The Fairfax County School Board has elected Karen Corbett Sanders (Mount Vernon District) as chair and Tamara Derenak Kaufax (Lee District) as vice chair for a one-year term. The chair and vice chair assumed office at the July 11 School Board meeting; they are elected by School Board members during the Board’s annual organizational meeting.
Born and raised in Fairfax County, Corbett Sanders is a retired international business executive, a community advocate for healthcare and education issues, past PTA president, and Odyssey of the Mind coach. She has served on boards of directors and operating committees for international telecommunications companies and, locally, on the quality board of Inova Children’s Hospital and the regional board for Odyssey of the Mind. Corbett Sanders earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame and a master's degree from Boston University. She serves on the Dean’s Advisory Board of Boston University’s Wheelock School of Education and previously served on the parent advisory board of Creighton University. Corbett Sanders has served on the School Board since 2016. During the 2017-18 school year, she served as vice chair of the Board, and during the 2018-19 school year, she served as Board chair.
Derenak Kaufax is a long-time advocate for children’s causes and education issues with 20 years of experience as a marketing professional and small business owner. She is the owner of Altamat Marketing Solutions and holds a bachelor of arts in political science and business from Pennsylvania State University. Kaufax has served with the Fairfax County Childcare Advisory Council (former chair); Superintendent’s Business and Community Advisory Council; School Board’s Advanced Academic Programs Advisory Committee; Parent Linkage Committee; Fairfax Citizens for Better Schools Committee; Lee District Budget Advisory Council; Springfield Estates Elementary School PTA (vice president); Springfield Estates and Bush Hill Elementary Schools PTA (cultural arts chair); AGC Pre-School (board member and chair); and Make-a-Wish Foundation (wish granter). Her Board service began in January 2012. She served as Board vice chairman in 2013 and Board chairman in 2014. Kaufax currently serves as the Budget chairman, previously serving in this role in 2016 immediately following a term as vice chairman. She has also served as chairman for the Governance Committee in 2017, and the Public Engagement Committee in 2012.
In addition to the chair and vice chair, members of the Fairfax County School Board, whose terms run from 2015 to 2019, are: Sandy Evans (Mason District), Karen Keys-Gamarra (at-large), Pat Hynes (Hunter Mill District), Ryan McElveen (at-large), Megan McLaughlin (Braddock District), Ilryong Moon (at-large), Dalia Palchik (Providence District), Jane Strauss (Dranesville District), Elizabeth Schultz (Springfield District), and Thomas Wilson (Sully District).