The Albemarle County School Board is scheduled to appoint an interim member to fill a vacancy left with the resignation of Allison Spillman in August.
But first the public gets to weigh in Thursday night on the fifteen candidates who have made it this far in the application process. That’ll take place at 6:30 p.m. in Lane Auditorium of the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road.
The list of candidates includes two former members of the School Board, a former director of the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau, and a current member of the Albemarle Economic Development Authority.
The applications for each candidate are listed on the School Board website.
- Jimmy Belew — Business owner and parent of children in Albemarle schools
- Kurt Burkhart — one-time member of ACPS Long Range Planning Advisory Committee and former CACVB director
- Mandy Crombie — substitute teacher and member of the Talent Development Advisory Committee
- Heidi Gilman Bennett — One-time president of Henley Middle School PaTSO, Chair of Family Council from 2022 to 2026
- Lucas Alexander Johnson — Former student who worked to secure more resources for mental health
- Steve Koleszar — Served on Albemarle School Board from 1996 to 2019
- Mike McDermott — Military background
- Joellen Pisarczyk — Longtime educator
- Leslie Pryor —Served as interim Rio District School Board member from January 2025 to December 2025 but lost election to Jim Dillenbeck
- Daisy Rojas — One-time co-chair of the Long Range Planning Committee
- Justin Shifflette — One-time junior varsity soccer coach at Albemarle High School and parent of children in Albemarle schools
- Lynsie Steele — Parent of children in Albemarle schools, area director for Girls on the Run Central Virginia and Blue Ridge
- David Storm — Member of Long Range Planning Committee and Economic Development Authority
- David Gilbert Tatman — Served in U.S. Army and spent six years teaching at Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center
- William T. Woodrow — Parent of children in Albemarle schools
Though the public hearing is September 17, the actual appointment will be made at the following meeting on September 24.
“This schedule allows the School Board to complete the appointment ahead of the September 28 deadline while providing time for the application, candidate interview, and public input portions of the process,” reads the ACPS website.
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