Letter Proposing Issue-Specific Joint Subcommittees (Pilot Model)

On December 11, 2025, School Board Members Kelly Carmichael Booz and Ryan Reyna joined Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley and Councilmember Abdel-Rahman Elnoubi in submitting the letter below to the City Council–School Board Subcommittee. The letter proposes a pilot model for joint City Council–School Board subcommittees, or project groups, and outlines the rationale, structure, and potential focus areas for this approach.

December 11, 2025

Mayor Gaskins, Councilmember Chapman, Chair Rief, and Vice Chair Harris,

The November 24, 2025 City Council/School Board Subcommittee discussion highlighted the opportunity—and necessity—of finding better, more productive ways for our members to collaborate on generating creative ideas and data driven solutions for our joint challenges.

Please find attached a proposal (developed collaboratively between myself, Board Member Booz, Vice Mayor Bagley, and Councilmember Elnoubi) for a new approach for our bodies to collaborate. We recommend the formal creation of ad-hoc joint subcommittees that are time bound to address agreed-upon issues with defined scopes and timelines, starting with one focused on long-range joint facilities in early 2026.

We look forward to your feedback and are happy to answer any questions you may have. I have cc'd all members of both elected bodies for further visibility.

Thanks,

Ryan

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Ryan Reyna

School Board Member, District A

Alexandria City Public Schools

City-Schools Subcommittees Letter (1).pdf

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To: Members of the City Council/School Board Subcommittee 

From: Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley, Councilmember Abdel-Rahman Elnoubi, Board Member Kelly Carmichael Booz, and Board Member Ryan Reyna 

Date: December 11, 2025

Subject: Pilot Joint Subcommittee to Move From Discussion to Decisions 

We write to you today as members of both elected bodies deeply invested in the success and well-being of Alexandria and all its residents. Our two bodies face many shared and pressing challenges, including a constrained budget environment, limitations on physical space within the city, and the ongoing need to deliver exceptional public services. 

The November 24, 2025 City Council/School Board Subcommittee discussion highlighted the opportunity—and necessity—of finding better, more productive ways for our members to collaborate on generating creative ideas and data driven solutions for these joint challenges. The current structure of our joint meetings provides valuable opportunities for public dialogue, but we can and should do more to translate that dialogue into tangible action. 

To this end, we propose a strategic shift in our collaborative approach, moving away from broad joint meetings toward a more focused, results-driven subcommittee structure. The proposed shift would allow the new joint subcommittee(s) to be more laser-focused on a single issue area, similar to the School and Law Enforcement Partnership Subcommittee (SLEP 2.0 Subcommittee) structure. These committees could then report back to the City Council/School Board Subcommittee to ensure alignment and transparency. 

Importantly, this approach could allow multiple subcommittees to operate concurrently, rather than relying on a single committee to work sequentially through issues. Given the substantial challenges we face collectively—and the limited duration of our elected terms—this structure would enable us to make more timely and coordinated progress. 

Establish Collaborative Subcommittees 

We recommend the formal creation of ad-hoc joint subcommittees that are timebound to address agreed-upon issues with defined scopes and timelines. This proposed model mirrors the existing, successful framework used by the SLEP 2.0 Subcommittee, which demonstrates how focused, cross-body collaboration can yield tangible results. 

Proposed Subcommittee Structure: 

1. Composition: Each subcommittee would be composed of two City Council Members and two School Board Members. This compact size is designed to foster working-level relationships and facilitate efficient problem-solving. We recommend the membership of the ad hoc subcommittee(s) goes beyond the current membership of the City Council/School Board Subcommittee to broaden perspectives and distribute capacity.¹ 

2. Function: Based on agreed upon Project Charter, subcommittees would be tasked with generating potential solutions and recommendations for specified joint challenges.

3. Governance & Reporting: 

   • Each subcommittee would be required to establish a Project Charter that clearly defines the scope, desired outcomes, and a specific timeline for completion. The Project Charter would be presented to both elected bodies for feedback and approval. 

   • Subcommittee members would report back to their respective elected bodies on their progress, findings, and final recommendations at their regularly scheduled legislative or business meetings. 

   • The City Council/School Board Subcommittee will include ongoing updates on progress from the subcommittee(s). Further discussion will be necessary to determine the best approach for this engagement (i.e., written update on progress, standing section on agenda with presentation from subcommittee member) and ways to minimize burden on staff time. 

   • Depending on timing and Project Charter, final recommendations could be brought to a Joint City Council/School Board Work Session for further discussion. 

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Proposed Initial Focus Areas for Collaboration 

We have identified potential topics that would benefit from this subcommittee approach (including issues identified at the February 1, 2025 retreat between the City Council and School Board): 

1. Long-Range Joint Facilities Planning – Coordinating our long-term planning for school and city facilities to maximize efficient use of limited space and identify opportunities for shared or co-located resources. For example, addressing middle school capacity issues. 

2. Budget and Revenue – Collaborating to set a shared long-range vision for educational investment and identifying potential opportunities for expanding revenue to serve youth, such as the creation of an Education Foundation and/or increased public-private partnerships. 

3. Youth Employment and Out-of-School Programming – Developing coordinated approaches to expand supports and career development opportunities for Alexandria's youth. This could include connecting education with workforce needs, such as further alignment of (1) the Academies at Alexandria City High School and the City’s Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) and/or (2) public and private out-of-school time programming for youth. 

4. Shared Services – Exploring opportunities to share services between the school system and city government that could result in cost savings, improved service delivery, or both. 

5. Safety and Security – The City and Schools already actively coordinate on key safety and security issues, including the APD-ACPS MOU and SLEP 2.0 Subcommittee. This subcommittee would continue and expand that partnership to consider other critical issues in the community, such as youth mental health and substance abuse. 

We recognize that it would be challenging to take on all these issues simultaneously, thus we recommend starting with one pilot in early 2026–namely, the joint facilities planning, with a focus on middle school capacity. This would allow us to demonstrate momentum for this concept, refine the process, and determine what additional steps are needed to ensure success before expanding to other topics. 

The Path Forward 

We respectfully request that both bodies consider this proposal and authorize the formation of the pilot subcommittees to begin work. We stand ready to discuss this proposal in greater detail and to work with our colleagues to implement this collaborative approach. 

Alexandria's residents deserve elected leaders who work together to address shared challenges. We believe this proposal offers a concrete path toward that goal, and we look forward to your consideration and support. 

Sincerely, 

Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley 

Councilmember Abdel-Rahman Elnoubi 

Board Member Kelly Carmichael Booz 

Board Member Ryan Reyna

¹ The intention is for these subcommittees to be led by the elected members. Staff roles and responsibilities will be further discussed and determined as this proposal proceeds.

For example, further electrification of bus fleets, shared charging infrastructure, and maintenance.