Meet The Candidate: Abdel Elnoubi For Alexandria School Board

ALEXANDRIA, VA — As voters begin casting early ballots for Alexandria's Nov. 2 general election, one of the races they will decide is the Alexandria School Board.

The school board is made up of three districts, each of which has three board members who serve a three-year term. Members who are elected in the Nov. 2 election will take office in 2022.

Voters will either vote for Alexandria School Board District A, B or C depending on which district they live in. There are five candidates running for three seats in District A, seven candidates running for three seats in District B, and three candidates running for three seats in District C.

One of the District C candidates is Abdel-Rahman Elnoubi, whose family comes from the other Alexandria in Egypt. An engineering project manager at Metro, he has two children at ACPS.

For more information about the upcoming election in Alexandria, visit www.alexandriava.gov/Elections.

Learn more Abdel Elnoubi and why he is running for Alexandria School Board District C in 2021:

Age (as of Election Day)

34

Position sought (mayor, city council, school board, etc.)

Alexandria City School Board

Party Affiliation

Non-partisan

Family

Two ACPS students, 4th grade daughter and son is in KG

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

Yes, my father works for USPTO and I am a former USPTO employee.

Education

MS in Engineering Management from George Washington University and BS in Mechanical Engineering from the City College of New York

Occupation

Engineering Project Manager at Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) – Total Time agency: Nine years, three months

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Citizen Appointee to Alexandria City Community Criminal Justice Board

Campaign website

https://www.abdelforalexandria.com/

Why are you seeking elective office?

As a proud parent of two ACPS students and has served as PTA president, I know firsthand the challenges facing our schools. I have a personal stake in addressing them and improving ACPS; I also believe that every student deserves an equal opportunity to succeed and prosper and access a robust education system that meets their social, emotional, and academic needs. It is also vital that all personnel in our school system are provided all the resources they need to do their jobs.

I am also a child of immigrants from Alexandria, Egypt. I like to call my story "A tale of two Alexandrias." I left Egypt for opportunity and prosperity, working through Engineering School by delivering pizza, and I want to fight for the principles and values, and expand the opportunities that made my story possible.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Recovery from the impact of the pandemic as well as facility and equity issues that predate the pandemic primarily in facility aging and overcrowding, as well as widely growing opportunity gaps, and disproportionate suspension and discipline of students of color. Use a data driven approach to implement and fine tune the ACPS Equity for All 2025 Strategic Plan to address lingering inequities and recover from the impact of the pandemic on students and educators as well as working to find creative strategic solutions and advocate for funding to add and build new schools.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

I believe that the city's response to the pandemic, in particular, shifting students to the virtual learning platform, was the best option due to COVID. The leadership did a great job listening to public health officials, enforcing mask mandates, social distancing, and encouraging vaccination, further protecting the students and staff. Over a year into the pandemic, I believe that the response is still a work in progress. We have avoided outbreaks of the virus in our schools. However, there remains uncertainty with the development of the Delta variant, considering that students under the age of 12 are not eligible for the vaccine. The opportunity gap for students has widened, as many students have fallen behind with the virtual learning platform.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

I've talked to countless neighbors, parents, teachers, and community members about the challenges facing our schools. I want to see a school board that addresses our schools' critical needs, focusing on today's solutions and generations to come. ACPS faces lingering issues that predate the pandemic, such as overcrowding and achievement gaps, highlighted and exacerbated by the pandemic. My top issues are:
-Working with the city council to find creative and strategic ways to build and add more schools to mitigate the overcrowding and our aging school buildings. Students deserve sufficient facilities that fulfill their educational needs across the board.
-Dedicating resources towards effective academic recovery from the perils of the coronavirus pandemic's impact on our school communities. Additionally, ensure the social, emotional, and educational needs of our community are fulfilled through SEAL development and new innovative programs geared at building support systems for our community
-Minimize suspensions and expulsions as well as the opportunity/achievement gaps which disproportionately impact students of color. Suspensions/expulsions are proven ineffective ways of treating offenses committed by students; taking students out of school hinders their education and feeds the school-to-prison pipeline. With our expansions in student support staff, it is integral that we continue to implement restorative justice/practices, with student interaction as a centerpiece of helping our youth.
-Competitive teacher pay and make ACPS a regional employer of choice. Every educator in each of our schools deserves comfortable pay and a superior experience in our system. The better educators we have, the better students our schools will be able to produce. Serving our teachers is just as important as serving our students.

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

I've been a community leader for quite some time. Bringing this leadership into our local government would be a positive addition to our beloved ACPS community. Serving as PTA president, I started a community outreach initiative where we held meet and greet events at the residential communities where our families lived to introduce them to the PTA and build a relationship between the PTA and the community that enables everyone to have a seat at the table. I have also been a grassroots activist advocating for the most vulnerable and marginalized not just in our schools but in our broader community. I also serve on Alexandria City's Community Criminal Justice Board.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Listen, be authentic, and empower others.

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

To learn more visit my website: www.abdelforalexandria.com