GREENE COUNTY
Judging by the crowd at last Thursday’s meet and greet at Oconee Brewing for Dr. Otho Tucker and Maggie Combs, the next Board of Education election going to voters in April and May next year will be a challenging one.
Tucker, the former CEO and now a consultant to Lake Oconee Academy (LOA), is hoping to unseat the current chairman, Dr. Lee Pery.
Combs is running for District 4, currently held by Maggie Kjer. Both said they will continue to hold several meetings together serving as town hall meetings to hear and address community concerns about the Green County Board of Education (BOE) and education in the county.
Mired by disagreement, an expensive multi-year lawsuit and allegations of a lack of transparency from both sides, LOA and the BOE operate separately, with both claiming the other to be at fault. In his role as the former CEO, Tucker oversaw the lawsuit that challenged funding from the BOE for its student enrollment and has gone on record opposing BOE’s plans to close Union Point Elementary.
Thursday’s meeting saw Tucker address many issues, namely espousing that he will respect and empower parents’ input, put students first and improve education outcomes, oversee using tax dollars wisely and expand the county’s tax base, attract and retain the best teachers and push through a new charter for LOA that has gone through many amendments to lead to its approval expected next month before heading off to the Georgia Department of Education.
“I am ready to put Greene County on a path to success,” Tucker said. “We need to do more listening in the community, and with the right team in place we can get there.”
Tucker has spent 25 years in education and educational development. He was the CEO of LOA since its inception in 2016 and is largely credited with its high-performing status among charter schools in the state. There are currently 94 charter schools in the state with LOA ranking number 12 as best charter elementary in the state.
Tucker discussed a visit he made to a charter school outside of Denver, Westminster Academy for International Studies in Westminster, Colorado. The school enrolls students from pre-K to eighth grade, states online that total minority enrollment is 88 percent, and 72 percent of students are economically disadvantaged.
“This school does not fail children,” he said. “They divide these students into groups and perform testing to see what has helped and what is needed so that no child is held back. Every day, these kids know what has to happen in the classroom, and by second or third grade, they not only tell you what they know, but they demonstrate that they are one step forward. The model they use is exceptional for schools that are below standard.”
Tucker noted some challenges in implementing such a program through all grade levels, including high school. He feels it cannot be done at one grade level at a time.
He expects it to challenge students in ways not conducted to date and claims it can all be done and in just a few short years, a dramatic change will be seen in the school system.
Combs is in corporate philanthropy, a mother with three children at LOA. She sees a need for greater transparency of the BOE and echoed much of what Tucker had to say. Both feel the school system operates on personal agendas and claim that dedicated parents have been disregarded by the system.
They want more parent engagement and feel the schools will thrive when parents feel heard.
“Clear and open communication with the BOE and our community has been neglected for far too long,” Combs said. “The need for positive change is urgent and now. Constituents need to raise their voices and vote for change, especially in collaboration.”
Both candidates went on to laud the successes thus far of the BOE’s College and Career Academy (CCA) but feel collaboration is lacking between the two schools. Tucker stated that the CCA needs its independent board, more authority, a separate budget, and progress metrics.
He cited problems he currently sees with scheduling and feels the BOE did not do enough to allow LOA students access to the CCA.
“Change is the keyword here,” Tucker said. “Parents are fed up with the smoke and mirrors of the BOE. If elected, I will go to every board member and expect them to have a cause they are passionate about. They must be advocates for the students and make sure we have people in place to educate these kids. It will be obvious who supports this thinking. We do not want to continue to see members who just show up.”
The duo plans to schedule more “listening sessions,” hoping to get financial support and have more concerned parents speak up.
The charter renewal, having gone through several rounds back and forth between the two, remains a hot topic.
“We hope to remedy the situation soon for parents, students and staff,” Tucker said.