School Board Candidate Forum

Robertson County Republican Hosted Forum

On Saturday morning the Robertson County Republicans hosted a forum for the four seats on the school board that will be up for election this year. Districts three, four, and six will have to primary this year also. The Republican Primary is March 5th, 2024. However, early voting will start in February.

Four candidates attended the forum. John Morris, district 3, Scott Rice and John Grosvenor, district 4, and Ed Ross, district 6. Connie Hogan of district 6, Jeff White of district 3, and Jay Lawrence of district ___ were not able to attend. Lawrence does not need to primary.

There were three questions posed to the candidates and each was given three minutes to answer. (I did not receive a copy of the questions, I wrote as fast as possible)

#1) Robertson County ranks 122/144 school districts in the state. Only 1/3 of the students are on grade level. What are your ideas to turn this around?

John Morris- He started by stating that he believes his opponent and incumbent, Jeff White, is a good guy. Morris simply has a different vision for the board. Research shows that the number one factor in student success is a two parent household. While the board has no control over that, they can help to change the incentive structures for parental involvement. It’s hard for a single mom to attend the meetings. The meetings should be live streamed to a dedicated channel. People should be able to comment in real time. Board members should be able to see the comments from their constituents in real time. The board is beholden to the population and should be hearing from them. This would be a positive use of social media and could encourage more participation. More after school resources need to be available to students, and there are other issues that need to be addressed, such as the heat not working in one of the Greenbrier schools.

Scott Rice- As a current board member, Rice admits that he is fully aware of the test scores. In 2023, the board changed the leadership of Robertson County Schools. The only hiring and firing the school board is responsible for is the Director of Schools. They put out a search and found Dr. Weeks. He spent the last seven years in Dickson, and received the superintendent of the year award just weeks before he arrived in Robertson County. From a board stand point, he feels they just hired the best. Rice believes that we will see great improvements with Dr. Weeks. No matter who is elected to the board, Weeks will raise test scores and support teachers. Each year the board has a study retreat that is open to the public. All board meetings are online and open to the public as are the work sessions. He encouraged people to attend.

Ed Ross- He believes in teachers and the need to keep teachers. He would like to see a bonus structure for teachers to increase test scores. Teachers should have retirement options and more continuing education. Parent choice is another thing that improves student proficiency. Increasing proficiency helps in solving many of our social problems. If we can increase trust we can bring back private and homeschooled students. The Innovation Academy is a great idea, but the timing is bad. Springfield needs a middle school. As the population grows, this is going to become a major problem.

John Grovenor- Test scores and reading skills are an issue. Most of the board members currently serving have been there for years. They have tried to make changes, but it’s been slow. Parents are being pushed away from the schools and have little connection to the teachers. There are teachers that truly care., but if students aren’t learning, they are not doing their job. We need to find out if these teachers have the resources they need. We need to get parents, teachers, and students back together. People are put off by the school board meetings. Grovenor tried to attend a study session, and the doors were locked with police outside. You can’t speak at a meeting unless you email ahead.

#2) Charter schools are in demand and outperform the public schools. Will you stand up to the establishment and allow a charter school in Robertson County?

Ross- He spent his entire life in public school as a teacher. He is not in support of the NEA (teachers’ union). They have great influence over what goes on. Charter schools are a great idea. They are an opportunity for parents that want choice, he believes in parental choice. He believes that charter schools need to be accountable. Ross stands with parents and their involvement with their children, and against social promotion.

Grosvenor- Charter schools are great! We need to give it a chance. If after three years they are not performing, they are dissolved. It it works, other schools should be able to do the same. Ultimately, it doesn’t cost the schools money or make them “poor.” The money follows the student. These charter schools are teaching children to read and are not social engineering. Children are to go to school to learn, not for the schools to control. A friend of his went to have lunch with her daughter at Coopertown Elementary School. Even after checking in and showing her ID, she was told she could not eat with her daughter. Schools need to stop pushing people away.

Morris- Charter schools can be beneficial. We need to make sure the money is there, that every dollar is there. It has to be the right charter as well. Generally charter schools outperform public schools, but what about the 97% of the children not in the charter? Every student matters. Full disclosure, his daughter goes to private school, but he believes that all students should be receiving a great education. He is for the freedom voucher from the state. The vouchers should also go to homeschoolers.

Rice- A charter school has to be evaluated and the board needs to do their homework. Governor Lee is an advocate for charter schools. If the school is denied they have a process to appeal to the state. The state only overturned one application. The application that was made to Robertson County was not appealed. Rice is not against charters, it just needs to be the right one. They are excellent. However, if the charter fails, those students end up back in the public school. That also needs to be evaluated and all decisions need to be based in facts. Innovation Academy is a huge success and they are adding another grade level next year. He recognizes that choice is positive, but they need to be diligent in the process and it needs to be the right charter.

#3) Why will you be a better choice than the other candidates?

Grovenor- My heart will be in it. He shared a story of a child that was living in a tent and teachers helped her to not only be an honor student, but to find housing and a place to be safe. He knows we need teachers that just love to teach. He genuinely loves people and cares for children and will do the right thing by the people of Robertson county.

Ross- After 40 years in schools, his calling to to lead people to success. He believes in transparency, and wants to improve school community. Ross states that they need to remember that parents are the clients. Teachers, parents, and the community are all stakeholders and test scores improve with involvement. Only leadership changes can fix the issues. We need to solve the problems not hide from them.

Rice- He is a graduate of Springfield High School. His family has attended Robertson County Schools. He has a vested interest. Once of his children has special needs. He experienced the best and the worst sides of the education system in the county. After his experience, he wanted to be a voice for the children, especially those with special needs. He too wants to see more parents involved, but understands that times have changed. Safety is now the number on concern. Rice encourages everyone to get involved, support your teachers and administrators, gain an understanding of what’s happening in the schools.

Morris- Once again he started with the fact that his opponent is a well respected man that has sat on the board for 16 years. He feels that it is time for an outsider’s perspective. Morris will bring a different view of things to the board. It’s time to stop doing what’s always been done. If you gave your financial advisor $100 and he only made you $22, and then said can I have another year to do better, you would find another advisor. The test scores are an indication of the need for change. No one deserves the seat on the board. If he is elected and change isn’t made, he will step away. Politics are all local. We need to stop using national policies for our local schools.

There were a few minutes allotted for questions, but one woman stood up and made a statement that ended with a question that didn’t have time to be answered. The forum was moderated by the Robertson/Montgomery County DA and Judge Ben Dean. Dr. Sabi Kumar state representative for district 66 spoke for a couple of minutes and the meeting was adjourned.

There are a few questions that I would like to ask each candidate. An email will be sent to each and the answers will be shared in the coming weeks.