Kay Ivey Appoints Tommie Stewart to State School Board
Tommie Stewart will replace the late Ella Bell, who passed away in November.
State School Board outlines plans for selection of new State Superintendent
The state school board on Tuesday outlined plans for the selection of the new State Superintendent of Education culminating with the final selection taking place on April 20. The following dateline describes the process by which the new State Superintendent of Education will be selected: Thursday, April 12, 10 a.m.: Executive Leadership Search Firm, Ray and Associates, will meet with the State Board during the work session to explain the process. They will also answer board members’ questions after the presentation. They are currently checking resumes, contacting references, and processing background checks. Please do not contact the search firm. They will provide a complete report to the entire state board at the work session. Friday, April 13, 9 a.m.: Ray and Associates will meet with the state board to recommend a list of semifinalists based on board criteria and the firm’s research. Board members will select finalists for interviews. Friday, April 20, 10 a.m.: Finalists will be interviewed and the board will vote to select the next Alabama State Superintendent of Education. Ray and Associates will guide the interview process which will be explained in more detail at the work session on April 12. School board members are endeavoring to find a replacement for former Superintendent Michael Sentence, who resigned in September 2017. Sentance had been named to the position August 2016. With less than a full year under his belt as the State Superintendent, he found himself on the firing line in July 2017 as the Alabama Board of Education began to question his performance. Sentance, who oversaw nearly 900 employees at the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE), was given a performance review by the state Board of Education in July, where in received low marks. In the months that followed, Sentance has found himself at the center of a debate as to whether or not he should be removed from his position. Many expected his firing to be eminent, but he resigned before it could happen. Ed Richardson — who previously served as the Alabama State Superintendent of Education from October 1995 to January 2004, and then as President of Auburn University from 2004-2007 — is currently serving interim state education superintendent until the position is filled.
Jackie Zeigler wins State School GOP Board run-off, ousting incumbent Matt Brown
Retired teacher and principal Jackie Zeiger won a run-off election Tuesday evening against Matt Brown, becoming the next Republican nominee for Alabama State School Board, District 1. Zeigler, the wife of State Auditor Jim Zeigler, dispatched her opponent easily, taking 62 percent to Brown’s 38. Zeigler will face off against Democratic nominee Ron Davis, a former Prichard mayor, in a November general election. Although Zeigler says she will still campaign heartily against Davis — “I’m not packing by bags,” she told AL.com — any Democrat would have a difficult time beating a credible Republican in the seven-county South Alabama district. Zeigler had 37 years of teaching and administrative experience to bring to bear against her 29-year-old opponent in Brown, but there was also likely an aspect of blowback against the official who appointed Brown — Gov. Robert Bentley, who is currently mired in scandal after inappropriate advances comments to a former staffer. Brown was appointed to the school bard by Bentley after his predecessor, Al Thompson, was chosen by Bentley for the state Community College Board of Trustees. ‘ Zeigler and Brown faced off in a primary election back on March 1, with Zeigler edging Brown for the most votes with 36.79 of ballots cast to Brown’s 26.35 percent. But since neither garnered a majority, the election triggered a run-off. The District 1 seat is a single-member district that takes in the counties of Baldwin, Butler, Conecuh, Crenshaw, Escambia and Mobile, plus the aforementioned Covington.
