Arlington’s new School Board chair is promising to protect community values she sees as under threat from the state and federal governments.
Bethany Zecher Sutton’s colleagues unanimously selected her to chair the School Board at a meeting yesterday (Tuesday), replacing Chair Mary Kadera.
“I remain deeply committed to our mission,” Sutton said in remarks, adding that Arlington Public Schools “has the opportunity to stand up — we are a leader.”
Zecher Sutton said she is anticipating that decisions at the federal level will have major financial impacts on the school system’s $845 million budget.
“We face losing critical resources. It is not a question of whether we will lose funding, but when,” she said during remarks at the Board’s annual organizational meeting.
Zecher Sutton had served as vice chair under Mary Kadera for the 2024-25 school year, and was widely assumed to rotate in as chair. Board members selected Miranda Turner as vice chair.
In remarks, the new chair said the coming year will see boundary changes and facilities updates. She said she is committed to promoting “a culture of trust, stability, professionalism and clarity … for everyone to understand what we’re doing and why we’re doing it.”
Kadera, who will be leaving office in December after a single four-year term, echoed her successor, saying the school system was “acting in alignment with our values” to provide “safe, welcoming and inclusive environments” for students.
Kadera said Zecher Sutton will prove a “discerning, careful and inclusive chair” who “does her homework by seeking out additional information and asking good questions.”
Zecher Sutton said that Turner, the new vice chair, had a passion for excellence.
The two are not always aligned on issues, and Zecher Sutton joked that she looks forward to a continued partnership with “occasional sparring.”
Zecher Sutton was first elected to office in 2022. Should she opt to seek re-election, she will face voters in November 2026.
