North River District: Collins seeks 7th term against challenger Griffin for school board
VERONA — Four of the Augusta County School Board’s seven seats will see their terms expire at the end of 2023. All four incumbents will be seeking reelection in November and three will see challengers.
The News Leader sent questionnaires to all seven candidates who filed by the June 20 deadline to be on the ballot. We’ll publish those questions and the candidates’ answers in the coming days. We will be writing more stories on the candidates as we approach November, but this is a first opportunity to learn more about those who are running for school board.
Occasionally, answers were lightly edited for clarity or to reduce redundancy. We believe all edits still fairly and accurately represent the candidates' remarks and the context of those remarks.
In the North River District incumbent Nick Collins is being challenged by Sharon Griffin.
Collins is seeking a seventh term on the board, having served since first elected in November 1999. A partner with Weatherman-Collins Contracting and a part-time farmer, Collins is currently the school board chair.
A lifelong resident of Augusta County, Collins graduated from Fort Defiance High School in 1975 and Virginia Military Institute in 1979 with a degree in civil engineering. His children attended Augusta County Public Schools, as will his grandchild who starts kindergarten this year. Collins is also a member of the band Southern Hospitality.
Griffin is a retired native of Augusta County, having graduated from Riverheads High School and James Madison University. She also earned her doctorate in educational leadership from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
Griffin has been married for 36 years and the couple has one son. She attends Covenant Presbyterian Church in Harrisonburg and recently became a Colson Fellow after completing a 10-month training in Christian worldview.
What will be your top priorities if elected?
Collins: To continue supporting educational opportunities for all students with instruction provided by solid teachers who are paid a salary that is competitive or average as compared to local divisions we compete against for staff. Augusta County has constantly averaged seventh, eighth, or ninth in all pay categories with other local school divisions.
Griffin: There are four priorities.
Children are under assault from many hurtful ideas in our culture and need adults who are committed to protecting and developing their minds, positive values, and their physical safety.
Parents have the primary responsibility for raising their children, not the schools. Too many school districts have not allowed parents to be fully informed about what is being taught in the classroom. Parents deserve more transparency and to be recognized for the primary role they have in their children’s lives.
Teaching has become too difficult, especially because of the mental health issues of students. Teachers need to have classrooms where they can teach the curriculum instead of spending much of their time dealing with children who are disrupting the classroom. Resources need to be allocated to solve this problem since it is fundamental to good instruction.
Academic achievement in Virginia has been in a steady decline since 2015, placing its performance expectations near the bottom in the nation. Our local schools need to find ways to exceed the state’s expectations, especially in reading and mathematics.
Do you have a background in education? If yes, what is the background?
Collins: No
Griffin: I been in education for 40 years, and have a masters degree in early childhood education from James Madison University and a doctorate in educational leadership from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
I taught at the university level for 15 years at the University of Cincinnati, Eastern Connecticut State University, and the University of South Carolina Beaufort. Before I retired, I held several certifications including supervision and administration, K-12. My administration experience includes coordinator of the educational program at the University of Cincinnati lab school and coordinator of the ECE program at the University of South Carolina Beaufort.
What additional qualifications do you think make you a good school board candidate?
Collins: Having lived in western Augusta County all my life, I believe that many folks know who I am, my beliefs and philosophies, and where to find me if they have something they want to discuss. Because of 24 years of service........NO TRAINING REQUIRED!
Griffin: I have a lifetime of experience working with children and their families and teachers, helping them thrive and succeed. I have worked diligently for what is good for students and for schools and I will not compromise. My passion and my heart is to help students flourish and succeed. I also have knowledge of school curriculum, school law, school finance, and other administrative areas. In short, I have the education, experience, and the heart to help bring students, teachers, and the school system to a higher standard of learning and achievement.
What are the main issue(s) facing Augusta County Public Schools and/or public education in general? Why?
Collins: Funding – local, funding – state and a shrinking teacher pool.
Griffin: Many bad ideas are coming into our schools, especially inappropriately sexualizing our children. As I have talked with parents, many of them want more openness about what is taught and what happens in the schools. Many look at the turmoil in some of Virginia’s city and county school systems and no longer believe they can trust schools to act in the best interests of their children. Some have opted to home school or use private schools, but many do not have this option. With more openness, parents may develop a greater trust in our schools.
Parental rights is a current topic discussed nationwide in public schools. How do you define parental rights? What rights do you believe parents don’t currently have in Augusta County Public Schools that they should have?
Collins: Parents should be involved with their children’s education. The door has always been open for a parent or guardian to discuss anything with their child’s teacher, principal, building administrator, counselor, or even our superintendent, Dr. (Eric) Bond or his senior staff. This open-door policy will continue.
A school board member’s responsibility, if contacted by a parent, is to make sure the parent or guardian is able to contact the proper school representative to have discussion or get their questions answered.
Griffin: The definition all school staff ought to use is found in the Virginia Code 1-240.1 which says, “A parent has a fundamental right to make decisions concerning the upbringing, education, and care of the parent’s child.”
Some county parents believe that the school staff has respected their rights and listened to their concerns while others are frustrated because their experiences have been quite different. When these latter parents brought issues of concern to school leaders, they were not taken seriously and their children were not helped.
Do you believe the current school board does a good job communicating with the public? If not, how would you improve it?
Collins: Our communication is improving. Currently many schools are using Facebook to identify what is happening at individual schools for the general public to see.
Griffin: As I have talked with parents, this has been a complaint of some. The recent ACPS recommendation to not allow Facebook comments on school system postings has certainly resulted in more citizen complaints about communication from the schools.
The ACPS website often does not have documents of interest to the public, such as the proposed budget or the recent policy changes recommended to the board. Much information that the public has a right to see is very difficult to locate on the website.
What do you see as the board’s role and responsibilities?
Collins: To oversee and set policy that governs the operation of our school system by professionally trained administrators and teaching educators. We should monitor the goings on within schools, share any concerns with Dr. Bond and fellow board members, and remember we only have authority as a voting member when the school board is seated in a called meeting.
Griffin: Local control of schools means that the citizens of an area elect school board members that are representative of their interests, within the parameters of state and federal codes and regulations, and that the school administration is accountable to the board. As the education authority, the board has a duty to oversee the system to assure that it is following established policies and that it is indeed educating the students according to appropriate expectations. The board also should lead the strategic planning for educational improvement and the current board has long been remiss in developing a plan for academic improvement.
Furthermore, Virginia Code 22.1-79 delineates the powers and duties of the school board. These duties include developing and approving policies, setting calendars, attendance zones, hearing grievances, hiring and firing the superintendent, making property decisions, along with a fiduciary responsibility to assure that tax dollars are being responsibly spent.
Do you believe Augusta County Public Schools does a good job promoting diversity, equity and inclusion? If not, how can it improve?
Collins: YES! Augusta County Schools has always attempted to provide a welcoming educational environment for every student.
Griffin: I am not familiar on how ACPS promotes DEI. Certainly, all students should receive a quality education and there should be no discrimination against anyone. Governor Youngkin’s proposed “Model Policies on the Privacy, Dignity, and Respect for All Students and Parents” is helpful in delineating the importance of meeting the needs of and respecting all students and providing model policies for school boards in a number of areas.
Of high importance to most parents is the proposed policy that the sex of students should determine what bathrooms, locker rooms, and rooms in overnight travel will be used. There also is a proposed policy that athletic programs and activities should be separated by sex. Another concern of parents is that equity is often defined as equal outcomes which is impossible to achieve. Unfortunately, the former Virginia State School Board under Governor Northam was a key player in the decline of performance standards in our schools in their attempt at equity.
Are there any other issues you feel are important that these questions didn’t cover?
Collins: No answer provided
Griffin: The CDC recently reported that our children are in crisis based on evidence of widespread depression, suicidal ideations, and anxiety. In ACPS we are blessed with a strong farm community and strong FFA programs in our middle and high schools that involve students in engaging activities and build life skills. There are a number of other great programs that involve technology, music, and art. However, we need to search for more programs to engage all students and to give them alternatives to social media and screen time. We need to partner with the community more to bring these programs to schools.
The 2022 VDOE report “Our Commitment to Virginians: High Expectations and Excellence for All Students” documents the lowering of performance standards in Virginia’s schools year by year so that we now have the lowest standards in the nation. ACPS students pass rates on the SOL tests usually mirrors the state’s pass rates in most subjects. This means that the performance of our students has been declining along with the rest of the state. We must take a hard look at our achievement standards and work to raise the bar.
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— Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at phite@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com.
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: North River District: Collins seeks 7th term against challenger Griffin for school board
