At a special session on January 16, the Albemarle County School Board interviewed seven candidates to fill its Rio District seat, which is vacant following the death of Chuck Pace. The board must appoint a new representative by February 3.
Among the applicants is Jim Dillenbeck, who ran for the seat against Pace in November.
Rio District voters elected Pace by a margin of 468 ballots. In his application, Dillenbeck said the board should appoint him to honor the 4,069 votes he received in the November 5 election.
“I would like to see all families in our county be able to have their children succeed in getting a quality education regardless of their race, gender, religion, economic level or any other status,” wrote Dillenbeck in his application. “In choosing me for this seat, the Board would be giving a voice to the thousands of Rio citizens who voted for me last year.”
In his interview with the board, Dillenbeck highlighted the feedback he garnered from constituents on the campaign trail. “I’ve heard their concerns about mental health, grading policies, classroom management and poor test scores, new curriculum demands, etc.,” he said. “I see the role of a board member as being an advocate for teachers, administrators, staff, and also as a liaison between the staff of schools and the parents and members of the community.”
All seven applicants emphasized the importance of listening to and engaging with the Rio District. Several also mentioned Pace as an inspiration. In his application, John Wharton, a friend and neighbor of the late board member, wrote, “I want to serve to honor [Pace’s] commitment.”
A majority of the interviewees had children or grandchildren who attended ACPS schools, with the exceptions of Sarah Jenkins and Leslie Pryor.
While she doesn’t have children, Pryor has been an Albemarle resident for 40 years and would bring unique experience to the school board as an African American woman and former parole officer.
“I would like to focus on the challenges of how the children are performing, [with a] strong emphasis on the children who live below the poverty line,” said Pryor. “I think the Rio District really needs the vision and the presence of someone [such] as myself and an African American female to serve on this board, a native of Charlottesville.”
An academic advisor at the University of Virginia, Jenkins also doesn’t have kids, but views public education as something that affects the entire community. “I care deeply about our school district being one where every single student can thrive,” she said. “I believe that quality public education is a human right, and that we have a responsibility as a community to care for each other.”
The other candidates, Sue Friedman, Gail Lovette, and Sean Moynihan, all have a connection to the board.
Friedman, who served on the school board from 2004 to 2007, spoke about the importance of not only experience, but building connections with constituents, students, parents, and businesses. “I think in addition to expertise and experience, I bring great value and knowledge with community,” she said. “The role of the school board member is to understand, to listen, to be available, and to bring that knowledge and information back to the school board.”
Lovette was the at-large representative on the school board’s long-range planning advisory committee. “With many changes and initiatives ahead at the district, state and possibly federal levels, the next year will be an important one in ACPS,” she said. “All but one of the schools that serve Rio students have level two or level three achievement gaps according to the Department of Ed[ucation], and so I think those are issues that are front and foremost for our community right now in the next year.”
While he hasn’t previously been on the board himself, Sean Moynihan’s wife, Pam, was a member of the ACPS school board for 16 years.
The Albemarle County School Board will take public comment on the candidates for the Rio District seat during its regular meeting on January 23.
Agenda items
After weather and water delays, the Virginia General Assembly is back—and sprinting to finish its 46-day session on schedule.
For local legislators, the truncated agenda is action-packed. In the House of Delegates, Dels. Katrina Callsen and Amy Laufer both introduced 15 bills, the maximum allowed during the rapid-fire 2025 regular session.
After a contentious budget process last year, House members were also able to make three budget requests not tied to specific legislation. Among Callsen’s requests are $500,000 for the Department of Housing & Community Development and $1,370,000 for the Department of Conservation and Recreation. The funds would support Charlottesville’s efforts to provide legal counsel to people facing eviction and Albemarle County’s construction of an ADA-compliant walking trail in the area of Biscuit Run Park, respectively.—Catie Ratliff
