This article is the first installment of a four-part series about the D.C. State Board of Education races, the winners of which will develop and promote policies on the behalf of students, parents, and teachers in Wards 2, 7 and 8, and throughout the entire District.
In this year’s at-large D.C. State Board of Education race, six people are vying for a position that comes with a racially and socioeconomically diverse constituency.
Once elected, the winner will have to leverage relationships with D.C. residents and the D.C. Council to affect widespread change during a pandemic that has strained the District’s budget and further exacerbated long-standing disparities.
The following are profiles about most of the candidates, one of whom will eventually replace Ashley MacLeay, a Trump supporter who incited controversy earlier this year with her disparaging remarks about D.C. school children and an appearance at the Republican National Convention.
While each of the following candidates represents a variety of perspectives and experiences, they have expressed a desire to not only increase parental involvement in decision-making processes but work toward making the DCSBOE more effective during an era of mayoral control of schools. Here are their stories:
Jacque Patterson: The Establishment Candidate
A parent of two D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) students and an alumnus of D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams’ administration, Jacque Patterson currently serves as a member of the Local School Advisory Team at his children’s school and the Chancellor’s Parent Cabinet.
Patterson has also been appointed to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Task Force. If elected, he has identified the landmark legislation as his focal point, telling The Informer that he plans to agitate for recommendations outlined by the task force to adjust the STAR rating system.
As an At-large representative, Patterson said he also plans to improve aspects of the virtual learning experience, including access to technology.
While he commended local school officials for adjusting and rolling out the fall program within a matter of months, he argued that social distancing protocols allow for more innovation in how students receive information, including the creation of learning pods and use of outdoor space in the warmer months.
“Parents are overburdened. We have a hole of $11 million and children who don’t have the appropriate technology, hot spots and infrastructure to do their job,” Patterson said.
“Kids in marginalized communities are going to suffer, and what we’re asking them to do in this space, it’s overwhelming! It’s hard for a child to sit in front of a computer for hours on end without any real person in front of them, guiding them.”
Ravi K. Perry: The Policy Wonk
In his appeal to voters, Dr. Ravi K. Perry touts his experience developing and implementing policy.
If elected, he pledges to address the technological divide, reliance on standardized tests, and other signs of socioeconomic inequity through what he calls targeted universalism, a means of helping people understand why education investments in low-income, marginalized communities can be of equal benefit to everyone.
Perry, an openly gay Ward 7 resident and professor who serves as chair of the political science department at Howard University, has co-authored books on urban policy and developed expertise in matters of public policy, Black politics, and LGBTQ political representation. His platform includes mandating Black and ethnic studies, and LGBTQ history in the curriculum across grade levels, as deemed appropriate.
In mentioning the aforementioned policy goals, Perry highlights the District’s Black mayor, Black chancellor, and sizable Black teacher population. He said his research has instilled a passion to remove the red tape from education and unite various stakeholders — including students, parents, teachers, DCSBOE members,…