Chairman Departs, Leaving Three Seats For Four Candidates

Those Elected Will Face Tight Budget

Four candidates are running for the Falls Church School Board, and the winners will face the task of maintaining the school system's competitiveness during tight fiscal years.

In addition to overseeing a proposed $37 million budget, the board is responsible for the system's 1,900 students and 350 full-time employees.

Chairman Craig Cheney's decision not to seek reelection leaves three open seats on the seven-member board. Voters will choose among two incumbents and two newcomers. The candidates, who were interviewed by telephone, said their long-term relationships with educators in the city will help them keep the school system strong.

Kieran Sharpe, 56, a lawyer and a board member since 1998, said he has tried to be a good fiscal steward, searching for savings in the budget and helping negotiate a private-public partnership to build a middle school that opened in 2005.

He said he wants to continue to expand foreign language offerings and extend or modify the school calendar to help at-risk students and give all students more time to prepare for standardized tests and college.

Joan E. Wodiska, 34, running for a second term, said that after four budget cycles, she knows how to "ask the hard questions and run a fine-tooth comb through the budget."

Her experience includes work as a lobbyist and policy adviser for education issues with the National School Boards Association and currently with the National Governors Association. "I spend my entire workweek on these issues," Wodiska said.

She aims to keep teacher salaries competitive and develop more ways to retain teachers by creating support and leadership opportunities, she said.

Charlotte Hyland, 45, a freelance editor, said her experience volunteering in classrooms and PTAs the past decade will help her make informed decisions on tough issues.

She said she wants to be a board member to find ways to make some of the system's older facilities more efficient, and she would like to help the School Board expand the International Baccalaureate program to all grade levels.

Kim Maller, 39, also a longtime school volunteer, said that, with three young children, she brings firsthand experience with the city's elementary schools. She said her priorities are finding ways to enhance school programs and teacher salaries in tight budget times and helping the School Board communicate better with parents. She also wants to promote more transparency, particularly in the city's family life education curriculum, she said.

As a stay-at-home mother, Maller said she would have time to reach out to other parents and research successful education initiatives elsewhere.