Alexandria officials propose shifting School Board terms to four years
A joint committee recommends a 2033 change to align elections with state gubernatorial cycles, though council members remain divided on the process.
By Mia Bennett ·
Alexandria School Board members would serve four-year terms beginning in 2033 under a proposal presented to City Council on Tuesday. The shift is designed to synchronize local school elections with Virginia gubernatorial races, a change that would require a city charter amendment and approval from the state General Assembly.
The joint ad hoc committee on School Board election reforms recommended this structure after determining that implementation before the 2030 elections was not feasible. The plan calls for all nine current and incoming board members to serve three-year transitional terms in 2030. Subsequent elections would then establish the four-year cycle starting in 2033. Council Member Canek Aguirre, who opposed the final recommendation, explained that the committee chose the gubernatorial cycle because it draws statewide voter attention to local races.
The committee reached a narrow agreement on term length, with Sandy Marks, Abdulahi Abdalla, and Kelly Carmichael Booz voting in favor of the change. The group did not reach consensus on staggered terms or the size of the board. They did agree that governance and elections should undergo a formal review every ten years, with the first such review scheduled for 2040.
City Council did not vote on the recommendation during the Tuesday meeting. The committee previously considered seeking a charter amendment for the 2027 elections but rejected that timeline because it would have required an emergency clause and supermajority votes in the Virginia House and Senate. The committee also discussed aligning City Council elections with the new School Board schedule starting in 2033 to boost voter engagement.
Council Member John Taylor Chapman urged for more community input before proceeding. He noted that the current effort originated from a 2024 School Board resolution rather than direct public demand. Chapman also pointed to ongoing discussions about staff support and member salaries as factors that could already improve candidate quality.
The School Board is separately voting on December 3 to raise member pay from $15,000 to $28,000, effective January 1, 2028. The proposal includes annual increases of $5,000 every July 1 until members reach $43,000, along with percentage bonuses for the chair and vice chair. Booz cited a spring community petition regarding board size and salaries, stating that voters want stable leadership. Abdella warned that delaying a decision on election reforms would prolong an unproductive conversation while the division addresses other pressing issues.
