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Speakers at FCPS hearing urge funding for first collectively bargained contract
Summary
At a Feb. 4 Fairfax County School Board public hearing, teachers, union leaders and county employee representatives urged the board and county supervisors to fund the district's recently ratified collective bargaining agreement, warning of teacher departures and retention risks if raises are not financed.
Dozens of speakers at a public hearing Feb. 4 urged Fairfax County School Board members and county officials to fund the district’s first collectively bargained contracts in decades, saying the agreements are essential to retain teachers and staff.
David Walrod, president of the Fairfax County Federation of Teachers, said, “We’ve been waiting 50 years for collective bargaining to be a reality.” He told the board the issue now is whether the district and county will provide the money to implement the contracts. “Please fund our contract,” he said.
Why it matters: The contracts include negotiated pay increases that supporters say will make FCPS competitive with neighboring systems and reduce turnover. Speakers at the hearing, which the board said included 18 registered commenters, repeatedly asked the board to keep the contracts funded in the district’s FY 2026 proposed budget and to press the county and state for support.
Several union members and educators said funding the agreements would send a message of respect and make it more likely that early-career teachers remain in Fairfax County. Emily Vanderhoff, a second-grade teacher who identified herself as president-elect of the Fairfax County Federation of Teachers, praised Superintendent Scott S. Brabrand (noted in remarks as "Dr. Reed" in the transcript) for including money to cover the financial aspects of the union’s recently ratified agreement in the proposed budget. “I want to thank Dr. Reed for including funding to cover the financial aspects of our recently ratified FEU collective bargaining agreement in her proposed budget,” Vanderhoff said.
Luke Williams, a science educator and FCFT executive-board member, said, “I urge the board to fully fund our first collectively bargained contract in over 40 years. Funding this agreement sends a powerful message to our dedicated staff.” Several other teachers described turning down higher pay elsewhere and accepting heavy workloads to remain in FCPS.
Norman Hall, who said he serves as chair of the Fairfax County Employees Advisory Council, told the board that county employees represented by the council support collective bargaining and urged budgeting based on community needs rather than historical shares of the county operating fund. Janie Lewis, a Liberty Middle School staffer and union member, asked the school board to continue advocacy with the Board of Supervisors because past supervisors have not consistently funded full FCPS requests.
Speakers cited specific risks if the raises are not financed: increased staff departures, difficulty recruiting in critical areas such as special education, and longer-term damage to morale and retention. Duran Thompson, who said he had raised pay and workload concerns before, told the board, “Let’s work together by lobbying the state, educating the community, and working with the Board of Supervisors to do something different.”
No formal vote on the FY 2026 budget or on funding the agreements took place at the hearing. The board’s clerk announced the board planned to consider approval of the FY 2026 proposed budget at its regular meeting on Feb. 20, 2025.
Bottom line: Teachers, union leaders and a county employee representative used the Feb. 4 public hearing to press the school board and other local officials to secure funding for a newly ratified collective bargaining agreement. Supporters repeatedly framed the funding question as central to retaining staff and sustaining instructional programs.
