This fall, Falls Church City residents can choose from a pool of five candidates for the elections of the 2026 School Board. Two of these candidates are running for the first time and the other three are running for re-election. The Lasso will be exclusively interviewing each candidate. The first is Lori Silverman, who is running for her third term.
Silverman first sought election following the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 and was elected that year. She has been an active member of the board with six years of experience, including planning in COVID-19 policies, the hiring of a new superintendent, and the changing of the school start times.
Silverman strives to be an active member of the community, “It is really important to have school board members that can still keep our schools very accessible and listen to the community, which is what I’ve strived to do,” she commented, “just being really accessible for people to reach out.”
Several divisive policies are on the school board agenda at the moment. Ranging from cell phones and AI to growing populations, these issues will continue to be important for the foreseeable future.
Perhaps the issue that affects students and staff the most, are cell phone limits and guidelines. According to The Virginia Department of Education, cell phones should be away “bell to bell” meaning from the first bell of the day to the last, students are not allowed to access their phones.
Currently, Meridian allows students to use their phones during passing periods and free blocks, but not during instructional time.
Silverman is a supporter of the state’s policy on cell phones and is a supporter of students not having access to their phones during school hours. “I think that the evidence just keeps pouring in and pouring in about how bell to bell is the best policy for students, even if that’s not the popular opinion,” she explained.
AI is also a swiftly changing contributor to change in public schools. Silverman considers the subject to be uncharted territory that she cannot form an opinion on yet. “I am kind of a blank slate still on that issue,” she started, “I personally don’t know enough about AI for me to have a huge judgment on this where I strongly believe X or I strongly believe Y, I’m kind of still thinking it through.”
Another concern in the community is the rapidly growing size of our community and how FCCPS will adjust to this change. Many new apartment buildings have been built in the past few years, with construction only accelerating.
“I think the biggest thing that we have going on right now is the population growth for Falls, Church City, and ensuring that our budget adequately reflects the fact that we are a growing community,” she noted “and making sure that the students, plus the staff, plus the teachers have all the resources they need in order to operate at this high, excellent level that we have been operating at.”
Transparency is one of FCCPS’ main values. The small, tight-knit community ensures that everyone is open and honest. Clarity is essential, therefore leaders cannot be afraid to be honest and realistic.
“I’m not going to try to sugarcoat situations that really shouldn’t be sugar-coated. I will be as honest as I possibly can within legal boundaries and I hope that the parents, teachers, and other community members feel that they can come to me and get that really honest answer and honest feedback.”
