Franklin County BOE Post 4 Candidates Point to Future of School System

Candidates for the Franklin County Board of Education office spoke out recently on their respective platforms for the Board of Education Posts 4 and 5 at a politcal forum.

The forum was also heard in its entirety this past Sunday here on 92.1 WLHR.

For the Post 4 seat, incumbent Alan Mitchell is running against challenger Greg Carey.

Mitchell is running for his third term as a Board member and said he’s running because he believes in service to the community.

Mitchell is a poultry and cattle farmer from Red Hill and is active in his church and community.

When asked what he’s most proud of during his last two terms, he pointed to the growing graduation rate and gradual improvements in other areas.

“the last several years since Mr. Forrer’s come on we’ve had a balanced budget. We actually come in every year since he’s been on with excess in the budget. Our general fund is in the best shape it’s ever been in. We could weather any storm right now that the State throws at us,” he said. “So that’s a benefit to the taxpayers of Franklin County. I’m proud of that.  There’s been a lot of hard work there. Athletics is doing great. Ag is doing great. We’ve got a lot of extracurricular programs. I think that’s key for our students to be able to be productive. They have to be plugged in. They need to find a place where they fit in. So, that helps with that.”

Mitchell also pointed to the new Career Academy as a way to give students who don’t plan on college more career choices.

Mitchell is running against Greg Carey.

When asked how to get test scores up without teaching for test scores Carey said attracting the best teachers is key.

“I think to get test scores up we have to have the best educators,” he said. “And not only with test scores, but not all of them test well. So, there are other things besides testing. A lot of kids will do better in other areas, like welding, and auto. Like Mr. Mitchell said you can’t build for projected growth. You have to build for what you have now.”

Both Mitchell and Carey said they are against teaching critical race theory in schools and said it has no place in the school system.