teachers for Classroom Discipline, Reduce Administrivia

Compensating the teachers above the other local jurisdictions is important but that alone won’t help. System’s refusal to pay higher wages to teachers of certain subjects that are in short supply contributes to many schools not being able to offer advanced level classes in such subjects. We need to better-compensate the best we have than hire more, enforce performance standards for pay increases, stop overemphasizing reading/math test scores at the expense of real instruction, stop using teachers as tools for social engineering and allow them to be expert instructors in their chosen disciplines.

I oppose burdening teachers with excessive testing and reporting, mandatory continuing education, and fads imposed by administrators trying to justify their existence. Teachers are the architects for our future, and only competent and trustworthy should be hired for such important roles. Once hired, they should be trusted and empowered to take on the most challenging task of educating and to enforce discipline in their classrooms.

Mandate US History Education from K to 12

Citizens having sound knowledge of the history of the country and the ability to develop clearer perspectives based on that knowledge plays a critical role in shaping the destiny of a nation. Some of it happens with the passing of traditions and sharing of stories of involvement of ancestors in influencing the nation’s history. However, most of it happens in the classrooms of the country. Such learning from classrooms becomes extremely important as more and more of the population of a jurisdiction becomes international and immigrant in nature, just as it is happening in Fairfax county. This is a huge challenge that FCPS need to address now.

Having two children graduated from the FCPS system with outstanding honors, still having poorer knowledge of ‘American History’ than their immigrant parents, I have personally witnessed the lack of depth and continuity of ‘US History’ in FCPS curriculum. This deficit is something that I am very concerned about. As a school board member and a proud US citizen I will play a key role to change this scenario for the better. Incremental US history education from K to 12 should be mandated as a requirement for graduation.

Safeguard and Expand Advanced Academic/GT Programs

Advanced Academic Programs (AAP) / Gifted & Talented (GT) programs exist for a reason. They support gifted children’s needs by supporting high quality gifted and advanced education in FCPS. Politicians and vested interest trying to dilute such programs by branding those as not equitable and diverse enough is fundamentally wrong. Such approach will erode the much-acclaimed merit reputation of the FCPS system. As a school member, I will ensure that the FCPS mission to have challenging programs for its gifted students, without any regard to their race, gender or income, remains in place and their current funding levels are preserved.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJ) is the only magnet school in Fairfax County for its gifted children. TJ provide challenging learning environment focused on math, science, and technology. However, gifted children with interests in various other disciplines as well exist. TJ being the only such school available now, children gifted in arts and humanities too are tempted to get into TJ. Later, they pursue disciplines other than math, science or technology. This undermines the mission of TJ and this needs to be addressed.

I propose to establish an additional school for high achievers in Fairfax County with a focus in arts, humanities, government and international studies. The funding model should be designed with the least burden on Fairfax county tax payer, as a partnership between Fairfax County, private enterprise as well as other public education systems in the area. This should be an innovative institution offering a comprehensive college preparatory program emphasizing government, international studies, science, mathematics, languages, and fine arts. As a jurisdiction just outside of Washington DC, I believe that Fairfax County is the ideal place to have such a school and we have to provide leadership to the area jurisdictions to make it happen. The nature of the proposed school makes it a good candidate to gain significant support from the federal government in its founding efforts.

Address Minority Achievement Gap with a Sense of Urgency

Despite all the efforts and money spent by our system for decades, schools with predominantly low-income minority households continue to under-perform in fulfilling their mission. It is time to think out of the box. Direct instruction methods in contrast to exploratory models such as inquiry-based learning currently employed at FCPS is found to be much more effective, and should be explored. Curricula such as Montessori or Direct Instruction System for Teaching Arithmetic and Reading (DISTAR) with phonics-based reading instruction and adequate drill will benefit all students.

Education choices afforded by School Voucher programs in 15 states and Washington, D.C have proven to make situation better. School vouchers give parents the freedom to choose a private school for their children, using all or part of the public funding set aside for their children’s education. Possibilities such as school choice and charter schools should be explored as potential solutions to this issue.

Evaluate and Redesign STEM Curriculum and Teaching Methods

The ACT college admissions test results show that only 55% of the FCPS seniors tested were prepared for college-level STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) courses. Only 21% passed Algebra I in the SOL End-of-Course test. That’s the average and numbers don’t lie. Lower achieving regions of the county have much worse numbers. Continuing the assertion that Fairfax School system is excellent is beyond any rational thought.

STEM related jobs are the jobs of the new economy and the number of STEM jobs going unfilled are exploding due to lack of qualified STEM graduates. We are increasingly dependent on foreign talent to fulfill this void. Outsourcing of American jobs to Asian countries is hurting the American economy in the longer term. Asian American parents as well as children have done exceedingly well in the STEM fields while going to the same schools with everyone else. We have to learn from the success of Asian communities in STEM and make appropriate adjustments to our STEM curriculum and teaching methods.

From my personal experience with a bachelor’s degree from India and a master’s degree from US, both in engineering, having a wife with a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mathematics and statistics from India, and having two children with good track records in STEM subjects at FCPS and computer science engineering degree from University of Virginia School of Engineering, I clearly understand how the Asian American community makes the STEM success possible. There is no magic to it. A good percentage of these children get supplemental coaching from private tutoring centers. Most of these centers employ direct instruction methods similar to Direct Instruction System for Teaching Arithmetic and Reading (DISTAR) in contrast to exploratory models such as inquiry-based learning that we employ at FCPS.

Asian Americans being the largest minority group in Fairfax county with about 20% of the population, presents us with a great opportunity. Exploring potential synergies between much acclaimed and proven STEM teaching methods in Asian communities and effecting possible adjustments to the teaching methods in FCPS to scale it for the entire FCPS system is worth considering. I am willing to dedicate my time to develop such approaches, curriculum and methods and I am confident that I can help bridge the STEM deficit conundrum. If such efforts can achieve the desired results in Fairfax county, FCPS can become a role model for the entire nation to deal with this nationwide issue.

Control FCPS Budget & Fairfax County Real Estate Taxes; Strengthen Fiscal Oversight; Implement the Office of Inspector General (OIG)

I am running for the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) school board to make it accountable to the tax payers whose hard-earned money make it all possible. We need to control spending, regain the trust of taxpayers and ensure that we spend the tax dollars prudently. Watching every last penny we spend through a prism of our core mission will be an approach that I would adopt to become more accountable to public. I will really appreciate if you would connect with me with your thoughts and suggestions on how we can improve accountability at Fairfax County school board.

FCPS with a budget over 3 billion, that is about 53% of entire Fairfax County expenditure is a mammoth government entity producing mediocre to poor results. After decades of empty rhetoric of equity and diversity, our School Board has failed in understanding the underlying reasons for poor performance and in addressing them effectively. The School Board has to do more than blindly signing off on proposals brought out by unelected bureaucrats and special interests. Throwing more money alone won’t solve problems. We need to implement ‘Zero Based’ and ‘Outcome Based’ approaches to budgeting.

Prolific sole source contracting without competition and lack of stricter auditory framework is another major concern FCPS need to address. I understand that the county and the FCPS have a few auditors on their staffs. However, I recommend that the County along with the FCPS implement the Office of Inspector General (OIG). Montgomery County and D.C. Governments do have the OIG. The mission of the OIG is to conduct independent audits, investigations, inspections and evaluations to promote economy, efficiency, and accountability to prevent and detect waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in the programs and operations of an organization. This is an independent office that strives to maintain the highest level of trust, integrity, and professionalism. The investigators have the authority to prosecute individuals for fraud. The OIG would report to the Chairman of the County Board and for the FCPS, the Chairman of the FCPS School Board. Such OIG will pay for itself through their findings, fraud prevention and recommendations.

Total Transparency with Parents About Their Children’s School Lives

With textbooks gone and opportunity for participation only online, parents, especially from the vulnerable sections of the society, are effectively excluded from their children’s school lives. Students are reported to have received counseling involving sexual matters without the parent’s consent or involvement. The system explicitly tells the kids that it understands them better, not their parents. There is no system in the world that can replace the care and concern of loving parents and so any counseling should require parental involvement. Reduction in parental involvement in schools should be addressed with a sense of urgency. Avenues of parental involvement should be aggressively advocated for, preserved and protected.

Immigrant parents who come from dysfunctional public-school systems in socialist countries have no concept of regular parental involvement in their children’s schools. Such lack of awareness is compounded with their general aversion and shyness to get involved in an unfamiliar culture. The need for both parents to be working a lot of hours to have enough to sustain their low-income families almost completely shuts them out from involving in the school.

Considering all these, I am certain that we must do more to help enable parents to be more involved in their child’s education. We must encourage them to work hand in hand in with the teachers and the system. As a school board member, I am determined to advocate for more parental involvement. I intend to use various messaging platforms and access to PTAs to pursue that goal. I am sure such proactive parental involvement will do a lot to address the achievement gap for children coming from disadvantaged communities.

Upgrade School Security & Mental Health Support

While FCPS has elaborate Security and Safety standards and procedures in place, there is minimal emphasize on ensuring armed security in all schools starting from K to 12. When it comes to the lives of our children, we can’t take any chance at all. Our elementary schools currently do not have permanent security staffing, while middle and high schools are staffed with just one school resource officer each. In addition to all the systems and procedures in place, I would like to employ more of the most effective tool in preventing a tragedy, which is more trained and armed security personnel in each school.

Efforts in strengthening mental health support systems should have a holistic and root cause inquisitive approach. In doubtful behavioral situations, teachers looking for signs of trouble in a child’s life and involving parents from early on would help reveal fault lines before it is too late.

Students must also be equipped with skills that calm the mind, relax the body and with techniques to quell negative, harmful emotions. Innovative ideas for mental health training that allow students greater autonomy through self-regulation should be explored. Engaging young minds in training exercises that help them gain self-restraint and personal responsibility resulting in higher academic achievement and boosted self-confidence will be a good place to start.

Sex/Gender Education for Protection/Prevention NOT Indoctrination

FCPS misleads parents about Family Life Education (FLE), saying that it is a preventive program when it has no preventive goals and its effectiveness in prevention has never been evaluated. Sex Education as provided at FCPS may increase risky behavior in children instead of protecting them. Anal sex is taught to 8th graders, and it is implied that all sexual behavior is equally risky, which is dangerously false.

In addition to the explicit material that is already being taught to children as young as 4th grade, gender fluidity based not on science but on extraneous ideology was added to FCPS Family Life Education (FLE) (Sex Ed) curriculum starting from 7th grade. The school board seems to be eager to discourage the need for parental consent on providing sex/gender education to the children. Their actions in this regard despite overwhelming parental opposition must be reversed. The attitude that systems and the government know more about the needs for children than their parents is wrong and should be corrected.

I believe schools are there to teach English, Math, History and Science to our children, not the intimate intricacies of sexual orientation and preferences. We will need basic “sex education”, I agree. However, whatever FCPS’s Family Life Education (FLE) is “sex education” gone haywire. I believe such teaching, especially to the very young minds encourages unwanted curiosity and experimentation that has the potential to inflict irreparable damage to their personalities, and thereby to the future of humanity as we know it.

As statistics clearly elucidate, strong and fully functioning families has a direct correlation to student achievement in schools. However, I don’t see any encouragement of such family values or celebration of traditional families in the FLE curriculum. I think it is total injustice to the concept of “Family” to call it ‘Family Life Education (FLE)’. I also believe that whatever sex education we do, we must ensure that it uses biology as its foundation, not any ideology or politics.

When it comes to immigrant families vis-à-vis FLE, there are additional concerns that I have. Most immigrant parents who come from failed and/or repressive systems around the world tend to look at everything they see and hear in USA as great and are ready to adopt it without critical thinking. They mostly assume that whatever happens in USA is very well researched and systematically planned and designed, and nothing can go wrong with it. With such a thought process, even if we immigrants review the FLE, we tend to think it is okay and the disagreements we feel from within is somehow our deficiency, since American systems can never go wrong. That pushes us to approve everything that is headed our way from schools without much thought or analysis.