After interviewing the three finalists during a special meeting last Tuesday, the trustees chose Woodley to take over former board president Angie Taylor’s seat, effective immediately.
Woodley is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and has served on the boards of the Education Alliance, the Community Health Alliance, and the Nevada Military Support Alliance.
“I promise that I will learn and I will listen. I know there are many parents, families, students and teachers that want to be heard,” Woodley said at the meeting. “I am willing to meet them where they are, and I believe we should meet our students wherever they are in their educational journey.”
Woodley has a diverse background, even outside of his professional life. He grew up in the Bronx and was raised by his Dominican grandmother after his mother gave birth to him at fourteen. He credits the public education system for helping him to get to where he is today through the regular meals and emotional support it provided.
After a divorce, he mostly raised his daughter as a single father, and she’s now in law school.
Trustees seemed to appreciate Woodley’s diverse experiences, history of service in Reno, and the overwhelming public comment in his favor.
“I’m sort of looking at the totality of the particular candidate who is best to serve this district along with us at this time and place,” said District F trustee and former appointee Adam Mayberry. “And so, for me, that’s Alex Woodley. I believe he has a real record of collaboration.”
In a ranked choice vote, Woodley won the top vote of each of the six trustees. Finalists Kellie Crosby-Sturtz and Meghan Beyer tied for second place.
When asked how the district could improve the academic performance of its students, Woodley called on the board to concentrate on STEM instruction, enhancing extracurricular activities, and improving teacher quality.
Jose Davila IV is a corps member for Report for America, an initiative of the GroundTruth Project.
