Disqualified candidate, party changes the latest in JeffCo judicial races
Judicial races are often pretty straight-forward, but they’ve been anything but that in Jefferson County as of late with a last minute disqualification and a candidate making a party switch. A disqualified candidate Last week, Fayette County Circuit Judge Samuel Junkin ruled Democratic candidate Linda Hall was ineligible to run in the Nov. 6 election for Circuit Court because she failed to meet the statutory residency requirements — having not lived in the county 12 months before the election. During her trial, Hall testified she does not live in Jefferson County. “I would not have ran if I knew that I lived in Shelby County,” she said. Despite being the party’s nominee, votes for Hall will essentially be null and void, as she is no longer eligible to win the seat. Secretary of State John Merrill explained should Hall earn more votes than her Republican opponent, incumbent Theresa Pulliam, the race will be void and Gov. Kay Ivey will then appoint someone to the seat for the two-year term. Party switch Jefferson County District Judge John Amari is also keeping things interesting in Jefferson County. On Friday, the Democratic judge sent a letter to the Chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party asking him for permission to rejoin the Republican Party. In the letter, Amari stated, “I believe qualifications and experience matter in our judges. I feel so strongly about the qualifications, experience and character of Teresa Pulliam that I feel compelled to publicly endorse, actively campaign and vote for the Republican nominee.” Elected as a Democrat in 2008, Judge Amari decided to make the switch in order to publicly work for the election of Pulliam. JeffCo GOP Chairman Sallie Bryant welcomed Judge Amari back to the party. “Judge Amari is a man of high character who has ably served the people of our county with honor and dignity. We are pleased he will use his influence to help elect our local judicial candidates,“ Bryant said.
JeffCo Sheriff, DA candidates face-off in debate
Jefferson County voters have more information about the candidates running for Jefferson County Sheriff and District Attorney (DA) thanks to a public debate hosted Sunday evening. DA candidates, Republican incumbent Mike Anderton and Democrat challenger Danny Carr faced-off first, before the Sheriff candidates, incumbent Republican Mike Hale and Democrat challenger Mark Pettway took the stage at the UAB campus. The debate was hosted by the Birmingham Association of Black Journalists and the Phi Iota Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. the debate also featured a voter education session, which answered questions such as: What issues will be on the ballot? How do you navigate the Alabama Voter website to find your polling place? How to register to vote. And how to absentee vote. DA debate Crime and recidivism Anderton: “My primary goal is to work with those who have gotten in trouble before, try to figure out why they have gotten in trouble,” Anderton said according to the Birmingham Times. “Is it poverty? Is it lack of education? Is it lack of a job?. . . Let’s work with those who have recently gotten out of prison or jail. So that we can work with them to take care of whatever their needs are. Theirs are just as important. They’re coming out and needing our help. “What we’ve got to do is make sure they have some hope, make sure they’ve got something in their future that they can walk to with pride and know that when they get there they’ve accomplished something.” Carr: “Make sure that we do things that benefit those individuals while they’re paying for the crime that they committed,” Carr said according to the Birmingham Times. “The worst thing that could happen is that they go in and come out worse . . . because then they come in our community [and cause even more problems]. We have to . . . make sure that you are placing people in the best position they can be in when they get out so that they won’t return to a life of crime.” Watch the DA debate below: Sheriff debate Body cameras Both candidates agreed that body cameras protect sheriff deputies and citizens. “This day and age there is no reason why we should not have body cameras,” explained Pettway. Watch the Sheriff debate below:
Gates Foundation’s new school initiative awards $1.1M grant for JeffCo schools
Twelve schools in Jefferson County, Ala. are working together to improve 8th and 9th grade math through a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant to the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB). The $1.1 million grant is one of 19 grants announced Tuesday by the foundation. SREB will use the grant to launch a network of 10 secondary schools that will focus on increasing the proficiency rates of Black, Latino, and low-income students on 8th grade math and 9th grade Algebra 1 in the Jefferson County part of Birmingham, Ala. “A poor start in high school math derails far too many students, but we can change that course if we find what works to prepare them,” said SREB President Stephen L. Pruitt. “By managing two networks — one urban and one rural — we will be able to learn and share critical lessons about improvement cycles within and across schools with similar challenges.” This summer, to understand the underlying causes of poor math performance, SREB began working with Jefferson County educators to collect data and conduct focus groups with students and teachers. Teams within and across schools are harnessing the power of the network to investigate problems and share solutions. Some have begun plan-do-study-act cycles to test strategies. Over time, promising solutions will be shared across the network to gather more data and further improve them. “We’re unpeeling the onion, figuring out why we’re not making progress, so teachers can find strategies for these individual students in these specific schools,” said Lauri Johnson, SREB organizational improvement director. “This is a singular opportunity to develop a continuous improvement mindset that focuses deeply on the needs of each student.” Urban and Rural Networks for School Improvement Jefferson County urban network schools Corner High School Corner Middle School Minor Middle School Minor High School Bragg Middle School Erwin Middle School Gardendale High School Oak Grove High School Irondale Middle School Shades Valley High School Hueytown High School Center Point High School Rural network 10 schools to be announced in late 2018 SREB and Jefferson County have partnered since 2015 on school improvement strategies across the district’s middle and high schools.
