{"biography":"## Current office and 2026 campaign\nRebecca Leigh Strimer is an incumbent member of the Asheville City Schools Board of Education, seeking re-election to one of four seats on the six-member nonpartisan board in the November 3, 2026 general election [1][2].\n\n## Legislative record and accomplishments\nResponding to Mountain Xpress's 2026 candidate questionnaire on school funding and sustainability, Strimer said she is \"proud to be a member of the board that passed\" the new three-year collaborative funding strategy between Buncombe County Schools and Asheville City Schools, citing the value of budget predictability [1]. She described Asheville City Schools' partnership with food-service vendor Chartwells on zero-waste initiatives, including eliminating styrofoam trays, and said she would keep pushing the vendor to reduce waste further [1]. On transportation, she highlighted the district's pre-K, late-bus, and summer busing services and a newly approved fuel-efficient 15-passenger vehicle [1]. She said climate education is increasingly important \"as national trends [move] away from the reality of climate science\" [1]. On teacher morale, she pointed to a \"Meet, confer, collaborate\" process that brings ACS educators and administrators together monthly [1].\n\n## Sources\n- [1] [Candidates for Asheville Board of Education share their stances on collaborative funding, staff morale and environmental issues \u2013 Mountain Xpress](https://mountainx.com/news/politics-elections/candidates-for-asheville-board-of-education-share-their-stances-on-collaborative-funding-staff-morale-and-environmental-issues/)\n- [2] [Vote-USA \u2013 Rebecca Strimer, Currently Elected Asheville Board of Education](https://vote-usa.org/Intro.aspx?State=NC&Id=NCStrimerRebecca)","campaigns":[{"contest":"county_school_board","county":"buncombe","county_count":1,"electiondate":"Tue, 03 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT","pgr":"general","state":"NC","title":"Asheville City Schools Board Of Education"}],"cf_filings":[],"firstname":"Rebecca","fullname":"Rebecca Leigh Strimer","lastname":"Strimer","middlename":"Leigh","office_history":[{"campaigns":[{"contest":"county_school_board","contest_title":"Asheville City Schools Board Of Education","county":"buncombe","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":"buncombe","office_key":"county_school_board","office_title":"County School Board Member","party":"","pgr":"general","state":"NC"}],"county":"buncombe","cycles":[{"general":{"contest":"county_school_board","contest_title":"Asheville City Schools Board Of Education","county":"buncombe","county_count":1,"electiondate":"2026-11-03","office_county":"buncombe","office_key":"county_school_board","office_title":"County School Board Member","party":"","pgr":"general","state":"NC"},"party":"","primary":null,"term":null,"year":2026}],"office_key":"county_school_board","office_title":"County School Board Member","state":"NC","terms":[]}],"summary":"Incumbent Asheville Board of Education member Rebecca Strimer seeks re\u2011election, emphasizing funding stability, sustainability, and teacher morale.","terms":[],"token":"4de693877b7edc77"}