"At the September 26 community dialogue at the Monticello Conference Center, members considered the report of the City Council Task Force on School Board election options, and proposed consensus question: Should the method of electing members to the Charlottesville City school board be based on a "Residential District Model?"

Following presentations by Lloyd Snook (on video) and Buddy Weber, both of whom were members of the City Council Task Force on School Board Election options, along with a summary of options by city voter registrar, Sheri lachetta, local LWV members were asked to respond to four questions in their group discussions:

1. How important is it that the electorate be able to vote for every member of the school board?
2. How important is it to be able to elect at least one member to the school board who resides within your precinct or ward?
3. If the city were to establish some variation of a ward or precinct system of elections for school board members, in your opinion how important is it that the city establish at least one ward or precinct where the majority of the population within the boundaries of such ward be African- American (majority-minority)?
4. Why develop support for a new model of electing school board members?

With some 30 members in attendance, the small group discussions were very lively. However, due to lack of time, it was not possible to bring closure on whether we had consensus for the study question. Fortunately, there was a member of the study group seated at each table of about six members to judge the tenor of the discussion. I touched base with the study group leaders by email after the meeting and asked them to give me a summary of the discussion at their table. In general, the responses to my email were that there was not a whole lot of fervor for the residential district model. But then, participants in the discussion were basically feeling their way through the questions that were posed above and hadn't perhaps settled in their own minds what their own opinion was. Only one table reported that their participants had formed consensus near the end of the discussion in favor the residential district model. One table expressed concern about adequate representation for all segments of the population, the campaigning issue, and just who is going to run for the school board seats, but did not come to any agreement about the option for electing school board members.

At the October 17 meeting of the League [of Women Voters] board of directors, I reported this lack of consensus for the residential district model. For now, the study will go back to the study group members to determine whether there should be further research and/or discussion about the school board election options for Charlottesville. Despite the lack of consensus, the board did express its satisfaction that the issue had been raised and that the local League had, in its educational function, enlightened the voters to the possibilities of electoral options. There was agreement that the community dialogue was a successful meeting." (Michele Kellermann, Study Chair, LWV Newsletter, November, 2006)