Board in Bellevue

By Kleinheider Posted on May 30, 2008 at 7:11 am

Amy 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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Tags: Alan Coverstone, Lee Limbird, Metro Nashville, school board