Dr. Atul Gupta was elected chair of the Lynchburg City School Board and Board member Connor was elected vice chair as part of the board’s reorganization at its July meeting.

The vote for chair followed a nomination from the floor; a roll call recorded several members voting yes, one member voting no and one abstention. After being nominated, Dr. Gupta said he accepted the position and pledged a focus on academics: “I will work the same way I did last year with one single focus, and the focus is to take care of the young child school. … Our goal is to raise the academic standards, and that’ll be my mission this year and hope you’ll all work with me as a team, to make it a reality.”

The board also approved procedural appointments required for the 2025–26 year. The board voted to keep Miss Day as the school board clerk and named Jill (first name on the record) as deputy clerk. The board approved Sonia Jamies as the board’s agent (chief financial officer) and Barbara Ripkama as deputy agent (assistant finance director); both appointments passed on a roll call. After her appointment, Jamies said the finance office is moving to updated systems and that staff are preparing the next budget book: “We are ahead of our audit. We are ahead of getting the budget out. I’m already working on developing the new beautiful budget book that I will have to enter your hands soon.”

The board also approved a designee for the division superintendent, naming Dr. Jennifer Davis as the superintendent’s designee for the 2025–26 academic year. The board adopted the 2025–26 meeting calendar as presented, with an adjustment noted: a work session scheduled for July was moved to July 22 to avoid conflicts with training and a retreat for newly appointed members.

Why it matters: Electing leadership and confirming clerks and fiscal designees sets who will run board proceedings and sign financial and personnel documents for the coming year. The calendar change also affects timelines for the board’s upcoming retreat and work sessions.

Details and background: The reorganization began after the chair announced the nomination process under Section 22.1‑76 of the Code of Virginia. The chair’s motion to allow electronic participation by Miss Lowry, citing policy BDD and extenuating circumstances, was approved earlier in the meeting. The clerk conducted roll-call votes for the reorganization items and the calendar. Several board members made brief remarks welcoming new leadership and emphasizing academic priorities.

Discussion versus action: The record shows formal actions (nominations, roll-call votes, and approvals) for the chair and vice chair elections and all listed appointments. The calendar change was approved by vote. Comments made by board members about priorities and communications were discussion and not formal policy changes.

What’s next: With leadership and clerical/financial designees in place, the board and the superintendent’s office will proceed with planned work sessions, onboarding for new members and the district’s strategic‑planning timeline.