Michelle Sarju was the winner by a landslide in the primary race this month for School Board Position 5, garnering just over 85% of the vote — far ahead of her opponents, Dan Harder and Crystal Liston, who received around 10% and 3%, respectively.

In the primary, these votes came only from the districts Position 5 serves, namely Capitol Hill, the International District, First Hill, Leschi, Madison, Downtown, and the Central District. In contrast, the general elections in November will see all of King County voting on each school board position. But Sarju is, without a doubt, off to a great start.

As detailed on her website and in interviews with local news, Sarju's positions are clear and action-oriented: execute a "re-entry and recovery" plan for education during COVID-19; properly equip all schools for teaching a diverse student body; and phase out standardized testing, replacing it with "evidence-based metrics for success." Given Sarju's status as a woman of color raising two boys and a girl (who are now adults), and her extensive background as a social worker in familial health, it's easy to see that her platform comes from a combination of personal and professional experience.

When Sarju arrived in the Zoom call for our interview, we dove right in to the subject of standardized testing.

"Over and over again," Sarju said, "the data is showing that the children who do the best on these kinds of tests come from families that have wealth and can purchase additional resources.... Like other things in our society and our world, [it] puts children at a disadvantage if their family doesn't have the means."

But socioeconomic bias, Sarju argued, isn't the only problem with standardized tests. They also fail in their intended purpose.

"I can't imagine that anyone can argue that choosing between A, B, C and D actually demonstrates what our young people are learning and retaining," Sarju said. "Is that how we want to measure our children's brilliance?"

In addition examining to the data, Sarju has been speaking with experts on all fronts. When asked about an alternative to standardized testing, she described a conversation she had with Jesse Hagopian, a local education advocate "of the highest level," whose accomplishments are too great to list here. Hagopian suggested grade-appropriate thesis and dissertation prep, a method already used by many private schools who "get that children are smart."

"Every child," Sarju said, "could do that with the right help."

Sarju also elaborated on her goal to equip schools to serve a diverse student body.

"To me," she said, "this looks like a social worker and family support worker in every school every day." She explained that such workers are a "holistic resource" with the tools to help both students and their families. "It's a simple concept. What's not simple is how you fund it, how you staff up for it, what it looks like on the ground — some of our most under-resourced schools may already have this, but needs to be in all schools, all day every day." Sarju granted that she didn't have the "grand plan," trusting that that would come through collaboration with the other five board members, whom she believes share her goals.

Sarju and her vision have garnered endorsements from Zachary DeWolf (the current holder of Position 5); several education associations; local papers like The Stranger, The South Seattle Emerald, and The Seattle Times; and a number of legislative districts.