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Higher Expectations. Serious Oversight.
Schools That Serve the Whole Community.
Why I'm Running
This November, I am running for re-election to the Manassas City School Board and respectfully ask for your support as I seek a second term.
I first ran four years ago because serious issues in our schools were not being addressed. As a parent and co-manager of a local preschool, I regularly heard from families who shared the same concerns about our schools' academic performance, student discipline, and a lack of clear, consistent communication with parents.
I felt a responsibility to step up and be part of the solution.
Something special happened during that campaign—something increasingly rare in today’s politics. Thousands of Manassas residents from across the political spectrum—Democrats, Republicans, and Independents—came together around a shared goal: fixing problems in our schools. And together, we won.
I firmly believe that most people in our community, regardless of political identity, are reasonable and pragmatic. They simply want schools—and government—to function well, and they are exhausted by division and dysfunction.
During my time on the School Board, I have stayed focused on what matters. I have consistently advocated for higher academic and behavioral expectations, stronger oversight, and greater transparency, while pushing back against complacency and excuse-making.
I have:
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Focused on academic achievement:
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Stood up against lowered expectations in student grading
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Pushed for an end to virtual classrooms by increasing teacher pay
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Led an initiative to tackle the achievement gap for Students with Disabilities
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Tackled truancy, chronic absence, and student behaviors:
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Secured additional funding for security and truancy officers while advocating for improved parental attendance notification
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Supported launching an alternative education program to expand services for students requiring additional support
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Took action to improve division response to bullying
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Enhanced trust, transparency, and good governance:
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Made School Board meeting materials more accessible to the public and by sending out a constituent newsletter
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Led initiatives to improve Board functioning (authoring new operating procedures and protocols)
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While progress has been made in many areas, this is not mission accomplished. There is still a lot of work to do – our schools are still not where they should be.
I want our school system to ultimately attract families to our City, not push them away. I want a school system that can be trusted; that delivers for students of all kinds; and school leadership that is unafraid to tackle our issues head-on.
We are not there yet.
I am asking for your help to get us there.
About Sara
I have three young children (ages 7, 5, and 2) with my husband Eric, and I’m active in the PTO at Baldwin Elementary—where our kids attend. My family and I love living in Manassas. Its one of the few places in our region that has an actual community and a sense of belonging and place.
My professional career began in education working with at-risk students in a troubled public high school. I later became a paralegal and have worked on school system litigation and with charitable organizations in juvenile and family law. I also briefly worked in rural Nicaragua for an aid program and speak conversational Spanish.
More recently, I co-managed Alpha-Bet Preschool located here in the city.
Beyond normal School Board duties, I am currently also:
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On the regional Board of Directors for our local Boys and Girls Club where I’ve worked to enhance collaboration between the City Government and the Club to improve kids' programming.
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On the state Superintendent's Investigative Panel on teacher and superintendent licensure.
As a School Board member, I currently serve as the Chair of the Joint Board for the Governor's School at Innovation Park and have previously served as the School Board liaison to the Special Education Advisory Committee and the Gifted & Talented Advisory Committee. I also spearheaded the formation of the Immigrant & Refugee Advisory Committee.
I grew up in a working-class town with a large immigrant community. My father worked at a truck depot and my mother struggled while attending community college at night and raising three kids. Many of my childhood friends or their parents were English language learners.
I have experienced how language and cultural barriers create schooling challenges, but the public schools I attended were well regarded. The school system drew students from across the community, it performed at a high level, and was key to my own and my friends’ future successes.
I know Manassas schools can be better.
I’m on a mission to make that happen – because our kids deserve it.
What Manassas is Saying...
"Sara is in touch with the worries and aspirations of this generation of school families. She listens to our concerns and takes action. I trust her to keep striving for higher excellence in our schools."
Allison McCauley
Baldwin Elementary PTO Officer, MCPS Parent, & Osbourn HS Graduate*
