Jerrod Anderson

By Molly Moore

I met with School Board newcomer, Jerrod Anderson, on a windy day a few months ago at the populous Northside Social. At the beginning of our conversation, a recycling bin beside us crashed to the ground. Anderson ran over to the toppled container, and immediately picked the can up before any bottles could fall out.

Despite the disturbance, we began with typical discourse, and he immediately mentioned his two children, both young attendees of FCCPS, and their passion for hiking.

“I go on lots of hikes with my kids, especially my older son, we kind of get out to the trails around the area.”

Anderson and his family moved to the City of Falls Church five years ago as he was looking for a job as his doctoral program focusing on health economics came to a close. “We’re kind of looking to kind of settle down . . . and there are plenty of jobs for economists and statisticians in the DC area.” The School Board member’s family, like many, was also drawn to FCC for its reputable school system.

“We heard that the Falls Church City schools were very good. I think that’s one of the reasons why a lot of people who didn’t grow up here move here.”

He accepted his job as a federal health statistician, and has applied his interest and education in economics and health to analyze and process data regarding the medical expenditure panel survey, which is a nationally representative survey of America’s health.

Anderson noted that he gravitates towards viewing the world in black in white, and recognized that he is “better at looking at the numbers.” As a federal health statistician, Anderson uses his expertise in data analyses to serve the broad American community. Similarly, when the recycling bin tipped over, Anderson employed his binary leaning brain to benefit his community.

Anderson ran for School Board in 2021 as a way to “use [his] skills to give back to the schools.” Although his campaign did not succeed in that initial campaign cycle,