Ashley McLeod
Ashley McLeod was an at-large incumbent on the Virginia Beach City School Board in Virginia. She previously served on the board from 2010 to 2012. In 2010, she was appointed to fill a vacancy and won election to a two-year term in November 2010. She ran for re-election and was narrowly defeated by challengers Beverly Anderson and Elizabeth Taylor in November 2012.
She ran against incumbents Dorothy Holtz and Robert Melatti, in addition to three fellow challengers, in the general election on November 4, 2014. There were two at-large seats up for election. Ashley McLeod won the general election on November 4, 2014. McLeod did not seek re-election in 2018.
Biography
McLeod has a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Indiana University. She taught elementary school from 1992 to 1998. She operated her own business from home from 1999 to 2009 so that she could stay home with her children. She started working for the Norfolk Sister City Association in 2008 and served as its executive director until May 2014. She is currently the communications and membership director at the Virginia Maritime Association.
She and her husband, Gregor, a retired navy veteran, have two children who both attend school in the district.[1]
Elections
2014
The November 4, 2014, general election in Virginia Beach City Public Schools featured six seats up for election. The districts of Bayside, Beach, Lynnhaven and Princess Anne were up for re-election, in addition to two at-large seats.
For the at-large seats, incumbents Dorothy Holtz and Robert Melatti sought re-election against four challengers. They were Alvenia Leboeuf, Ashley McLeod, Gregg O’Neil and Osmay Torres.
In the Bayside (District 4) race, incumbent Carolyn Weems faced challenger Clenise Platt. In the Beach (District 6) race, incumbent Samuel Reid competed against Sharon Felton. Lynnhaven (District 5) incumbent Emma L. Davis did not file for re-election; three candidates sought her seat. They were Michael Kelly, Carolyn Rye and Gregory Strangways. Two candidates, Kimberly Melnyk and Frances Thompson, challenged incumbent William Brunke for the Princess Anne (District 7) seat.
Holtz and McLeod won election to the at-large seats. Weems, Felton, Rye and Melnyk won their respective district seats.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan |  Dorothy Holtz Incumbent |
24.8% | 34,749 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ashley McLeod |
22% | 30,823 | |
| Nonpartisan | Robert Melatti Incumbent | 20.1% | 28,261 | |
| Nonpartisan | Alvenia Leboeuf | 12.9% | 18,146 | |
| Nonpartisan | Osmay Torres | 11.1% | 15,528 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gregg O’Neil | 8.7% | 12,182 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.4% | 579 | |
| Total Votes | 140,268 | |||
| Source: Virginia Department of Elections, "Official Election Results," accessed December 29, 2014 | ||||
Funding
McLeod reported $7,469.82 in campaign contributions and $5,486.72 in expenditures in this election, according to the Virginia State Board of Elections.[2]
Endorsements
McLeod was endorsed by U.S. Congressman Scott Rigell (R-VA) and Virginia State Senators Jeffrey McWaters (R) and Frank Wagner (R). She was also endorsed by Virginia State Delegates Barry Knight (R), Chris Stolle (R), Ronald Villanueva (R), Bill DeSteph (R) and Scott W. Taylor (Virginia) (R). On the local level, McLeod was endorsed by Virginia Beach City Treasurer John T. Atkinson, Commonwealth’s Attorney Colin Stolle and Clerk of Courts Tina Sinnen.[3]
2012
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Beverly M. Anderson |
18.6% | 45,165 | |
| Nonpartisan | Elizabeth E. Taylor |
17.2% | 41,943 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ashley McLeod Incumbent | 15.9% | 38,731 | |
| Nonpartisan | Sharon R. Felton | 13.5% | 32,820 | |
| Nonpartisan | D. Scott Seery Incumbent | 13.2% | 32,210 | |
| Nonpartisan | Stephen A. Johnston | 6% | 14,541 | |
| Nonpartisan | Alex F. Kalasinsky | 6% | 14,510 | |
| Nonpartisan | J. Michael Camden | 5.5% | 13,359 | |
| Nonpartisan | Sidney T. Moore | 3.8% | 9,153 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.4% | 996 | |
| Total Votes | 243,428 | |||
| Source: Virginia Beach, Virginia, "November 6, 2012 General and Special Elections," accessed October 14, 2014 | ||||
2010
| Virginia Beach City Public Schools, At-Large Special Election, 2-year term, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Ashley McLeod |
71.3% | 60,298 | |
| Nonpartisan | G. Waugh | 28.3% | 23,905 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.4% | 367 | |
| Total Votes | 84,570 | |||
| Source: Virginia Beach, Virginia, "November 2, 2010 General and Special Elections," accessed October 14, 2014 | ||||
Campaign themes
McLeod split her campaign platform into three segments: academic performance, teacher compensation and new school construction. She stated the following regarding these themes on her website.
| “ | Academic Performance Educating our children for tomorrow is our greatest responsibility. This is why I fully support the Compass-2015 program implemented by the Virginia Beach School Board that seeks to teach Virginia Beach Public School students the following; Critical Thinking: Analyze and evaluate information and ideas to determine appropriate actions or develop a point of view. Recognizing that the long range goal of the Virginia Beach City Public Schools is the successful preparation and graduation of every student, the near term goal is that by 2015, 95 percent or more of Virginia Beach City Public School students will graduate having mastered the skills that they need to succeed as 21st century learners, workers and citizens.
When you stop and consider the education the Virginia Beach Public Schools as well as the Commonwealth of Virginia require for a teacher to step in front of a classroom, you can begin to understand that becoming a teacher is more than a career choice. Becoming a teacher is a commitment to serve others by attaining a degree of higher education that takes years to fulfill and by virtue of that fact alone qualifies our teachers to be treated as professionals. As a former teacher, I also understand that our teachers deserve the respect of the School Board, School Administration, our children’s parents as well as the community for the important task they perform not only for our children today, but it is also helping to form what our world will be in the future. Teachers have an impact on our students and our society long after a student leaves their class as well as beyond the Teachers own career. This is why I support providing our Teachers with the best compensation our city can possibly afford as well as a defined benefits package and retirement plan that is consummate with their important standing in our community. When much is expected, meeting those expectations should be fairly rewarded by the community our Teachers serve. The schools we are currently replacing are or have exceeded 50 years of age and our staff, students as well as parents are acutely aware that these buildings have outlived their useful life. School sustainable design studies have demonstrated that students benefit significantly from attending schools where daylight, rather than traditional artificial lighting, was the principal source of internal lighting. According to the U. S. Department of Energy, design strategies and construction costs for sustainably designed schools do not show a significant cost increase over conventionally designed schools. Students who attend these schools benefit from daylight, both in terms of increased performance (as measured by test scores) and general health and well being. School replacement might seem expensive now, but these newer, more efficient buildings will pay dividends in cost savings as well as academic performance in the years to come.[4] |
” |
| —Ashley McLeod's campaign website (2014)[5] | ||
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Ashley + McLeod + Virginia + Beach + City + Public + Schools + Virginia"
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Ashley McLeod for School Board At-Large, "Meet Ashley," accessed October 14, 2014
- ↑ Virginia State Board of Elections, "Campaign Finance Reports," accessed October 21, 2014
- ↑ Ashley McLeod for School Board At-Large, "Endorsements," accessed October 14, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ashley McLeod for School Board At-Large, "Campaign Platform," accessed October 14, 2014
