Zuraya Tapia-Hadley Runs For Arlington County School Board: Profile

ARLINGTON, VA — While most of the attention this political season has been on the presidential race, Arlington residents will also be casting ballots on Nov. 5 for candidates running in the U.S. Senate, House of Representatives (8th District), county board and school board races.

Zuraya Tapia-Hadley, is a senior government affairs and public affairs professional with 20 years of experience, is on the Nov. 5 ballot in the race to fill two open seats on the Arlington County School Board. She's running against Paul C. Weiss, James "Vell" Rives and Kathleen A. Clark.

As part of its coverage of the 2024 election, Patch has asked each of the candidates in the Arlington County School Board race to fill out a questionnaire to describe why they think they're the best person to fill the job they're running for.

Your Name

Zuraya Tapia-Hadley

Position sought:

Arlington County School Board

Have you been endorsed by a recognized political party? If so, which one?

Yes, Arlington County Democratic Committee

Age (as of Election Day)

44

Campaign Website

Zuraya Tapia 4 School Board

Names, ages and any pertinent details you wish to share about your family.

My husband is Ross Hadley and I have two boys, ages 9 and 11.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? This includes any relatives who work in the government you're a candidate in.

No.

Education

I have two law degrees, a Master of Laws from Georgetown University Law Center, and an undergraduate degree in Law from the Universidad de las Americas, Puebla, Mexico, one of the top private universities in Mexico.

Occupation - Please include years of experience.

20 years, Senior Government Affairs and Public Affairs Professional

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Political Office

Virginia Latino Advisory Board under Gov. Tim Kaine and Gov. Terry McAuliffe

Why are you seeking elective office?

I am running for the Arlington County School Board because I care deeply for our community and hope to use my skills and experience to help improve our great school system by ensuring that all families are represented on the school board, regardless of how loud or muted their voice may be. I want to bring us together to solve tough challenges, and unite Arlington and our schools through pragmatic, inclusive leadership. As 20-year Arlingtonians, my husband and I decided to settle and raise our family here because of the high quality public education system. With one son having just entered middle school, and another in fifth grade, I am deeply invested in Arlington Public Schools. As a parent I bring a real time understanding of the needs of our public education system, and as a Communications and Public Policy Professional I hope to bring a set of skills that improve: 1) transparency and communication between APS, families, and educators, 2) safety and well-being of kids and educators in our schools, and 3) our high quality of education, managing our budget deficit such that we prioritize investment in instruction and the classroom in such a way that every child is able to realize their potential.

Throughout my involvement with the APS system – before, during, and post-pandemic – I have observed learning and achievement gaps that we need to address. Moreover, I have spoken with members of our community who have voiced their concerns about the communication shortfalls between the Arlington County School Board, faculty and staff, school administrators, and our parents and students – especially for those in our community who speak English as a second language. As community advocate, bilingual, and bicultural parent, these are challenges that I hope to take on and overcome, and I have the professional and advocacy experience to do so.

The single most pressing issue facing voters is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing Arlington County voters, as it relates to the Arlington Public School system, is what is now a structural budget deficit. Arlington Public School system is facing budgetary constraints which necessitates hard discussions on what we are – and are not – funding for our public education system. For years we operated taking funds from reserves to achieve our goals, and now that those reserves have been depleted, we need to be much more creative about finding alternative funding structures and look deeply into how and where we are allocating our resources.

With over 15 years of experience reviewing non-profit and public budgets, I believe we can significantly improve transparency with regard to the budget. If elected to the Arlington School Board, my goal is to shape a needs-based budget and that is effectively reviewed with the Arlington County Board. This is where my skills and decades of experience as a negotiator, achieving policy changes and impact at the federal level, will be invaluable.

Regarding budget specifics, I believe that kids’ learning conditions are educators’ working conditions. This is why I will prioritize educator pay and compensation and why I will not support cutting roles that aid children and families with pressing needs, such as services for kids with disabilities, English language learners, and early literacy intervention. If elected, I plan to focus on early literacy intervention as one of my top priorities.

Furthermore, we must do a better job at understanding the planning factors that exist and how they are being deployed. This knowledge is essential for making informed decisions that relate to the Arlington Public Schools’ budget, and will go a long way towards improving our public education system.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

The School Board’s primary role is to approve the Arlington Public School budget and hire a Superintendent who then manages the school system. This position of oversight necessitates excellent management, communication, and, in my view, advocacy skills in order to be effective. I bring the skills set of a lawyer and public policy professional who has proven results, and as a lawyer and advocate over the last 20 years, I have created national campaigns, public engagement strategies, and honed advocacy skills, successfully negotiating policy changes within Fortune 10 companies, with external stakeholders, and with members of the U.S. Congress in order to achieve progress, improved representation, and better outcomes for all involved. Additionally, I am known and respected as someone who has maintained close working relationships with my colleagues and community over decades, which has put me in a position to get higher quality information, and thus better results.

Furthermore, the School Board is tasked with setting a system of governance, culture, values, and priorities that impact how our children are taught. One reason I am endorsed by the educators’ union (two of us are AEA-PAC endorsed) is because I believe that we should have a culture that takes into account the expertise of educators and staff working directly with students, and have that inform the perspective of other educators or experts in the administration.

Lastly, I am one of two candidates who will be a parent in APS for the duration of my term, if elected. Therefore, I will have a direct stake in the process and outcomes of any decision by APS.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)?

N/A, I seek to fill an open position.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Trust, competence, and compassion are at the center of my campaign.
I have earned the trust and endorsement of numerous current and former local and state elected officials who believe in my ability, I bring competence as a 20 year public policy professional, and I am defined by the empathy and compassion I will demonstrate as a School Board member. I firmly believe that every family, educator, and staff deserve to be treated with respect and be heard. I believe this is why I earned the endorsement of the Arlington County Democratic Committee, NoVA-Labor, Sierra Club, and Juntos for Virginia, along with the Arlington Education Association-PAC.

I envision a school system where all students receive the requisite instruction, care, and support to excel. A school system that is a safe and welcoming place, where students are learning, challenged, and can be creative and cared for. In order to achieve this, we need to start by strengthening trust between APS, families, educators, and staff such that they all feel confident that school is serving their best interest; where all feel heard and transparency is prioritized. A place that helps students explore and nourish their creativity, challenges them to achieve new feats, and spurs their academic and socioemotional growth to succeed both in and outside of the classroom. A place where every graduate feels prepared to embark on whatever path they may choose to take post graduation, be it in higher education, the workforce, or a vocational career.

If I am elected to the Arlington School Board, I will work tirelessly to make my vision a reality. I believe that we can get there by focusing on my three most important priorities:

Communication and transparency - As a School Board member, I intend to engage students, parents, and educators in all issues with appropriate and sufficient notice and to provide quality opportunities for input. As a parent, the short turnaround times or lack of opportunity for feedback ahead of major decisions has at times been frustrating. In speaking with educators, I know that they also want more opportunity to help shape curriculum and address administrative workload.

Safety - I want to ensure students and educators are welcome, safe and feel secure in our schools. This includes freedom from threats like bullying and gun violence, in addition to providing invaluable mental health support.

Excellence - Supporting students and educators to promote academic excellence and equity. By academic excellence I’m referring to growth (progress) and achievement, not testing or metrics that don’t accurately reflect or positively impact student learning. By equity, I mean that we should reevaluate how APS budget and resources are allocated, taking a deep look into planning factors and ensure that we are not allocating resources equally across schools, but rather allocating them equitably, such that the most pressing needs of students and educators are met across all schools

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have served on major non-profit and public boards since 2007, and in each case made a point to learn from the organization's staff and connect the work to needs in the community. As the youngest Executive Director of the Hispanic National Bar Association, I led advocacy campaigns that led to the appointment of dozens of Hispanic judges to the federal bench, improving representation in measurable ways. More recently, I helped pass policy language to improve language access for non-English speakers in four federal appropriations bills.

In Arlington, I served on the Shirlington Employment and Education Center (SEEC) for a decade, ending as Chair, and I was one of the residents who spoke publicly against a gun seller trying to secure commercial space near Fairlington and Green Valley.

I have advised two Virginia Governors as part of the Virginia Latino Advisory Board, and consistently demonstrated my ability to be an independent voice, while also demonstrating leadership skills that resulted in effective partnerships with my colleagues.

I have managed significant budgets and competing priorities in the non-profit as well as the Tech and Media corporate sector, and always kept my priorities in focus while working collaboratively across teams and across organizations to build and achieve collective goals.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

"The here and now is all we have, and if we play it right it's all we'll need." - Ann Richards

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I hope to earn your vote and your support of our campaign! I believe that my leadership, based on competence in the governance and policy space, my willingness to listen, and ability to be empathetic will make APS a more welcoming, and thus more effective system.

These qualities have allowed me to be a trusted advocate and community member and I'm confident that I can similarly help strengthen the trust between APS, families, and educators. Trust is essential in order to achieve our collective goals.

My goal is to ensure that every student, regardless of background, has the opportunity and ability to thrive during and after their school careers. I truly believe that together we can build a more inclusive and representative public education system for every student.