Meet the School Board: New Member Kate Barnes Excited to be Involved in Georgia

We are continuing our blog series “Meet the School Board”. Today’s post features a Q&A with new Georgia School Board member Kate Barnes. Stay tuned for more and view earlier posts in this series here and here.

Q: Can you tell us why you were interested in serving on the School Board?  

Kate: I wanted to serve on the School Board because I have two young kids at GEMS and a third starting school in the fall; their education is incredibly important to me, obviously, and I wanted to be as involved as possible in the school and, by extension, their learning. Also, I wanted to serve our great community and hopefully lend a voice to the people who live here.

Q: What excites you most about education at GEMS?

Kate: I’m really excited by the passion of the teachers I’ve met and their level of involvement, dedication, and concern. I also feel that GEMS historically occupies a role as a leader in Vermont education, and it’s exciting to be a part of that going forward.

Q: Tell us a little bit about your background and hobbies/activities that you enjoy?

Kate: I was born and raised in Vermont; after leaving for high school and college I returned when my husband and I got married – we didn’t want to raise our children anywhere else. I work for a locally-based, international classical-music arts management firm; love reading, traveling, cooking, going to shows, and running; and spend as much time as I can hanging out with my friends, playing with my kids, and being outside.

Q: What do you see as some of the biggest challenges facing students in our education system?

Kate: I think the largest challenges our students face right now are truly having their individual needs met and figuring out how to triage all the information coming at them. There are a lot of new ways to learn, and ways in which kids are expected to apply that knowledge, and that requires a shift in expectations, both individually and institutionally. I also think it’s more of a challenge for kids today just to be kids: to have lots of free unstructured time outside of school in which they can explore their imaginations and the world.

Welcome to the School Board, Kate!