Paul Bartkowski School Board Candidate Forum

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree a bit. Was hoping Paul could respond to my question about the Herndon pyramid in the Dranesville district.

If Paul has decided to disengage from this thread, which wouldn’t be a total surprise given the non-stop harassment, I’d still reach out to him directly to share your views on the challenges you see in the Herndon pyramid and solicit his views.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree a bit. Was hoping Paul could respond to my question about the Herndon pyramid in the Dranesville district.

Was this your question:
Paul — You live in the McLean pyramid, which like Langley is far more affluent than Herndon overall. Our Dranesville representatives seem to view the world through a more affluent lens. To be sure there are some very well off families in Herndon, but over the past decade the demographics there have changed with a more diverse set of needs. Many kids are getting left behind not just special ed, ESL and AAP kids. The general ed kids are struggling as well having no special attribution. I feel for teachers who spend so much time on 504 and IEP meetings and dealing with an unusually large number of different student challenges that it’s hard to meet the needs of any.

Our last SB rep for Dranesville seemed very out of touch with the Herndon pyramid and seemed to close off McLean (and Langley) lest they catch cooties from Herndon and parts of Tysons. I hope you do not follow in her footsteps.

What needs do you see in the Herndon pyramid and how do you plan to address in them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Paul why did you blow off the Special Education PTA questionnaire? Does Special Education not matter to you?

https://fairfaxcountysepta.org/2023-septa-voter-guide/

There’s a pattern of the Republican candidates either not responding to basic questions or, when they do respond, they give empty platitudes and vague nothing answers.

Special Education students will continue to have a strong advocate on the School Board in Rachna Sizemore Heizer, who stands to win the Braddock seat. Debra Tisler, who is running in Springfield, has also made Special Education (and FAPE) one of her top priorities.

On the other hand, the McLean pyramid with many thousands of students has had no advocate. Several schools are overcrowded and the HS is crumbling. Paul would try and change that. Robyn Lady would not; rather, her platform is little more than “if you don’t like it, move.” Rather than promise to be an advocate for the pyramid, during her campaign she has been an apologist for the neglect of her predecessors.

In other words Paul is a one trick pony who doesn’t care about anything aside from helping his wealthy neighbors get a renovation. Got it.

It’s more that Elaine Tholen turned out to be a big disappointment and, as a fellow Democrat, Robyn Lady wouldn’t dare criticize her performance or suggest she could do any better.

Paul is running for the Dranesville seat and, comparatively speaking, Dranesville is one of the wealthier magisterial districts in the county. If you’re not going to advocate for all the pyramids in the district, because some of them (Langley, McLean, and the part of Marshall in Dranesville) are “too wealthy” to warrant their equitable share of FCPS resources, there’s really no point in running.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree a bit. Was hoping Paul could respond to my question about the Herndon pyramid in the Dranesville district.

Was this your question:
Paul — You live in the McLean pyramid, which like Langley is far more affluent than Herndon overall. Our Dranesville representatives seem to view the world through a more affluent lens. To be sure there are some very well off families in Herndon, but over the past decade the demographics there have changed with a more diverse set of needs. Many kids are getting left behind not just special ed, ESL and AAP kids. The general ed kids are struggling as well having no special attribution. I feel for teachers who spend so much time on 504 and IEP meetings and dealing with an unusually large number of different student challenges that it’s hard to meet the needs of any.

Our last SB rep for Dranesville seemed very out of touch with the Herndon pyramid and seemed to close off McLean (and Langley) lest they catch cooties from Herndon and parts of Tysons. I hope you do not follow in her footsteps.

What needs do you see in the Herndon pyramid and how do you plan to address in them?

Yes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree a bit. Was hoping Paul could respond to my question about the Herndon pyramid in the Dranesville district.

If Paul has decided to disengage from this thread, which wouldn’t be a total surprise given the non-stop harassment, I’d still reach out to him directly to share your views on the challenges you see in the Herndon pyramid and solicit his views.

There are numerous, legitimate questions that were asked and so far not answered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree a bit. Was hoping Paul could respond to my question about the Herndon pyramid in the Dranesville district.

If Paul has decided to disengage from this thread, which wouldn’t be a total surprise given the non-stop harassment, I’d still reach out to him directly to share your views on the challenges you see in the Herndon pyramid and solicit his views.

+1
Especially the bolded.

[Anonymous]

I suspect this outreach may be too little, too late for Paul. From what I've seen in the past, candidates only try to engage in forums like this when they know their opponent has a substantial lead, and they are trying hard to raise their profile. Ardivan Mobasheri, who ran as the independent candidate for the Dranesville seat, tried something similar in 2019. Then they get trolled and harassed and walk away.

Fairfax is a mostly blue county and Democratic candidates like Robyn Lady get a lot more money and free publicity. There are at least a half-dozen current elected officials who regularly show up at events with her, and they all post pictures of each other smiling as they watch a parade in Herndon, visit a house in McLean, etc. It's not easy to challenge the machine.

But from what I've actually read and witnessed first-hand, Lady is very much a status quo Democratic candidate. She may live in Herndon, but will she really do anything to address the concerns of parents in that pyramid who've suggested that the demographic trends in the area may make it tougher her for non-ESOL/FARMS kids to get adequate attention. She definitely won't rock the boat when it comes to securing additional capital or facilities funding for McLean or Marshall. And, while Langley is obviously in a comparatively sweet spot (the academics are as good as at McLean and the facilities are as good as at Herndon), don't look to her to do much to reduce the class sizes in that pyramid.

On the other hand, again based on what I've read and witnessed first-hand, Paul Bartkowski would be ready to make some noise - not in a brash way (he's got an understated personal style unlike, say, Elizabeth Schultz), but simply based on his ability to bring an outsider's perspective to what's been an insider's club for many years. Lady won't - and she can't - challenge any of the decisions made by the current School Board because they are her people. All she can offer is more of the same, with a slightly different set of loyalties than Elaine Tholen, because she lives in Herndon rather than Great Falls. Even if Paul is tilting at windmills, we're lucky he threw his hat into the ring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I suspect this outreach may be too little, too late for Paul. From what I've seen in the past, candidates only try to engage in forums like this when they know their opponent has a substantial lead, and they are trying hard to raise their profile. Ardivan Mobasheri, who ran as the independent candidate for the Dranesville seat, tried something similar in 2019. Then they get trolled and harassed and walk away.

Fairfax is a mostly blue county and Democratic candidates like Robyn Lady get a lot more money and free publicity. There are at least a half-dozen current elected officials who regularly show up at events with her, and they all post pictures of each other smiling as they watch a parade in Herndon, visit a house in McLean, etc. It's not easy to challenge the machine.

But from what I've actually read and witnessed first-hand, Lady is very much a status quo Democratic candidate. She may live in Herndon, but will she really do anything to address the concerns of parents in that pyramid who've suggested that the demographic trends in the area may make it tougher her for non-ESOL/FARMS kids to get adequate attention. She definitely won't rock the boat when it comes to securing additional capital or facilities funding for McLean or Marshall. And, while Langley is obviously in a comparatively sweet spot (the academics are as good as at McLean and the facilities are as good as at Herndon), don't look to her to do much to reduce the class sizes in that pyramid.

On the other hand, again based on what I've read and witnessed first-hand, Paul Bartkowski would be ready to make some noise - not in a brash way (he's got an understated personal style unlike, say, Elizabeth Schultz), but simply based on his ability to bring an outsider's perspective to what's been an insider's club for many years. Lady won't - and she can't - challenge any of the decisions made by the current School Board because they are her people. All she can offer is more of the same, with a slightly different set of loyalties than Elaine Tholen, because she lives in Herndon rather than Great Falls. Even if Paul is tilting at windmills, we're lucky he threw his hat into the ring.

Agreed. I know already that Democrats will sweep the SB again because we live in a county full of Democrats, or at least, full of people unwilling to challenge the status quo even when they're unhappy with it. It would be nice to have at least ONE Republican this time around though. Someone has to speak for all of the parents who are sick to death of the SB focusing on everything BUT academics.

[Anonymous]

Thanks to the PP who posted some of the really troubling likes and retweets from this candidate. Yikes.

[Anonymous]

Thanks to the PPs who have encouraged Paul to keep plugging away. We need him on the School Board and Robyn Lady would just be another ineffective bump on a log.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks to the PPs who have encouraged Paul to keep plugging away. We need him on the School Board and Robyn Lady would just be another ineffective bump on a log.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks to the PPs who have encouraged Paul to keep plugging away. We need him on the School Board and Robyn Lady would just be another ineffective bump on a log.

It’s a shame he won’t provide details his own comments on his own website/Twitter feed/FB page.

[Anonymous]

I’m glad he acknowledges that online learning works well for some students!

[Anonymous]

Paul is a good guy. Active in the community, thoughtful, and with three kids who've attended FCPS and will be attending FCPS in the future. He knows how some areas in Dranesville have been neglected by FCPS staff and the School Board, and he won't suffer that silently like meek Elaine Tholen.

Conversely, Robyn Lady has earned her retirement after decades in the system. She should go play some more golf with her wife and let someone else with more skin in the game represent Dranesville the next four years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

paulforfcsb wrote:re homeschooling this year - just based on past experience homeschooling during the covid shutdowns. She needed some more attention and rigor - and she's getting it. We use an online program through Well Trained Mind Academy - great curriculum.

OK, so public school during Covid wasn't good enough for your kid, public school last year after Covid wasn't good enough for your kid, and now regular non-Covid 6th grade isn't good enough for your kid? When you live in one of the best public school areas in Fairfax?

Sorry, SB candidates need to put their money where their mouth is. I wouldn't vote for Karl or Melanie for similar reasons.

It does look like a great curriculum. Will FCPS pay so parents can send their child with similar needs to WTMA too?

https://www.wtmacademy.com/

I would be interested in your candidacy if you were talking more about bringing in rigorous curriculum like Well Trained Mind into FCPS, and a whole lot less about weird Republican fixations on YA books.

YES!

Agree. I appreciate that you are doing this thread and just seeing it today for the first time. If your reply here is that the current school board is spending the time on sexual identity matters that it could be using to improve the curriculum... that isn't convincing. I have three kids in FCPS: the curriculum is especially weak in humanities, extremely weak at the elementary school level. I am all for improving it. But I don't see the obsession with sexuality that others see and find it surprising and concerning that it has become such a focus for some candidates.