Founder of D.C. school where 4 killed appointed to Va. education board
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Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) announced the appointment of three new members to the Virginia Board of Education on Friday evening, as part of a number of appointments named to several state boards. The school board appointments include Mashea Ashton, founder and CEO of Digital Pioneers Academy Public Charter School in D.C.; Debbie Kilgore, retired family and consumer science teacher at Gate City High School; and Amber Northern, senior vice president for research at the conservative-leaning Thomas B. Fordham Institute. The appointments replace three members whose terms expired last week.
“With their unique insights and notable career experiences, I look forward to working together to make Virginia the best state in the Nation to live, work and raise a family,” Youngkin said in a statement announcing the new members.
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With the three appointments, the nine-person board will now be made up of eight Youngkin appointees. Anne Holton, who was first appointed by former governor Terry McAuliffe in 2017, will be the only member appointed by a Democratic governor.
The new members will begin serving on the board immediately, but the appointments will need to be confirmed by the state General Assembly.
Last summer, Youngkin appointed five members to the board. Before Youngkin’s appointments, the board had been entirely composed of members appointed by McAuliffe and former governor Ralph Northam (D). Youngkin’s five appointees last year were possible after Virginia House Republicans voted not to confirm three members who Northam appointed. The Republicans’ vote, which went against precedent and was widely seen as retribution for Senate Democrats’ rejection of Youngkin’s pick for state secretary of natural and historic resources, opened three seats last year in addition to two open seats.
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Earlier this year, one of Youngkin’s five 2022 appointments, Suparna Dutta, was rejected by the Democratic state Senate which opposed her involvement in educational culture-wars. Dutta is a co-founder of Coalition for TJ, the group fighting admissions reform at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax County.
Ashton, one of Youngkin’s newest appointees, founded Digital Pioneers, a charter school that opened five years ago as a place for children to learn coding and game design in D.C. Most of the students enrolled in the charter school are “at-risk” and live in D.C.’s poorest neighborhood. Last year, the school was recognized for outperforming other schools with similar demographics on standardized math and reading exams but has faced a rise in violence. It has experienced four deadly student shootings this year, the most recent, a 15-year-old killed last week.
According to her biography page, Ashton has also served as the CEO of the Newark Charter School Fund, overseeing an initiative to support the growth of charter schools.
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In a statement to The Washington Post, Ashton said she was honored to be named to the board. “I look forward to working with fellow board members to advance equitable and innovative learning for all of Virginia’s students.”
Ashton said she will continue as CEO of Digital Pioneers and remains “committed as ever” to her leadership role.
Along with being a retired teacher, Kilgore had served as an adviser with Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), a career and technical student organization. She is married to House Majority Leader Terry Kilgore (R-Scott).
According to her biography page, Northern supervises the Fordham Institute’s research on academic standards, career and technical education, and charter schools.
“I’m honored to support Governor Youngkin, his team and the department of education, and to join this rockstar board — each of whom care deeply about strengthening education for every student in Virginia," Northern said in a statement.
The new members will be joining the board after former superintendent for public instruction Jillian Balow abruptly resigned in early March. Youngkin appointed Lisa Coons as the new superintendent. On Friday, he appointed Emily Anne Gullickson as the new deputy secretary of education. Gullickson is CEO and founder of A for Arizona, an education advocacy nonprofit.
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Source: The Washington Post
