The Mark Of A Rising Political Star
Posted on September 22, 2008 at 6:57 amAmy Griffith reports that new school board member Alan Coverstone had folks on both sides of the rezoning controversey believing he was “on their side”:
Coverstone said Thursday – as he has told The City Paper since July – that he is not in favor of immediately revisiting the plan. Instead, he said, he wants to immediately implement some of the school improvements promised by the plan as it was passed.
“I just get incredibly uncomfortable with the ‘revisiting’ word, because for too many people, ‘revisit’ means, ‘Throw out the rezoning lines,’” Coverstone said. “I think that if we start discussing and debating lines right away that that will guarantee that we will not follow through on the commitments to improve schools this year. I will not accept not following through on the commitments to improve the schools this year.”
According to Maynard, Coverstone’s stance is a surprise.
“Alan never once told me that he would be against revisiting the rezoning plan,” Maynord said Thursday.
But both Maynard and Coverstone — who say they’re friends — expressed the belief that they’ll find ways to work together in the coming years.
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Lech Loves Limbird
Posted on July 22, 2008 at 7:49 amThe City Paper’s Amy Griffith was one of the few journalists to actually witness 9th District school board candidate James Lech eleventh hour endorsement of one of his well-financed opponents:
At a Bellevue press conference attended by few journalists but many Limbird supporters, Lech said he faced a tough decision in choosing whether to endorse Limbird or Steve Hicks, another opponent. Though he knows that his name will still be on the ballot, Lech said he does not believe he will win.
Lech said he supports Limbird because of her experience managing very large budgets, her scientific experience and ability to assess data and studies, and her choice to educate her children at Metro Nashville Public Schools. Limbird worked for years as a high-level administrator at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Her children are now adults.
Limbird is pleased to have Lech’s support, she said, as well as his assistance with her campaign.
“I’m delighted, although I’ve lost a provocative competitor,” Limbird said. “There’s a lot of walking that has to be done. … Even for parents with kids in schools, there’s not a full awareness that this election is going on.”
SEE ALSO: The Lech release
Is James Lech Fixing To Pull A John Edwards?
Posted on July 20, 2008 at 8:56 pmThe Tennessean is reporting that 9th District school board candidate James Lech may announce he is dropping out of the race at a press conference Monday. The earnest young Lech has been overshadowed by the two leading candidates in the race Lee Limbird and Alan Coverstone, primarily due to their successful and substantial fundraising efforts.
The question I would pose is why drop out now? Early voting has started and the ballots are all printed up. Even if he is out, he is in. Is his aim to try and help one of the other candidates with a last minute endorsement or is he pulling a John Edwards, assembling everyone to a press conference only to announce he is soldiering on?
School Board Endorsements
Posted on July 18, 2008 at 7:25 amThe daily fishwrap makes its school board endorsements:
The board needs to know the community is willing to support good leadership. Recent events have raised concerns by some, for example, about the role the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce has played. It is important to remember that once Metro schools slipped in academic performance, the city needed to see the business sector get involved in schools. Mayor Karl Dean has lived up to his campaign promises by showing his desire to improve schools. The Chamber is no different. It has stepped up for schools.
The recent concerns over rezoning show that the community is passionate about the future of Metro schools. This is an important time for Nashville. School board decisions will be difficult. But with good, dedicated board members who are committed to working toward common goals, Metro’s schools can not only weather their current trials but thrive. These candidates can help make that happen.
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Not Yet Out Foxed
Posted on at 7:07 amAmy Griffith reports that the big money being raised in the District 9 school board race is by no means a record - yet:
Alan Coverstone has raised more than $32,000, as of the end of June, according to publicly released figures. Lee Limbird has raised $23,000. Even Paul Brenner — who with about $8,000 comes in third in District 9 in terms of dollars raised — is working with significantly more than candidates for any other Nashville school board race this year.
Those aren’t necessarily record-setting figures, at least not yet. In 2006, for example, Hillsboro school board member David Fox, by his own account, raised about $63,000 in his campaign to unseat incumbent Kathleen Harkey.
Coverstone, for one, says his level of fund raising is a matter of wanting to operate a professional campaign. He referred to a conversation with former Board of Education chair Betsy Walkup, in which he says he was advised to run a campaign serious enough to reflect the importance of public education.
“Schools are every bit as important as Congress and every other level of government,” Coverstone said.
SEE ALSO: Extended WSMV interviews with the school board candidates.
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Board in Bellevue
Posted on May 30, 2008 at 7:11 amAmy Griffith surveys the most highly contested and politically excited school board race this cycle — the contest to replace outgoing chair Marsha Warden in Bellevue:
There are no run-offs in school board elections, meaning that a winning candidate for the District 9 seat could command as little as 20 percent of the total vote. Many education-watchers — including some of the District 9 candidates — say there are two anticipated front-runners in the race, Coverstone as well as Lee Limbird. Both are perceived to have solid relationships in the right places; Coverstone has already reported high success raising funds, and Limbird has earned the public endorsement of Warden.
But in an election with five candidates and no run-offs, there’s no writing off of the other candidates, Paul Brenner, Stephen Hicks and James Lech.
“The two front-runners, I think, may split off some votes. I hope so,” Hicks said Thursday. “I’m impressed with [all] the candidates.”
The five candidates have subtly different views as to what will drive the race.
Brenner, a retired MNPS teacher, says the factors most important to voters are “neighborhood-type schools,” safety and parental involvement.
Coverstone, a teacher and administrator at Montgomery Bell Academy and the parent of one MNPS student and one private school student, believes voters are looking for a board member who can help bring back “lost credibility” and improve communication between the district and parents.
Hicks, a former juvenile courts worker, says he thinks District 9 residents want a representative who is very familiar with day-to-day operations at schools, who will promote school safety and vocational education, and who is not swayed by certain “big groups” — he declined to name examples — with stakes in public education.
Lech, a city planner who recently earned a doctorate in education from Vanderbilt University, believes neighborhood schools are at the forefront of voters’ minds, as well as teacher quality and its role in market share.
And Limbird, who has worked as a high-level leader at both Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Meharry Medical College, says the biggest issues are “excellence” in each school, a willingness to study the addition of another high school to the district in keeping with the fast growth of the area, the implementation of career academies and increasing principal authority over individual high schools.
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It Makes You Wonder How You Keep From Going Under
Posted on May 21, 2008 at 12:47 pmLiz Garrigan interviews private school teacher, Alan Coverstone on his run for school board and his controversial decision to send his oldest child, who is zoned for H.G. Hill Middle School, to a private school:
Had we gotten in the lottery, he would have gone there. The reality of the situation is, by working at MBA, I have the opportunity for my kid to go to a school that I could never have gone to, to learn from great colleagues I respect and maybe even to teach my own kids. And the best preparation to inspire him for that transition was at University School. I never thought he would get in because maybe it’s a two-year gig. [Because he’s on staff at MBA, Coverstone’s two sons are eligible to enroll in MBA free of charge once they reach the seventh grade.] So that’s it.
Alan Coverstone discussed his decision on his now dormant personal blog but the entry seems to have conveniently disappeared.
UPDATE: The extended version
Post Politics: 8 April 2008 - Afternoon Edition
Posted on April 11, 2008 at 2:44 pmSean Braisted ponders whether some Democratic contributors to Lincoln Davis would be surprised to the learn that the Congressman gave $1,000 to Tennessee Right to life last December.
Our man at the Capitol, Ken Whitehouse, breaks open another one, reporting that a powerful member of the state House will not seek re-election.
The Tennessee Democratic Party blog posts a “homemade” video from a “Tennessee Democrat” chiding Businessman Monty Lankford for running for Congress in a district not his own.
April is Minority Health Month in Tennessee.
No Silence There: As of May 5, newspaperman Michael Silence will no longer have to worry himself with producing copy for the print product of the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
The Democratic Leadership Council blog takes on John McCain for not standing tall on one of his signature issues.
Mike Byrd continues his quest to clean up his neighborhood specifically a market owned by the politically connected Kenny Norman.
The State Budget figures are out and you know what that means: Tennessee Republican Party spokesman Bill Hobbs is talking about the Copeland Cap.
Bruce Barry is not fooled by Senate Bill 3910, which he calls a retrograde piece of legislation that bans adoption by any couples who are engaged in “unmarried sexual cohabitation.”
The Wall Street Journal reports that Hillary Clinton thinks she can put Tennessee in play in the general election.
Aunt B. takes issue with how low-income is described in the new AT&T cable compromise legislation.
Barack Obama talks nuclear disarmament on YouTube.
Glen Dean wonders who the real enemy is when it comes to high gas prices – the oil companies or the government.
Matt Pulle wonders whether a Democratic candidate for Senate who drives a red Saab convertible with a vanity plate which makes reference to his service in the Marines might be vulnerable to an attack ad.
A new Rassmussen Reports poll shows Lamar Alexander sitting in the catbird seat for re-election.
Blogger and Montgomery Bell Academy Teacher Alan Coverstone announces that in just a few days he should have $10,000 in cash on hand for his 9th District Metro School Board race.
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