Local News
Davis: Parents and kids ‘part of solution’
By Mark Millican
markmillican@daltoncitizen.com
When it comes to decisions and challenges facing the Murray County school system, retired educator Jerry Davis believes in an approach that pulls from all facets of the community.
“I believe that parents and kids are important, and should be part of the solution,” he said. “We have to get teachers involved — they have to be a part of the solution. And PTAs, too.”
Davis, 63, said as a principal he sought out teachers for their ideas. For the new North Murray High School, he said he would utilize kids as well as teachers, and parents also, to “provide input as to how classrooms should be set up as well as extracurricular activities.”
“If they buy into the idea and take ownership, it helps avoid problems,” he said. “I would also open the doors to senior citizens so that they could come in and be a part of the school, and not just pay taxes. The schools are owned by the taxpayers.”
Davis is running as a Democrat for the District 3 seat on the Murray County Board of Education against Republican Rebecca Whaley in the Nov. 4 general election. Davis ran unopposed in the July Democratic primary. Jerome Mathis holds the seat currently. He was appointed by the board in late July to finish the term of Fred Gibson, who resigned due to health reasons.
Davis began teaching and coaching in the Murray school system in 1967. He retired from education as a principal at Dawnville Elementary in 2001. He now works part time with the Georgia Federal Credit Union, which began as a teachers’ credit union, he said, but has now expanded. Even when he was in school administration, beginning as assistant principal at Eastbrook Middle in 1976 because more principal positions were open in Whitfield County, he maintained his residence in Murray County.
“Basically, I can bring new ideas,” Davis said when asked why he is vying for the school board. “In Murray County and Whitfield County schools, I worked with some of the finest people you could know, very smart people, and I’ve drawn from them. My mother and father and sister were all teachers — together we’ve got over 100 years in education. I’ve got ideas from past experience that I know will work.”
Asked to elaborate, he responded, “Get the community involved, invite them into the schools and hear what they have to say.”
Davis said since he has not been privileged to see school system budget information he “doesn’t know exactly what needs to be done” in regard to budgeting and cuts that have been implemented. But he believes budgeting is straightforward.
“We need to look at how much money we have first,” he said. “I don’t know how much we’d have to borrow. If we do have to cut deeper, we can find ways to cut. Everybody in every department will have to give up something. But through better planning, we can look at what we need to cut back.”
Davis said questions about how many times the board meets a month “goes back to planning.”
“I think we can scale back and save some money there,” he said (board members are paid $50 a meeting). “Two meetings a month are important, for planning and work sessions, then a regular meeting. But I think that this is also an area that can be cut back.”
Davis was a history major when he earned his bachelor’s degree at Piedmont College. He has a master’s in education administration from the University of West Georgia and an educational specialist degree from Georgia State University.
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Public gets ‘sneak peek’ at Crown Gardens and Archives work
Sam Brown, left, a member of the Crown Gardens restoration team, talks with Hal Millsap of Dalton, who was born in the Crown Mill Village, Saturday about the restoration, which includes a bust of Brig. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. Matt Hamilton/The Daily Citizen
When Karen Smith was born her parents brought her home to 410 Chattanooga Ave., just down the street from Crown Garden and Archives, the primary repository of Dalton’s history where much-needed restorative efforts are under way. Her husband, Michael, grew up a little further south, near the intersection with Selvidge Street.
Continued ... - Whitfield candidates stress personal communication as key to runoff chances
- Early voting in Dalton under way; Chatsworth on Monday
- Murray school board candidates prepping for runoff
- Whitifield, Murray candidates respond to questions
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