State Board of Education race has 6 candidates, County Board, Circuit Judge running unopposed

Published 11:16 pm Friday, June 1, 2018

Six candidates are running for two seats on the Alabama State Board of Education to be voted on in the primary Tuesday.

Four Republicans are vying for the District 2 seat, now held by Republican Betty Peters who has held the position since first being elected in 2002. Those looking to fill the vacated seat are Melanie Hill, Sybil Little, John Taylor and Tracie West.

Hill served as a Dothan City school board member from 2013 to 2015 and is running for state office for the first time. She is a Dothan native and received her Master’s degree from Troy University.

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Little has never held elected office but holds a Master’s degree in Occupational Safety and Health from Columbia Southern University. She wants to get rid of Common Core standards and replace them with alternative curricula, according to AL.com.

“I am running because I care about our children. There is no other reason,” Said a post on her campaign page. “I will work with everyone to better the educational needs of our children.”

Taylor has been endorsed by Peters, although he has never held political office. Having unsuccessfully run for a position on Dothan’s school board in the past, he also hopes to get rid of Common Core and has been endorsed by Stop Common Core in Alabama. He is originally from Dothan and holds a high school diploma.

West, an Auburn University graduate, is the President of the Auburn City Board of Education and has been a board member since 2009.

“I care deeply about our schools and I’m passionate about making sure that our students get the quality education they need to be successful in the modern economy,” she said on her official campaign site. “That’s why I’m running for the Alabama State Board of Education.”

If no Republican in their district receives 50 percent or more on Tuesday, a runoff for the District 2 primary will be held July 17.

The Republicans facing off for the District 8 seat are doing so to replace Mary Scott Hunter who is now running for a State Senate seat.

McAdams has served on the Madison County school board from 2000 until 2012 before being elected for the Madison County Republican Executive Committee in 2014. He graduated from the US Military Academy, holds an MBA from the University of Phoenix and founded cyber-security company ReliaONE, Inc.

“I believe in putting students first, a belief that ensures all decisions are made in the best interest of our school aged children,” he said on his official site.

Wayne Reynolds has served in education for nearly 30 years, holding positions as assistant superintendent of Pike County schools from 1978 to 1984, superintendent in Tarrant City schools from 1984 to 1989 and superintendent of Athens City schools from 1989 to 1993. He also served in the Republican State Executive Committee for three terms and is a Vietnam veteran.

CIRCUIT JUDGE, CLERK

Like several other elections coming to a vote Tuesday, the position for Alabama’s Fifth Judicial Circuit Place Three Circuit Judge and two Chambers County Board of Education positions have are up for a vote but those within them are completely unopposed.

Chambers County Circuit Judge Steve Perryman, a Democrat, was re-elected to the position in 2012. His term runs out this year, prompting his need for re-election on Tuesday.

Perryman received his Juris Doctor, the professional law degree that is required in almost all states, from the University of Alabama.

The Chambers County School Board members running unopposed are Jeffrey Finch of Board of Education District 1 and LaShae Smith-Herring of Board of Education District 3.