OP/ED: In Support of Wesley Hedgepeth for School Board


I believe we should elect the most qualified person in every political race. There is one candidate for School Board representative in the Fourth District who deserves to win. That is Wesley Hedgepeth, the only K-12 educator running for this position. 

After graduating from Hopewell City Public Schools - where his mother served on the school board for a decade - he earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in social studies education from James Madison University. He followed in the footsteps of his grandmother and aunt, who were both educators. 

Hedgepeth brings a perspective sorely missed by our school board – a firsthand understanding of what our students and teachers need to thrive. A teacher for over 15 years who recently served as the president of the National Council for the Social Studies, Hedgepeth currently teaches government and politics at Collegiate School.

He also served on the Board of Directors of Patrick Henry School for Science and Arts on Semmes Avenue, Virginia's first public elementary charter school. Hedgepeth has policy experience at the national, state, and local levels and knows how to get things done. He is a calm, experienced, and collaborative voice who will bring common sense to the Richmond School Board. 


Just this year, he has already been a panelist or presented at nine conferences on topics ranging from Teen Mental Health, Social Media, and Tech in classrooms to Divisive Concepts in our Schools. 

I have two children and between them, we’ve experienced two elementary schools, two middle schools, and one high school, all within Richmond Public Schools. The issues are real, but the opportunities are too. Like Hedgepeth, I support budgets that fully fund our schools and believe that safety within our schools should be prioritized. 

Only two of the five schools in the Fourth District are fully accredited. We need a School Board representative who can help change this. Hedgepeth stands alone as the only candidate with a wealth of experience in education that singularly qualifies him to lead this work.

Wesley Hedgepeth is committed to using his extensive experience as a teacher to advocate for policies that will support our educators, uplift our students, and improve outcomes across all our schools. If you are in the Fourth District, I hope you will vote for him. Equally as important, I hope you will vote by November 5th


Karen Ellsworth

Current Fourth District Resident, Former RPS Parent