Support for Mark Riley

Speaking of the Atlanta School Board, in addition to Courtney English (whom I blogged about here), I’m also asking you to support Mark Riley, whom I had the pleasure of meeting at the KIPP School Summit earlier this month (I just donated $100 at here):

Dear All,

I wanted to let you know that after a lot of study of how this Fall’s elections are likely to shape up, I have decided to run to regain my seat on the Atlanta School Board.

This is a watershed moment for our school system. This election and the new superintendent we hire in 2014 may be the most important decisions we make as a community this decade. We have the opportunity to set a new course for our schools and ensure they are providing the world class education we all want for our children. There are some fundamental changes that need to be made in how our school system operates in order to live up to these expectations. These reform measures are working in other cities around the country - Denver, Nashville, New Orleans - and we need to bring them here.

I have been involved in public education in Atlanta since the early 1990’s when I took part in a community wide coalition to improve the then dysfunctional Atlanta School Board. I was elected to the Atlanta School Board in 2002 and served two four-year terms in a city wide role. For 15 years I have led the Sartain Lanier Family Foundation, a major Atlanta based grant making organization that focuses on educational organizations and reform. Through this work I have studied educational reform efforts both locally and nationally. I have been exposed to cutting edge thought leadership on education reform and how our children can benefit, particularly those without many opportunities.

Now is the time to enact real reform in our schools. Now is the time to provide real opportunity for all of our children, regardless of the neighborhood in which they live. 

This is our moment. We must take advantage of it to enact real change in our schools. With your help, I'm ready to move forward. I hope you'll join me.

Mark

PS - Our new campaign website is www.MarkRileyForSchoolBoard.com and you can find the campaign Facebook page here. Please like and help spread the message with your friends.