Fairfax County Public Schools has chosen its next superintendent, Dr. Michelle Reid. Succeeding current superintendent Scott Brabrand whose contract ends June 30, Reid has already been protested by students, parents, and the Fairfax County NAACP.
Concerns stem from the selection process and how Reid’s prior superintendent job will impact how she leads FCPS. Many throughout the county wished they had a larger say in the months-long decision process. The county’s NAACP chapter said in a statement that they felt the same. In fact, the group asked to be included in a panel that reviewed the finalists for the position, but was not allowed. (The NAACP expressed support for the competing candidate, Cheryl Logan, who would have been FCPS’s first Black superintendent, but Logan withdrew from consideration soon after the NAACP released that statement.)
Other concerns relate to Reid’s prior job as superintendent of Northshore School District in Washington state, which she has been since 2016. While FCPS, the eleventh largest school district in the country, has around 180,000 students, Northshore has 22,000. Northshore is also much less diverse than FCPS. While the students of FCPS are roughly 37% White, 27% Hispanic, 20% Asian and 10 percent Black, the students of Northshore are 60% White, 17% Asian, 13% Hispanic and less than 2% Black. There were only 34 Black students in the 2021 senior class for the entire Northshore district.
Because of these tremendous gaps in size and diversity between FCPS and Northshore, many are worried that Reid will have trouble leading FCPS. Despite these worries, I think we should still give Dr. Reid a chance. Of course, extra caution should be taken because the concerns surrounding her are reasonable ones. The assumptions make sense, even, and they worry me too. Still, we must treat her equally. She must be treated fairly and be given the benefit of the doubt. So would she be my first pick? No. But will she do a good job as FCPS superintendent? No one will know until she begins her contract.
