PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — As Mayor Cherelle Parker prepares to pick a new Philadelphia School Board, one influential member is taking her name out of the running.
School Board Vice President Mallory Fix-Lopez had applied to be considered by Parker for reappointment, but she has since withdrawn her name and announced her resignation, effective April 18.
Her decision to step down isn’t political, she said. It’s personal. With two young children in school and a medical procedure coming up, she said she couldn’t commit to a new four-year term.
“When I started this, I had one child that was 3 years old. Now I have two that are 8 and 4. Both of them will be in school this fall and I really want to be deeply committed to their school and engaged,” she said. “When I really thought about that much more deeply, over the past couple of weeks in particular, I had to be honest with myself that I don’t have four more full years.”
Fix-Lopez, who teaches at the Community College of Philadelphia, has been a member of the school board since 2018, when the district returned to local control.
“We had to build this board from scratch. I think just helping it have a structure, have governance policies is huge,” she said.
Among her accomplishments, Fix-Lopez lists the expansion of multilingual services, a renewed board focus on academic achievement, and a policy supporting trans and nonbinary students. The latter led to mandatory training across the district and the creation of gender-neutral bathrooms in schools — something “the policy called for, but never existed,” she said.
“I feel like I really helped set things in motion for the next board to carry through and to bring their own ideas and new lenses to it,” Fix-Lopez added. “But it’s my time to go to focus on my family.”
Board President Reginald Streater has said he would like to continue on the board. The Educational Nominating Panel on March 12 is expected to give the mayor 27 names, from whom she can pick nine to serve on the new school board.