Schools

School Board Questionnaire: Chyrell Bucksell

Patch asked candidates for School Board to complete a questionnaire to shed some light on where candidates stand in issues important to Alexandria City Public Schools. Here's what they had to say.

Patch School Board Candidate Questionnaire

District B Candidate Chyrell Bucksell

Name: Chyrell Bucksell
Age: 29
Occupation: Patient Services
Incumbent or non-incumbent: Non-incumbent
How long have you been an Alexandria resident? 25 Years
Which neighborhood do you live in? Parkside of Alexandria
Website, Facebook page or other contact information:
Vote4chyrell2012.com
@cbucksell on Twitter

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What unique perspective, experience or expertise would you bring to
the School Board?

Being a student as well as a parent in the school system gives me the parent view which I feel is overlooked a lot when making decisions.

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What are top challenges facing ACPS and how do you plan to engage the community to address them?

The top challenges are overcrowding, success for every child and preschool. I plan to have our information where the community is which is at the fairs, markets and other events in the city.

What role do the members of the School Board play in ensuring
transparency and accountability at the ACPS Central Office?

We are voting in by the citizens are job is to keep them informed and to make sure there voices are heard.

What is your opinion of the superintendent’s job performance?

The superintendent is moving at a very fast pace and has a lot of wonderful ideas. I think he needs to be questioned more.

How can a School Board member improve communication between ACPS and parents/caregivers?

We can improve communications by having a more welcoming environment for school board meetings. Also reaching out more to parents with just letting them know what exactly the school board does.

What are some of your ACPS budget priorities? For example, do you
favor spending more money to keep class sizes low or a longer school
year or day? Are there certain areas that should be trimmed
financially?

I am a fan of extended day from watching the benefits my children received from being in this environment. I however know this does not fit every child/family needs. Most importantly I would like to increase the preschool classes we have.

The next School Board likely will need to address the possibility of boundary adjustments and attendance zone changes. What are your guiding principles regarding economic or racial segregation, neighborhood schools, magnet schools, class and school sizes, busing policies and other considerations?

I believe each school should try to have a good mixture of everyone.


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