I'm calling to order this hearing or round table.

This is a public round table of the committee as a whole of the council of the District of Columbia.

I am Phil Mendelssohn, Chair of the Council and Chair of the Committee as a whole.

Today is Thursday, July 9th, 2026.

The time is 1216 in the afternoon.

We are in room 412 of the Johnny Wilson building.

This hearing is being recorded.

It's available on the council's website, www.dccouncil.gov.

This is actually the first of two round tables that the committee as a whole is having today, back to back.

This round table is to consider PR 26-747, entitled the Public Charter School Board Anna K.

Smith confirmation resolution of 2026.

This resolution was introduced at the request of the mayor three weeks ago, that is June 17, 2026.

And the stated purpose of this resolution is to confirm the mayor's nomination to appoint Anna K.

Smith to the Public Charter School Board, filling a vacant seat formerly held by Leah Cruz for the for the remainder of an unexpired term to end on February 24th, 2030.

The Public Charter School Board is an independent government agency of the District of Columbia, led by a volunteer to seven-member board as the sole public charter school authorizer in our nation's capital.

The Public Charter School Board provides oversight to public charter schools, which are managed by independently run nonprofit organizations called local education agencies.

The purpose of today's roundtable is to receive testimony from government and public witnesses regarding PR 26-747 and the fitness of the nominee for the public charter school board.

The record in this matter will not be open very long.

It will close at 5 p.m.

on Monday, July 13th.

So that would be next Monday at the close of business.

The record will close.

Having said that, I have one witness before we get to the nominee.

These hearings are round tables, which I think are important.

They're not required, but the value is that it affords the public an opportunity to comment or anyone to comment.

And one never knows.

So today we have Shukrat Adamo Finian, who's a member of the public charter school board, chair of the board.

Is she online or?

Okay.

Um I don't see her.

She should be coming up.

There she is.

Good afternoon, Chairman Mendelssohn and to the members of the committee of the whole.

I am Shakura Adamafanian, Chair of the DC Public Charter School Board.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify in support of Anna Smith's nomination to serve on the DC Public Charter School Board.

I would first like to express my gratitude to Mayor Bowser for today's nomination and for her service to public school students across the district.

The measure of success for a president is often framed as a simple question.

Are we better off today than we were four years ago?

If I were to ask that question about Mayor Bowser and the state of DC education, the answer would be a resounding yes.

Over the Bowser administration, academic achievement has improved.

The charter sector has matured, and the district has led the nation in recovering from the pandemic.

A small but important piece of this success has been the mayor's consistent nomination of high quality individuals to serve on the DC Public Charter School Board.

With what may be her final pick, we are grateful to Mayor Bowser for putting forward a great candidate in Anna Smith.

We are also pleased with the timing of this nomination, as Ms.

Smith would fill the seat most recently held by Leah Crusey, though whose dedicated service to the board concluded on June 30th, 2026.

Following a period of holdover service after the expiration of her term on February 26, 2026, excuse me.

As board members, one of our primary responsibilities is to seek out and balance a variety of perspectives, including the teacher, the administrator, the parent, and the advocate.

Ms.

Smith has worn each of these hats, enabling her to contribute to our work in a variety of ways.

As a teacher, she started her career in Miami-Dade County, educating English as a second language student.

As an administrator, she worked as a senior official in both the Obama administration and the DC government, including a tenure as interim deputy mayor of education and as executive director of DC's Workforce Investment Council.

And as a parent and advocate, she is a current trustee at Two Rivers Public Charter School, which her daughter attends.

In short, Ms.

Smith has walked the walk when it comes to her background and knowledge of the issues facing the charter sector in DC.

We are confident she would bring multiple perspectives to our board if confirmed, and we are particularly excited to bring her expertise on workforce development to bear on behalf of public charter school students.

For these and other reasons, I urge you to confirm Anna Smith as the next DC public charter school board member.

I thank you again for the opportunity to testify before you today and look forward to any questions you may have.

Thank you for your statement.

It's most helpful.

I don't have any questions for you, though.

So thank you, Chairman Nelson.

Sorry about that.

I mean, I could try to keep you for a half an hour and make up some questions, but uh it's all you, whatever you want to do.

No, no, I'm gonna let you go.

Thank you.

So that gets us done to the nominee, Anna Smith, if you would come forward.

And when you're ready.

Good morning, Chairman Mendelson.

Wonderful, wonderful to see you.

Uh thank you for the opportunity to sorry.

That's okay.

So I can make sure it's not something on my end.

That's to me.

Go ahead.

All right, try again.

Uh thank you so much for the opportunity to appear before you today.

I'm honored to be considered for appointment to the DC Public Charter School Board.

I have dedicated my career to public service because I believe education has the power to change lives.

I grew up in Poolsville, Maryland, not far from here, attending excellent public schools that gave me every opportunity to dream big and pursue college, even though neither of my parents had the opportunity themselves.

Those experiences shape my belief that public education can expand opportunity, not just for individuals, but for entire communities.

This belief led me to become a public school teacher in Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

I wanted to provide students with the same kind of high-quality educational experience that I had, and that had such a profound impact on my life.

Teaching helped me understand that while great educators make an enormous difference, strong systems and effective governance matter just as much if we want every student to succeed.

Over the course of my career, I have worked in public service under three DC mayors, worked alongside schools, districts, public agencies, employers, and nonprofit organizations to strengthen educational opportunities for young people, and currently serve on the board of trustees for Two Rivers Public Charter School.

Through each of these experiences, I have learned that good governance requires thoughtful questions, careful listening, collaboration, and an unwavering commitment to the students and families we serve.

I'm also the parent of a current public school charter school student.

My family's experienced firsthand the value of high quality charter schools.

Like thousands of DC families, we know how important it is for every child to have access to a learning environment where they feel supported, challenged, and prepared for college, career, and life.

This is an important moment for education.

As technology, the economy, and workforce needs continue to evolve, we must ensure that our schools prepare students not only for academic success, but for lives of opportunity, purpose, and economic mobility.

Through my work in talent and workforce development, I hope to bring a perspective that complements the board's existing expertise while also keeping students at the center of every decision.

If confirmed, I will approach this role with humility, independence, and a deep respect for the board's responsibilities.

I understand that public charter schools are entrusted with significant autonomy, and that autonomy must be matched by strong accountability, sound governance, financial stewardship, and a steadfast commitment to student outcomes.

I would be honored to serve the district in this capacity and to help advance the board's vision that every DC Charter School student receives a high-quality education that makes them feel valued and prepares them for lifelong learning, fulfilling careers, and economic security.

Thank you for your consideration.

I look forward to the conversation.

Thank you for your testimony, and it's good to see you.

Good to see you.

And thank you for your willingness to serve.

So I have standard questions that I asked.

Some of them I put in the pre-hearing questions to you, which uh thank you for getting those back.

Sure.

Um, you have a sense of how much time is required to to be on the public charter school board?

Very much.

And you are able to meet those time requirements?

I am.

Um, do you know of any potential conflicts of interest that would affect your serving on the board?

I don't.

I don't know of any conflicts.

There are no conflicts.

Uh, but there could be with two rivers.

Uh I will plan to risk um to leave that board if appointed.

Okay.

So, yes, and and if there were any votes or matters that came before the board, and I was in a position I would confer with the executive director and recuse myself accordingly.

Okay.

Um, and do you have any outstanding liability for taxes, fees, or other payments to the district federal or other state or local government?

I don't.

What do you see as those are the three standard questions I ask?

What do you see as challenges facing the charter sector?

How much time do we want to take?

As long as you have.

I mean, I think it's not just the charter sector.

I think it's education, public education at the moment, but in particular the charter sector, and here in DC in particular, I know, top of mind for lots in the community is how to make sure that we have a lot of opportunity and choice available to our students, not only in the charter school sector, but also in our traditional district public schools, that meet kids' needs, and that ensure that we're being good stewards of resources.

And a challenge right now that I imagine we'll have to tackle in the coming years is about our declining enrollment, right?

With the first um drop in our early pre-K My School DC lottery this year, I think it's brought to the fore the fact that our city's demographics and population changes, we've got to plan accordingly in our schools.

And so I imagine that that alongside like continued recovery from the pandemic, which feels like a lifetime ago, but I see it firsthand in my daughter's school and in the school I'm a board on.

We're still trying to make sure that we're preparing young people, needing them where they need to be, to be prepared for the future.

So I would say those two things of academic outcomes, top of mind, have got to be maintained, as well as thinking about what an autonomous sector of charter schools and a thriving DC public school system look like in a moment of potentially fewer children.

Appreciate the answer.

So um I think the most impactful way to improve academic achievement is in the classroom.

You're on a board, a charter school board.

The charter school board is uh a step or two removed from the classroom.

I'm sure you've looked for ways to try to improve academic achievement.

The public charter school board is even further removed from the classroom.

Do you, what ways do you think there are, if any, that the public charter school board can improve academic outcomes?

Sure.

It's a great question.

And yes, I've had the privilege in being very close and now further removed and you know would imagine it's a it's a very different role on the DC Public Charter School Board than even a school board of an individual school.

But I am very familiar with the ASPIRE framework and the role of the charter school board in holding charter schools and looking across the sector in accountability and delivering against the goals of the charters of each school.

I think the monitoring that the staff of the public charter school board do, the role that they play in supporting the school leaders, the teams within those schools is a critical part of that support system.

As I said in my testimony, and having also sat on a public school board of governors in the UK, the term critical friend was one of the things that guided us there, and I sort of keep in top of my mind of our role is to be a thought partner, a supporter, and I think the charter school board has the opportunity to highlight, ask tough questions, you know, push where it needs to, but there's a framework um with which we uh measure all of our public charter schools.

Are they delivering what they say they will?

Are they delivering what's best for kids?

Um, and that the board, in partnership with the uh the team the executive director uh and her staff um you know hold those folks accountable and um provide support and feedback when necessary do you think the public charter school board should have more authority to I'm gonna overstate this dictate to individual charter schools or LEAs I don't like the word dictate right the charter school board is the authorizing body is responsible for supporting governance of these schools that have their own governance body their own boards of trustees um and our role is to hold them accountable to ensure that they're living up to the charter right we are the ones that hold at that level I think there's encouragement there's pointing out where gaps exist uh that is the role of the board um and I think in so doing we're well positioning the boards of trustees and their executive directors and staff to be the ones who are ultimately you know driving the decisions and the uh implementation of whatever it takes to make sure that they're meeting the the requirements of their charter so I don't I would not use the word dictate that's not the role of the board and I'm very clear on that.

So there's not a question here but it does remind me your answer that um a couple years ago we we saw the uh it was with the um Eagle Academy the sudden closing a few days before the start of the school year um and one of the outcomes were several outcomes one of which was that the public charter school board um has taken a more uh active role or aggressive role in monitoring finances of LEA's charter LEA so that it doesn't get to be five days before the start of school when uh when a charter school decides to close um but another outcome was legislation from the council that requires that public charter school board public charter the charter school boards get training from the public charter school board um and what they should be looking for I'm not ending this with a question but uh just that because I you weren't on the board then um we we think it's important that uh the charter school boards get uh training on at least the basics of understanding finances and pressing so that they're not unaware and then we're all caught by surprise when a charter uh has to suddenly close give me just a second do we have any other questions?

Anything designed no but I'll ask you just curious if you have any thoughts on the school reorganization policy that the board just adopted do you know what I'm referring to I am it had a very bad name of mergers and acquisitions.

No I I I'm not uh in my current day job I deal very little with K-12 education and particularly not here in DC so no I I am unfortunately woefully not prepared for that but would welcome opportunity to discuss that well I'm not gonna go too much into it but uh I think this also was another byproduct of the Eagle Academy that um because there there was an effort to um have a takeover have a takeover and that fell apart um and directly indirectly that led the uh the board, the charter school public charter school board, to look at what it is the process for a merger or an acquisition or an emergency closing um as I understand it I I don't have any issues with the policy, and I haven't heard any issues in months, other than some folks saying it was a horrible name when it was called mergers and acquisitions.

But now it's called uh what school reorganization.

Anyway, just thought I would ask.

Anything else we want to volunteer?

Well, on that point, I just, you know, we'll dig deeply into all of those policies, of course.

But you know, I also have unfortunately been alongside some of the schools that have closed over time in my various roles, working very closely with the former charter school board and its leaders and the Deputy Mayor's Office and Aussie.

And you know, I know the impact that a school closure or a merger or transition has on kids and families in a uh community.

These are place-based places, even if it's not a boundary.

Um, and so I'm I would I'm hopeful, I would imagine, as I take a look at that policy that the board in the challenge of what emerged with Eagle Academy's closure, took a look at what needed to be done and made necessary changes and would hope to be able to bring my own perspective and s and insight so that we're continuously improving.

But um I think it's important work and unfortunate work, and the more that we can prevent getting to that position, uh, getting to schools that will uh not be able to continue operating for their f their communities is um a good step forward.

Thank you.

I do not have any other questions for you.

Um so let me I'm gonna close out this hearing and then we have a second hearing.

Thank you uh for your uh interest and willingness to serve.

Uh, this has been a hearing on PR 26-747 public charter school board, Anna K.

Smith, confirmation resolution of 2026.

Uh, the record in this matter will close on Monday July thirteenth at uh five o'clock p.m.

The time right now is 1236 p.m.

and this round table is adjourned, I think, I think we have a lot of different things, I think.