Harrisonburg elections · Candidate listing
Debra Stevens Fitzgerald
Independent
Election day:
Background
Fitzgerald served on the Harrisonburg City School Board for eight years after first being elected in 2016, and is seeking to return after leaving the board in 2024. The 2026 election coverage describes her as semi-retired and an economics professor at Blue Ridge Community College; it also reports more than a decade of public service on the Harrisonburg Planning Commission.
Sources: The Harrisonburg Citizen, “3 seats, 3 candidates: This fall’s city school board election…”
What the candidate has said
Statements are attributed to the linked sources.
Student technology
Fitzgerald said she is observing effects of artificial intelligence on students and their work, and of screen time and pandemic school closures on students. The report presents these as concerns she has noticed, not as specific policy proposals.
The Harrisonburg Citizen, “3 seats, 3 candidates: This fall’s city school board election…” (2026 election coverage)Collective bargaining
The article notes that during her previous board service Fitzgerald voted to allow school staff to bargain collectively over contracts and wages; it does not establish this as a new 2026 position.
The Harrisonburg Citizen, “3 seats, 3 candidates: This fall’s city school board election…” (2026 election coverage)