Abby Raphael, Vice Chair of the Arlington School Board, announced her plans to seek re-election to the Arlington School Board in November 2011.

First elected in 2007, Ms. Raphael’s service on the Board has focused on the ABC’s of school success: achievement, budget and community. “In recent years, we have seen student achievement increase, our budget become more transparent, and community involvement become more meaningful,” said Raphael. Committing to these priorities in a second term, she said, “I am honored to serve Arlington and want to continue working with my colleagues and the community to ensure that each child reaches his or her potential.”

During Ms. Raphael’s first term on the Board, Parenting Magazine named Arlington as the best place in the country to raise children, in large part because of the public schools. Over the past four years, Arlington high schools have been included at the top of Newsweek’s rankings. Ms. Raphael says about these honors, “We cannot stand still. These recognitions remind us of the opportunity that we have to do even better for our students.”

Leadership, collaboration and results have characterized Ms. Raphael’s time on the Board. She has served as the liaison to the Budget Advisory Council; the Student Advisory Board; and the Washington Area Boards of Education, and has been a member of the County’s Strategic Issue Team on Youth Binge Drinking. She also has served as liaison to the Partnership for Children, Youth and Families, whose Chair, Linda Henderson, said, “Abby’s efforts as a School Board member over the past four years have helped to advance the work of the Partnership and have made a significant and real difference in the quality of life of Arlington’s children.”

“In my work on behalf of the Latino community I find Abby to be fully engaged in understanding and seeking solutions to our community’s multifaceted concerns and challenges,” remarked Claremont Immersion Elementary School parent, Gabriela Uro. “She has a strong sense of inclusion, fairness and equity which I believe are key to moving APS forward as a premier school district where all students succeed.”

Ms. Raphael’s close work with her School Board colleagues and with the community have expanded opportunities for foreign language instruction, added pre-kindergarten classes to serve more students, strengthened fiscal oversight, and increased meaningful participation of citizen advisory groups. “Abby is unfailingly prepared, well-informed, and asks tough questions. Her ability to develop positive relationships with County Board members and community leaders ensures that we are all working together to benefit our students and the community,” said Inta Malis, Columbia Pike community activist.

Prior to her service on the Board, Ms. Raphael was Vice Chair of the Advisory Council on Instruction, member of the Budget Advisory Council and the Food Services Advisory Committee, President of the Arlington Science Focus School PTA, and representative to the County Council of PTAs. She also was an officer of the Bellevue Forest Citizens’ Association and the Arlington County Bar Association, and President of the Board of Directors of Offender Aid and Restoration of Arlington County, Inc. She currently serves on the Board of the Arlington YMCA.

A former Arlington Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney, Ms. Raphael earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts degree from Duke University. Ms. Raphael has lived in Arlington for more than twenty years. She and her husband, Stuart, have two daughters who attend Williamsburg Middle School and Washington-Lee High School.

For more information: Nancy Pilchen 703/867-2908 Nancy.Pilchen@gmail.com