On Feb. 10, At-Large DC City Council hopeful Matthew Frumin held an event called "Signs and Celebration" at his home in Ward 3, NW, marking 10 weeks until the special election on April 23.
A dozen hopefuls picked up nominating petitions in Jan. to fill DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson's vacant At-Large seat, but not all of them collected the requisite 3,000 city-wide signatures in time to qualify for the ballot.
Having also raised the most campaign funds in the race so far, Frumin is already poised to celebrate.
In an exclusive interview today, Frumin described himself as a candidate who brings “something special” to the table. Having worked at “both grassroots and the highest levels” of city advocacy, Frumin feels he can represent the city as a whole.
Frumin is a Commissioner and former Chairman of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 3E, which he has served since 2008. In this capacity, he gained experience on city issues such as education, zoning, transportation, parks and infrastructure.
In fact, Frumin has a 20-year track record of effective advocacy for DC public schools that have seen dramatic improvements, most notably Janney Elementary, Deal Middle and Wilson High School (HS), which all three of his children attended. His youngest child is currently attending Wilson HS.
Frumin chaired the Wilson HS Management Corporation. He was one of the leaders of the modernization project at Wilson, and became immersed in the issues surrounding the District’s investment in public schools.
Frumin says,
"the key missing piece is a demonstration of commitment to have schools that succeed in every DC community."
He wants to see a proactive plan to "make this the last round of school closures and consolidations," and a program that invests in neighborhood schools "to make them more attractive to the community."
He has outlined a comprehensive 'Plan to grow DC.' The theme of his campaign is “Let’s grow together.”
When asked by Examiner about impending school closures and rampant underachievement in DC Public Schools (DCPS), Frumin pledged to encourage the City Council to commit more money and personnel to every school, especially the critically understaffed public schools.
He believes that "there are lots of public school closures and consolidations that don't make sense."
Citing the Hamilton Project analysis of public charter schools in Denver and Houston, Frumin warns that public charter schools "are only a short-term strategy" for DC.
Frumin also cites the recent audit of the 23 DC public school closings in 2008 that ended up costing the city nearly 9 million dollars more than projected, and he does not want to see DC make the same costly mistakes again with this year's unpopular new DCPS school closure plan.
Frumin wants to see DCPS and the DC City Council "commit to having public schools that succeed in every neighborhood community."
Frumin is currently on leave from his law firm, Cassidy Levy Kent, where he works with U.S. manufacturers in international trade cases.
He has worked for the National Democratic Institute as a Senior Advisor and for the International Human Rights Law Group, traveling to over twenty countries as an election observer to ensure meaningful voting rights – a cause he says he “wholeheartedly supports here at home for District residents.”
Follow Matthew Frumin on Twitter or Facebook.
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