Harrison, Hunt appointed to school board
Published 6:35 pm Tuesday, August 13, 2024
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The Franklin City School Board recently returned to a fully populated status after briefly having four vacancies.
Cristina Boone was reappointed by the Franklin City Council to the Ward 4 seat, Dr. Peggy R. Scott was reappointed to the Ward 6 seat, and new appointments included Danyelle Hunt to the Ward 5 seat and Dr. Reid Harrison to the at-large seat.
Hunt will be serving one year, which is the remainder of Brittany Powell’s unexpired term. Powell accepted a job that moved her away from the area.
Hunt applied to serve on the board, and she said that when she heard she had been appointed by the council, “I was excited, and I was also eager to see what type of work was ahead of me.”
Hunt is new to the area, having moved to Franklin in March, and she said a neighbor who had just retired from the Franklin school system suggested she apply for a seat on the board.
“I guess he asked the right person, because I’ve spent quite a number of years in one volunteer position or another, so I’ve always been very public service-minded,” she said. “So I said, ‘OK, well, let me look into it and think about it,’ and I decided that it would be a good idea to try.”
Listing her primary qualifications for serving on the school board, she said, “I am a college-educated member of the community, registered voter. At one point in my life I was an ESL teacher, English as a second language, although not in Virginia, I worked internationally. But I care about children and their well-being and their opportunities to learn.”
She was presented with Franklin City Public Schools’ recently released Strategic Plan at one of her first school board meetings, and when listing her goals for her year on the board, she said, “I’m just eager to see how much of this plan will be accomplished in this year.”
Hunt indicated that this year will serve as a perfect litmus test to see if she is a good fit on the board, and if it goes well, she hopes to continue service as a member.
“I hope that this is a good year and that I can then serve a proper three-year term,” she said.
Harrison was appointed to serve a full three-year term in the at-large seat formerly occupied by Carrie Johnson.
“I’m just glad I can serve,” Harrison said, sharing his reaction to his appointment. “If that’s the best way to do it, I’m happy to do it.”
In recent years he has taught at Franklin High School in the science department.
“My primary profession is as a physician, and at the time that I taught, there was a great need,” he said. “They didn’t have enough teachers, particularly in the science department.”
He noted that this year, FHS was able to retain its needed science teachers, so he had a decreasing role there.
“But at the same time I felt that there were probably some other issues that maybe I could do just as much of a job of helping,” he said. “I think having that experience as a teacher taught me a lot about maybe things that need help from a different standpoint, from an administrative standpoint.”
He said, “You can make a change to an individual student as a teacher, but if it’s a systemic thing that might need to be worked on, then there’s other opportunities, and so as a school board member, I think that gives you a greater opportunity to maybe make more general changes, if needed.”
In terms of his primary qualifications for serving on the board, he cited his teaching experience as one of them, he noted that he has a child in the school system and one that just graduated, and he also noted that he and his family are part of the community.
He emphasized the significant impact that schools have on a community as a whole.
In reference to the goals he hopes to accomplish during his term, he said, “I think the first thing I’m learning is to be humble because I don’t know everything, so one of the goals is to be able to continue to learn and be willing to assess and grow with what’s available there, so I think that’s a big issue for me is understanding that is how to learn.
“But I think overall long-term goals would be how to help our community through helping the schools, and if it means to help them stay consistent in what they need to provide for, that’s, I think, important, or if there’s ways that the school division needs to improve and change, that’s another thing,” he added.
As for a specific goal, he said, “After teaching for three years, it would be the very specific fact of helping individual students learn in the best possible way and help individual teachers understand how to teach the students in the best possible way.”
He said he understood that this specific goal is a gigantic concept, but he said he thought pursuing that goal was the school board’s mantra.
Boone was appointed in February 2023 to serve the remainder of Marchelle F. Williams’ term, which expired June 30.
Boone expressed enthusiasm about recently being appointed to her first full three-year term on the board.
“I experienced a renewed sense of excitement as I embarked on my continued journey with the school board,” she said. “It felt as invigorating as my initial appointment, as I was granted the opportunity to persist in prioritizing educational advancement and accomplishments. This second chance reaffirms my commitment to fostering growth and excellence within our educational community. I am eager to contribute to the ongoing progress and development of our schools, and I am dedicated to ensuring that our students receive the best possible opportunities for success.”
She outlined what she hopes to accomplish in her first full term.
“I am eagerly anticipating the successful launch of our CTE Academy, as it holds great promise for our students’ future,” she said. “The implementation of our Strategic Plan is also a significant milestone that I am looking forward to seeing come to fruition. Additionally, I am committed to ensuring that all of our elementary school students are equipped with the essential skill of reading and writing in cursive before they transition to higher grades. These seemingly small details are crucial in providing our children with a well-rounded education that prepares them for success in their academic and professional endeavors.
“I am dedicated to seeing these initiatives through and am confident that they will have a positive impact on the educational experience of our students,” she said.
Scott was first appointed in February to serve the remainder of Jerry McCreary’s term, which expired June 30, and now she has been appointed to a full term.
“I am deeply honored and excited to be appointed to the Franklin City School Board for a full three-year term,” she said. “This opportunity allows me to contribute more extensively to the growth and development of our educational community.”
She noted that during this new term, “I aim to increase collaboration between the school board, parents and the community. By fostering open communication and active involvement, we can better support our students and school.”