Two dozen apply to be the next Knox County Schools Superintendent

In a last minute rush Knox County Board of Education members were hoping for, the number of applicants for Knox County Schools Superintendent jumped to 24 just before the end-of-day deadline.

On Friday morning, there had only been 11 applicants.

The deadline to apply closed at 4 p.m. Friday. There are 24 official applicants, with one additional application that wasn't completed.

There are two internal candidates and at least one other local candidate, according to KCS spokesperson Carly Harrington.

"I sensed a little bit of panic earlier in the week," said Patti Bounds, Chair of the BOE.

More: List: Knox County Schools Superintendent candidates

On Monday, member Amber Rountree, who is also overseeing the three-person superintendent search committee, said she hoped more people applied by the end of the week.

“I would like to see some more folks and I have heard there are more folks planning to apply, and they just haven’t gotten their material together,” she said.

The committee responsible for the search is made up of Rountree, Tony Norman and Susan Horn.

Friday morning, Norman told 10News he was hopeful there would be more than 11 applicants.
"I especially hope we'll get a few internal candidates," said Norman.

The names of the two internal candidates were not immediately available.

There is at least one local applicant. Dale Lynch, who currently serves as Hamblen County Schools Superintendent, applied Friday morning.

"I had heard he was going to apply and I'm glad he did," said Bounds.

Receiving 24 applicants for this position is a 'win' for the board, who went about the recruiting process differently than they had in the past.

"I'm excited about the process. This is a little bit different than it's normally done. Many school systems in our area use outside search firms," said Bounds.

Outside search firms can cost up to $80,000. Knox County Schools used one in 2008, when Dr. Jim McIntyre was selected.

Bounds said not using an outside search firm will give them more control over the candidates.

Norman agrees.

"Sometimes those search firms also have some preferred candidates, so they'll eliminate people on their side before we even get to see them," said Norman.

On the morning of Jan. 17,  the three-member search committee is scheduled to look at who has applied. Rountree says the goal is to identify perhaps five solid candidates from among all who have applied and go from there.

Norman says the people in his top five will be applicants who have "a heart for the classroom" and "significant administrative experience and experience with large school districts."

Bounds agrees with Norman's desire to have a superintendent with classroom experience. She also hopes their new chief will have many of the leadership qualities Interim Superintendent Buzz Thomas has.

"He is very much a servant leader. He understands the role of the board and of the superintendent," said Bounds.

For now, the superintendent search is closed. However, Bounds says it could reopen at any time if the current applicants are not up to standards.

Bounds said the hope is to have a new superintendent in place by summer, but are willing to sacrifice that timeline for the right person.

"More importantly is getting the right person. The last two left without completing their contracts and I don't want to see that happen again," said Bounds.

Knox County Board of Ed approves salary range for new superintendent

The Knox County Board of Education approved a salary range of $200,000 to $240,000 for the district's next superintendent during its meeting Wednesday night.

The district is currently searching for its next superintendent. As of Monday, nine people had put their names in for consideration. The deadline for candidates to apply for the job is Friday.

Board member Amber Rountree, who is leading the board's three-member superintendent search committee, said earlier this week that they are prepared to take additional time to find the right candidate, if necessary.

“While we do have a timeline, the board is most focused on finding the best leader for Knox County Schools," she said. "So, if we do have to take some additional time to do so, we’re willing to do that. We don’t want to rush into a decision. We want the very best person to lead our district to make our schools the best in the South.”

During Wednesday's meeting, the board also approved a resolution opposing any state legislation creating a voucher program in Tennessee.

Nine apply to be Knox County Schools superintendent; deadline is Friday

With a Friday deadline looming, Knox County school board members say they’d like to see more candidates apply to be the next superintendent.

As of Monday, nine people have put their names in to lead the district of some 59,500 students and 8,000 employees.

Board members briefly discussed at a workshop Monday night details of the application process.

Member Amber Rountree is overseeing the search on a mini-committee that consists of her, Tony Norman and Susan Horn. Rountree says she’s not ready yet to end the process right now.

“I would like to see some more folks and I have heard there are more folks planning to apply, and they just haven’t gotten their material together,” she said.

On the morning of Jan. 17, the three-member search committee is scheduled to look at who has applied. Rountree says the goal is to identify perhaps five solid candidates from among all who have applied and go from there.

Applicants so far include people who have overseen smaller districts and some charter schools.

“I like how the process is going so far and I’m not discouraged at all,” Norman told 10News. “Some are a little bit (discouraged) in the slow response, a little bit of a slow response. But I think we’ll have several right here at the end.”

Board members aim to offer somewhere between $200,000 and $240,000 a year for the position. Norman said it’s possible the market might demand more for such a leadership position, but he also thinks someone making an annual salary of $240,000 would be very comfortable in East Tennessee.

Board member Lynne Fugate on Monday night expressed concerns whether $240,000 would be adequate to draw the kind of candidate they’re looking for.

It’s possible the search committee could come back to the board with a recommendation that the search process continue.

“While we do have a timeline, the board is most focused on finding the best leader for Knox County Schools," Rountree said. "So, if we do have to take some additional time to do so, we’re willing to do that. We don’t want to rush into a decision. We want the very best person to lead our district to make our schools the best in the South.”

Buzz Thomas of the Great Schools Partnership has agreed to serve as interim leader until this summer. Superintendent Jim McIntyre left the system last summer after about eight years.

Five apply for KCS superintendent

Five educators throughout the country have submitted applications to oversee the Knox County Schools system with only two weeks remaining to apply.

The applicants include educational consultants, former teachers and a superintendent of the year.
The deadline to apply is Jan. 13. The superintendent search committee, which includes school board members Amber Rountree, Tony Norman and Susan Horn, then meets Jan. 17.

"I think we should probably start seeing more apps come in now that the holidays are over,” said Rountree who is the chairwoman of the committee.

School members opted not to seek a recruiter to help fill the position, much like they did more than eight years ago when officials hired Jim McIntyre, a then-finance director in the Boston school system.

Instead, KCS began advertising the job Dec. 8 on its website and placed advertisements in national and regional publications.

As it stands, the school board has set an annual salary between $200,000 and $240,000.
McIntyre, who earned $228,000 stepped down in July. He took a job with the University of Tennessee.

The board picked Buzz Thomas, the leader of the Great Schools Partnership, to stand in until a replacement was named.

Thomas is not expected to apply for the job on a full-time basis and has publicly expressed an interest to go back to the Partnership by this summer.

Here’s a snapshot of the applicants who have submitted resumes as of Jan. 2:

• Catherine Beck: Assistant superintendent of the 3,500-student Summit County School District in Colorado.
• Cedrick Gray: A former ‘superintendent of the year” by the National Association of Superintendents, Gray stepped down as leader of the Jackson Public Schools, a 28-000-student system in Mississippi. He previously worked as the director of schools in Fayette County in West Tennessee but left in 2012 after questions about financial discrepancies in school spending arose.
• Andrei Ghelman: Secondary coordinator for the 47,000 student, 59 schools Collier County Public Schools in Naples, Fla. He also serves as an adjunct professor at Florida Gulf Coast University. He previously worked as a teacher and principal for Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland.
• Thomas Graves: An educational consultant since 2010, he also served as the assistant superintendent of Washington County Schools in Abingdon, Va. From 2006 to 2010.
• Tonya Harris: Superintendent of the St. Louis charter school Preclarus Mastery Academy. The school, which for years had a high student absentee rate, has seen some improvements. Harris previously worked as an assistant principal in for District of Columbia Public Schools.

Superintendent Search panel formed

Knox County BOE Chairwoman announced the three members of the Superintendent Search Committee: Tony Norman (District 3), Susan Horn (District 5) and Amber Rountree (District 9).

The committee will be tasked with making recommendations to the full board related to the superintendent search process and selection.

Rountree will serve as chair of the committee.

The school board authorized the creation of the search committee at its meeting on Nov. 2, giving Bounds discretion to appoint no more than three board members to serve.

The committee is expected to meet prior to the next board meeting in December.

BOE's focus on finding new Knox Co. Schools leader, testing data

The Knox County Board of Education tonight and Wednesday will continue discussions that touch on the search for a new superintendent and whether state testing data should help determine teacher evaluations and student grades for the current year.

The board also has some “housecleaning” and policy matters that officials will address during tonight’s work session, but the two “key items” focus on testing and the school system’s next leader, BOE Chairwoman Patti Bounds told WBIR 10News on Monday morning.

Bounds said the board will talk about whether it wants to put together a search committee and – if members do want a committee – then who should serve on it. The county law department has recommended three members, but Bounds said the board doesn’t necessarily have to stick to that number.

Buzz Thomas, who oversees the Great Schools Partnership, is currently serving as interim superintendent.

However, the GSP wants him back by next summer, so Bounds said the school board wants to get it done by then.

“I don’t think there are any members of this board who will not do their due diligence to get the best person, but we know we’re on a very tight schedule,” Bounds said.

The board also will talk about a proposed resolution sponsored by Amber Rountree that comes in the wake of the state’s recent announcement that it has signed a contract with Questar to oversee Tennessee’s annual student assessments.

Rountree wants the state to grant a waiver so that the tests don’t count against teacher evaluations and student grades for the current year.

The state in the past year or so has struggled to roll out new tests for students and she wants to make sure the kinks are worked out of the new tests.

Her resolution also notes that “there are documented errors on the part of Questar” to administer similar tests in New York and Mississippi, and that Knox County teachers wouldn’t be involved in writing test items for the current year.

Thomas has called the resolution “ill-advised” and “at the very least . . . premature.”

“(The) proposed resolution does not sound like a school district that is aspiring to be the best in the South or even in the state,” Thomas wrote to board members in a Sept. 23 email. “It sounds like we are making excuses. We need a good standardized test each year to tell us how we are doing compared to others across the state and the nation. We will achieve greatness not by shying away from this accountability but by welcoming it.”

The county’s Teacher Advisory Committee met earlier this month to talk about the issue.

“A great majority of those reported that in surveying their schools the teachers were in favor of Amber’s resolution . . .  (and) that their schools and teachers were in favor of it by a pretty significant number,” Bounds said.

An advisory committee member will give board members a presentation prior to the official start of tonight’s meeting.

The board meets tonight at 5 at the Andrew Johnson Building. The board’s voting meeting is set for 5 p.m. Wednesday at the City County Building.

Bounds, Rountree picked to lead BOE

Patti bounds, left, Amber Rountree, right

The Knox County Schools Board of Education named Patti Bounds board chair and Amber Rountree vice chair, respectively, during its meeting Wednesday.

The board held its first reorganization vote at its September meeting, but postponed the decision after two tied results.

In September, the votes were tied 4-4 between board members Terry Hill and Mike McMillan.

Prior to Wednesday's meeting, McMillan submitted a letter to the board withdrawing his name from consideration. McMillan was not present at Monday's board work session or Wednesday's regular meeting due to health reasons.

On Wednesday, Hill also removed her name from consideration. Board member Tony Norman then nominated Bounds, and she was named chair by acclamation.

Hill and Norman were then nominated for vice chair.

After a 4-4 tied vote, Hill withdrew her name from consideration again.

Amber Rountree was then nominated for consideration, and selected with a 5-3 vote over Norman.

Thomas new interim superintendent

As expected, the Knox County school board unanimously voted to approve the hiring of Buzz Thomas to serve as interim schools superintendent.

The board met Wednesday afternoon in a regular session at the City County Building downtown.

On Monday in a board workshop, board member Terry Hill nominated Thomas, head of the Great Schools Partnership, to serve in the temporary position.

“I am honored to be chosen by the Board of Education for this incredibly important position," said Thomas in a release. "I know how dedicated each board member is to the well-being of our children and the success of our schools."

Board member Amber Rountree supports Thomas, but wants the search for a permanent replacement to start with someone with teaching experience.

"Having been in a school and working in a teaching role and an administrative role helps you build positive relationships with staff and it helps you make the best decision for kids," said Rountree.

Law director questions legality of KCS superintendent's new contract

Jim McIntyre

So apparently at least one Knox County School Board member is upset that county Law Director Richard "Bud" Armstrong is questioning the legality of the school system superintendent's new contract/contract extension.

I'm not sure why.

Armstrong and other board members during the Nov. 30 meeting in which the board ramrodded the two-year extension through said that there could be some problem with the contract's language.

In fact, it was suggested that the panel should consult the state before approving it.

But, no, they didn't. Now the law director - who represents the entire county government (he tries to prevent us from getting sued and breaking the law) - has erred on the side of caution.

Here's what BOE vice chair Tracie Sanger, who voted to approve the contract, said in a released statement: 

"Law Director Bud Armstrong has hand-written the word "not" before the phrase "legal as to form and correctness" on the signature page of Dr. McIntyre's approved employment contract, which has now been posted to the County Commission's public meeting agenda. Making this change without consulting or informing the School Board is a serious breach of trust, and represents the worst kind of passive aggressive political games.  As the School Board's attorney, the Law Director should seek to better represent his client.  It is hard to believe in and trust an attorney that has such little experience, shows inconsistency with his opinions, and portrays the appearance of having a political agenda."

To reiterate: The school board on Nov. 30 ramrodded a two-year proposal to extend Jim McIntyre's

Richard "Bud" Armstrong

contract through the approval process. The 5-member voting bloc that typically votes whichever way the superintendent wishes opted not to take a breath and sit back and wait until the state weighed in.

I mean, seriously, it's not like this wouldn't get approved in January or February if the state said it was OK. McIntyre isn't going anywhere. He wants to stay. Holding off a few months would not have changed that.

This contract - if legal - would have gone through. (At least until next September when a new board comes in but that's a whole different story.)

Here's what BOE member Amber Rountree, who voted against the proposal, had to say:

"I think there were a number of legal questions raised at the contract extension that could've used more discussion, which is why I tried multiple times to delay the vote. With no looming deadline, the only pressing reason to vote for a 2 year extension at that time was due to the upcoming election cycle. The insertion of the language in Section 2 about the AG opinion also indicates there were further questions about some of the language. I feel it would've been in the boards best interest to postpone the vote so that we could have voted on a contract that had been fully vetted. My hope is the matter can be resolved quickly so we can turn our focus to working on our goal of Excellence for Every Child."

Now, the proposed contract will go to the Knox County Commission for a vote. Typically, these things are put on the consent agenda, which means they just rubber stamp them and move on. I doubt that happens next week. This will be discussed further.

At the end of the day, however, McIntyre's contract will more than likely be extended. I'm not sure what the big deal is. It's just not going to be this month.

By the way, in a letter to BOE members about Armstrong's move, McIntyre said: "I really have no idea what that means."

He has declined to comment further.

KCS BOE asks state to remove TNReady data from teacher evaluations

The Knox County Board of Education passed a resolution Wednesday asking the state to give teachers a break by not evaluating them on a new statewide test for this school year.

"It's our first year with TNReady," board member Amber Rountree said. "The state has already provided a grace period for our students, so I thought it was really important that, as a board, we needed to let our state legislators know, and the state Board of (Education) know we believe our teachers deserve the grace period as well."

Rountree presented the resolution in opposition of parts of the TNReady plan. Board members supported her efforts, but wanted a more simple, direct request.

"In this year of transition, the board would like the state to consider not including the results from TNReady in their evaluation," board member Karen Carsen said.

Carsen's version of the resolution, which was considered more clear and direct, passed.

"It creates great stress for our teachers," Carsen said. "We know, in projecting, that because the test is so different that scores may go down, and we can deal with that at a student level at the local board level, but we can't deal with that at an evaluation level."

Although the board agreed to support their teachers, other aspects of TNReady are still up for debate. Rountree specifically said she did not agree with the TNReady assessment paying to 'lease' questions from a Utah test called SAGE.

Rest of story RIGHT HERE.

BOE extends Jim McIntyre's contract

McIntyre

Knox County Schools superintendent Jim McIntyre will lead the district through 2019.

That was the vote of the Board of Education Monday night, following nearly four hours of discussion and public comments.

It was a narrow 5-to-4 vote that approved the two-year extension of McIntyre's contract, from December of 2017 to December of 2019.

Board members received on the same day of the meeting a final revision to McIntyre's proposed contract extension, which board members had to review.

"This is absurd," board member Amber Rountree said, referring to the board's intentions to vote on a revised contract it had seen just that day. "Let's wait and get some clarity on these changes...It's not like we have a deadline looming above us tomorrow."

A number of board members expressed concerns about the contract clause that stipulates the board must pay the superintendent the remainder of his contract if it is terminated early.

"I think a one-year severance package is more than generous," Rountree said, supporting a pay-out period of 12 months, opposed to the remainder of the superintendent's contract.

Full story RIGHT HERE.

Knox County BOE remains in standoff over nontenured teacher policy

Photo: Knox County Schools

Proposed Knox County Schools’ policy that would let the Board of Education have input and review the dismissal of nontenured teachers continues to remain at an impasse.

The school board on Wednesday again couldn’t come to an agreement about what revisions – if any – it would like to put into the policy.

Members are expected to talk more about the matter in the coming months.

The board has spent months looking to resolve objections to the way KCS handles renewals of non-tenured teachers, going back and forth on the language and what they want in the policy and what they don’t want in it.

The discussions come as dozens of teachers voiced concerns about the non-renewal process on their contracts.

Currently, if a teacher is not tenured, the superintendent can choose to not renew a contract without reason.

Teachers are concerned the process on their contract is not clear, and some have called it unfair. They also have argued that termination of one job – without explanation – is often career-ending.
On Wednesday, the board shot down some proposed revisions in a 5-3 vote.

Board members Patti Bounds, Amber Rountree Karen Carson, Gloria Deathridge and Mike McMillan voted against the revised policy. Members Doug Harris, Lynne Fugate and Terry Hill voted for it. Tracie Sanger was absent.

“Some of the revisions were brought to us late in the day and they could possible create new problems and I don’t think they addressed the problems in the past,” said school board member Patti Bounds.

For example, she said, a key sticking point for a number of board members was that language – initially proposed – that would allow board members to affirm dismissals was removed.

Bounds said she wants the board to have the chance to review any nontenured teacher dismissals and to have a chance to either affirm or deny them. Also, if the board voted for no renewal, she wants teachers to have the option to appeal such a decision.

“I feel it’s another checks and balances that needs to be in place,” she said.

Board member Amber Rountree agreed.

"I didn't feel like the policy as presented didn’t really restore any decision-making powers to the board," she said.

Every year, according to district officials, between 30 and 50 – or about 1 percent – of all non-tenured teachers are non-renewed. This year, 45 teachers were non-renewed. Last year, that number was 55.

Carson said she’d rather officials look at procedure rather than policy.

“I think the board should tell the superintendent to go back and look at what we’ve done the past few years – it’s very easy to review,” she said. “Changing policy should never be a knee-jerk reaction. I think the bottom line is that what we want is to make sure the procedure is the best way to carry out that policy.”

She added: “I think it starts with the review of what are we doing now. Do we have a case where the procedure in place is good but three out of 90 administrators didn’t follow it? Or do we have a case where it’s not followed by half the people or do we have a case where it’s just a bad procedure?”

Law director memo: Knox County BOE could renew teacher non-renewals

During last week’s Knox County Board of Education meeting, school boarder Amber Rountree asked the law director:

“What power does the board have with regard to the non-renewal of teachers’ contract?”

Well, apparently, a whole heck of a lot, according to Knox County Law Director Richard “Bud” Armstrong.

In a memo dated July 2, Armstrong, citing state and case law, said:

“The Board has absolute authority, in its discretion, to review any non-renewal or any other personnel matter that is brought to the attention of the Board. The Board may implement any procedure and take such action as the Board deems proper.”

In non-lawyerly language: If a principal fires a teacher, the school board – a voting majority – can overrule the principal and put that teacher right back in the classroom.

You can read the memo RIGHT SMACK HERE.

Now, why is this important?

Parents, teachers and students are upset that Christina Graham, a now former Copper Ridge Elementary School kindergarten teacher, was let go this past May. They feel that officials retaliated against her because she spoke out against SAT-10 testing for kindergarteners. Apparently Graham scored well on her evaluations, so it more than likely wasn’t about that.

A lot of folks will now probably look to the school board to see what happens next, and the pressure is on.

Does the board address the non-renewals case-by-case, or do members let it go? Right or wrong, the board will come dangerously close to micromanagement if it starts overruling principals, no matter how well-intended the situation.

Graham’s case could be the first big test.

And if I recall correctly, Copper Ridge is in board member Patti Bound’s neck of the woods, and she doesn’t necessarily see eye-to-eye with the administration.

We’ll see.

'State of South Knoxville' meet set

Forget the "State of the State" address. Who cares about the "State of the Schools." They got nothing on . . . duh, duh, duh . . .

The. State. Of. South. Knoxville.

Heh.

Area representatives from the County Commission (Mike Brown), City Council (Nick Pavlis) and School Board (Amber Rountree) will host a community forum from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Feb. 26 at 115 Flenniken Avenue. Danny Gray, of the South Woodlawn neighborhood, will serve as moderator.

“This is the first time that we have brought city, county, and schools together for a forum to have community questions and input from our district, and I hope many of our constituents take the time to come out for a chat," Brown said in a released statement. "It is near budget time for all three entities, so come on out and tell us what you think. You have three elected leaders who work well together and hopefully we all work together to make 'South' grow in the right direction.”

Said Vice Mayor Nick Pavlis: “I am really excited to continue to bring government to the people. This is an awesome opportunity for our constituents to hear our vision for the district and to ask us questions about what matters to them most.”

Rountree added: “South Knox is all about community. In order for our community to flourish, we must all work together on the same team. I'm thrilled to be a part of the 'State of South Knox' meeting with Vice Mayor Pavlis and Commissioner Brown, as we take this opportunity to hear from the community about how we can join together to make South Knox even better.”

Rountree weighs in on NCLB talks

After reading the porch's breaking story Friday that Knox County Schools Superintendent Jim McIntyre is gonna be brushing shoulders with some federal big wigs this week, some school board members have begun weighing in on social media.

Well, at least one member.

The BOE's Amber Rountree sent the superintendent a memo on Saturday thanking him for the chance to relay some input to him regarding his upcoming testimony before a Congressional committee on Tuesday about No Child Left Behind.

In her memo, Amber talks about high-stakes testing, federal and local dollars, and teacher incentives.

You can read it RIGHT SMACK HERE.

Pregnancy, politics at center of BOE member, superintendent dispute?

Incoming Knox County school board member Amber Rountree said "it took a little bit of teeth pulling and the Law Director's Office to get" her into a crucial board-related orientation session that the school superintendent didn't want her to attend.

But, Superintendent Jim McIntyre says he just wanted her to reschedule as to avoid the "appearance of impropriety."

Rountree, though, isn't buying it. And she's now questioning why McIntyre appears to be turning her maternity-leave status into an issue and whether "there were some other factors in play."

"It did raise some questions for me because I had campaigned pretty strongly that I was somebody that a lot of folks considered to be anti-McIntyre . . . and then when I meet a lot of these obstacles that (the other two) new board members didn't seem to have, I was concerned," she said.

Rountree, a school librarian who is on medical leave and will resign from her job next Monday, added: "I felt like it was vital for me to go to the orientation prior to being sworn in . . . and something about it didn't feel right to me so I got in touch with the law director's office."

You can check out the entire story, as well as, McIntyre's response RIGHT SMACK HERE.

If you just want to read the emails, then click RIGHT SMACK HERE.

Rountree kickoff set for Tuesday

Amber Rountree

Knox County School Board candidate Amber Rountree, who is running for the Dist. 9 seat, will hold her campaign kickoff and first fundraiser tomorrow at The Roundup from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

She said "everyone is invited to hangout, have a good time, ask questions and enjoy dinner."

The Roundup is located at  3643 Sevierville Pike. Dinner will be available for a donation,
and more information will be posted on the website. For more information and details about Amber's campaign and platform click right smack here.

Amber is taking on incumbent Pam Trainor in May's non-partisan primary.

Rountree sets BOE campaign kickoff

Amber Rountree

Knox County School Board candidate Amber Rountree, who is running for the District 9 seat, officially announced her candidacy today (although she had already set up her website).

Rountree, a librarian at Halls Elementary, also said today that she will host her kickoff and first fundraiser on March 4 at the Roundup from 5:30-7:30 p.m. You can find the complete release right smack here.

Rountree is challenging incumbent Pam Trainor in the May non-partisan primary. (A general election if needed will be held in August.) District 9 comprises South Knoxville.

As always, if you’re running for office, shoot stuff my way and I’ll post it. The deadline to qualify for county races is noon Thursday.

Dist. 9 BOE candidates' websites up

Amber Rountree, who is running for the 9^th District BOE seat, launched her campaign website today.

You can find it right smack here.

Rountree, a South Knoxville resident and a librarian at Halls Elementary will face Pam Trainor (here's her website) in May’s non-partisan primary. At this point, a couple other folks have picked up nominating petitions, but they’re not expected to run for the seat.

Petitions are due at noon Feb. 20. (The county general election is set for August.)

Expect this particular race to focus closely on teacher and student needs, and Superintendent Jim McIntyre. Rountree is not a huge McIntyre supporter, and Trainor is. 

As always, send me your election stuff.

Hopson endorses Rountree for BOE

Lauren Hopson might not run for office this time around, but it certainly looks like she’s endorsing a fellow educator.

Hopson, the third grade teacher from Halls Elementary who kicked off the whole so-called “revolt” last October by having the guts to say what probably almost every teacher in this county thinks, is currently serving as the political treasurer for Amber Rountree. (If this isn't an endorsement I don't know what is.)

You can find the appointment right smack here.

Rountree, so far, is the only South Knoxville candidate to turn in a nominating petition. At this point four others, including incumbent Pam Trainor, have picked up the paperwork to run but haven’t completed it.

However, two of them – Larry Clark and Jim McClain – have suggested that they won’t run. (I’m not quite sure anyone has even heard from William Hiscock, who also picked up a petition and coincidentally lives in Rountree’s neighborhood.)

I’m guessing that Trainor is in, since her website now says “re-elect” her. Still, she’s in for a tough race. Trainor lost a ton of support in the 9^th District, particularly after her episode in Bizarro World.