What Will New Board, Superintendent Mean For Carver/Century, Other North Escambia Schools?
November 5, 2008
[NorthEscambia.com Exclusive]
Carver/Century K-8 School may have won a temporary reprieve at the polls on Tuesday, and Tuesday’s vote could spell an increased voice for North Escambia on the county’s school board.
“The cloud over Carver/Century has been lifted,” newly elected District 5 school board member Bill Slayton told NorthEscambia.com Tuesday night. “We need to step back and look at what we are going to do there.”
Current Superintendent Jim Paul, who did not seek re-election after a drunk driving arrest, was expected for months to call for the closure of Carver/Century before next school year, but he did not. Any closure recommendation would now come from Malcolm Thomas who will take office as superintendent on November 18.
“We have to pause a minute on closing Carver/Century,” Thomas said. “It is not that I am in opposition to closing that school, but I don’t want to close it now to find out that we just have to reopen it next year.”
Project Green Leaf could the school’s saving grace. The electric car manufacturing facility with up to 1,100 jobs proposed for Century could drastically change the future of Carver/Century.
“I want specific answers, not just the (Project Green Leaf) sales pitch before making a decision. I want the facts,” Thomas said. “That does not mean that it is over. It just means we are pressing the pause button on closing the school.”
But once the district has exercised “due diligence” and explored Carver/Century and Project Green Leaf’s future, the district will move forward. That may mean closing the school, Thomas said, and it may not. He said he is not opposed to closing and consolidating schools if warranted. In fact, he said a handful of smaller Pensacola area schools could be on the chopping block very soon.
As for the rest of the schools in North Escambia, Thomas had nothing but praise. From Molino Park Elementary to Bratt Elementary, North Escambia’s other elementary schools are in great shape, he said, noting the Bratt is the top school in the entire county according to numbers from the Florida Department of Education. He expects no changes at Ernest Ward Middle, an “A” school several years running, or at Northview High School, a “B” rated school with improving state test scores.
“The problem area that we must address is Carver/Century,” he said. The school improved to a “B” school this past year, up from an “F” the year before. It has also failed to make the state’s definition of adequate yearly progress, leading to state-funded student transfers out of the school.
“There are great schools in the north end,” Slayton said. “I want to continue to make sure that they receive equal treatement in the educational system, and that they are part of the plan in this county.”
Pictured above: Malcolm Thomas was elected as the new Escambia County School Superintendent. NorthEscambia.com graphic.
Morgan Wins Sheriff; Puts Century Criminals On Notice
November 5, 2008
The criminal element in North Escambia has officially been put on notice…there’s a new sheriff in town, and his name is David Morgan.
Republican Morgan, 55, defeated Democratic challenger Larry Scapecchi, 45, by a margin of 52.6 percent to 47.4 percent in Tuesday’s election. Morgan received 76,196 votes, compared to 68,570 for Scapecchi.
In an exclusive interview late Tuesday night, Morgan told NorthEscambia.com that one of his many priorities once he takes office in January will be to reduce crime in Century area. Statistically, Century accounts for a large majority of all sheriff’s department calls in North Escambia.
“I want to put the criminal element that has their foot on the throat of Century on notice,” Morgan said. “Their days are over.”
Morgan said he wants to sit down with Century Mayor Freddie McCall and work on a plan to clean up the town. He said he’s already sat down with the people behind Project Green Leaf, an electric car manufacturing company that is looking to bring up to 1,100 jobs to Century. Project Green Leaf officials have already expressed that crime in Century is a factor that concerns them should they choose to locate in the town.
“Century needs to stand by,” Morgan said. “We want to work on a plan to take care of the problem in that town, and do it quickly.”
Also in NorthEscambia, the sheriff-elect said he intends to reopen the department’s Walnut Hill Precinct that has sat mostly unused for years.
Countywide, Morgan said he intends to hit the ground running in January to make his campaign promises a reality. He plans to restructure the Escambia County Sheriff’ Department administration, putting more deputies on the streets of the county. And he plans to increase pay for deputies and correctional officers.
In the August primary, Morgan beat incumbent Republican Ron McNesby by over 3,000 votes. McNesby had been the county’s sheriff since 2000.
Morgan owns a private investigation firm and has literally spent years campaigning for the sheriff’s job. His law enforcement background was in the military.
Scapecchi spent 25 years in the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department, retiring a couple of years ago as a lieutenant.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Thomas Elected As New Escambia School Superintendent
November 5, 2008
Republican Malcolm Thomas is the new Escambia County School Superintendent,
Thomas, 54, defeated challenger Claudia Brown-Curry, 52, with 59.8 percent of the vote Tuesday to 40.2 percent for Brown-Curry. Thomas received 84,802 votes, while Brown-Curry had 56,894.
“I’m very humbled by this,” Thomas told NorthEscambia.com late Tuesday night. “I want to thank my supporters and the voters for being my biggest endorsements.”
“We are going to get up each day and work harder,” he said, toward his campaign promises of better student achievement, better pay for teachers making a difference, better discipline and safety, and better transparency and accountability.
Thomas told NorthEscambia.com that his step toward the superintendent’s office would be to put a survey on his web site for input from Escambia residents on the county’s schools. That survey was on his site, malcolmthomas2008.com, before midnight Tuesday. The anonymous survey asks county residents to identify the one area in which the district performs the best and the one area where the school district needs the most improvement.
Thomas has spent about 28 years with the school district, currently service a the district’s director of evaluation services. He has also served the Escambia County School District as a staffing specialist, department head and a classroom teacher. He resides in Cantonment.
Brown-Curry serves as the District 3 representative on the Escambia County School Board. She’s resigned from that post effective November 18. She ran another unsuccessful campaign for superintendent in 2004. She has served as a teacher in the district.
The school superintendent job pays $130,436 per year.
Highway 97 Accident Injures One Tuesday Night In Davisville
November 5, 2008
One person was injured in a two vehicle accident on Highway 97 in Davisville Tuesday night.
A car and small pickup collided on Highway 97 near Pine Barren Church Road, just north of Highway 4, about 6:00 Tuesday night.
One person from the car was transported to Atmore Community Hospital with injuries that were not believed to be severe. The drive of the truck refused treatment.
The cause of the accident is under investigation.
The Walnut Hill Station of Escambia County Fire-Rescue, Atmore Ambulance and the Florida Highway Patrol were all called to the scene.
Pictured above: One person was injured in this car about 6:00 Tuesday night in a Highway 97 wreck in Davisville. Pictured below: The driver of this truck was not injured. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Incumbent Kevin White Keeps Commission Seat
November 5, 2008
Incumbent District 5 Escambia County Commissioner Kevin White has been re-elected to that seat by a more than 8,000 vote margin.
Republican White defeated Democratic challenger Jim Barnett by a wide margin, 63.6 % to 36.4 %. White received 19,447 District 5 votes while Barnett received just 11,110.
White beat his three Republican challengers back in August by almost 1,000 votes more than the other three candidates combined.
White, 42, owns White’s Automotive Repair. He was first elected to the commission in 2000, his first elected office. Barnett, 59, owns Gateswood Sports in Pensacola. Both men live in Molino.
The four year seat on the commission pays $72,819 per year.
Attempts late Tuesday night by NorthEscambia.com to reach White on three phone numbers we have for him were unsuccessful.
Pictured above: Kevin White (L) and Jim Barnett.
FINAL Election Results
November 5, 2008
These are the FINAL, unofficial election results from local races of interest in North Escambia.
90 of 90 Precincts Reporting In Escambia County
Bill Slayton Wins District 5 School Board Seat
November 5, 2008
Bill Slayton won the District 5 Escambia County School Board seat, defeating Tom Harrell.
Slayton received 52.6 percent of the vote to Harrell’s 47.4 percent. Slayton received a total of 15,121 votes while Harrell had 13,607.
“I am delighted about the possibilities benefits now for the students, the teachers, District 5 and the county,” Slayton told NorthEscambia.com late Tuesday night. “I think that we will see at the very first school board meeting in January that we have a board that can work together and work with the superintendent. We are going to be a much more friendly board.”
Slayton said he is looking forward to working with new Superintentn Malcolm Thomas, a man that he was taught alongside in Escambia schools and that he considers a good friend.
Both Slayton and Harrel were political newcomers, with longtime incumbent Pete Gindl losing his seat in the primary.
Slayton, 59, is a retired educator, with 36 years experience in the Escambia School District at Tate High School as a teacher, administrator, assistant principal and principal. He holds a bachelor’s degreen and a Masters of Education Degree from the University of Southern Mississippi and an administrative certification from the University of West Florida.
Harrell, 58, is a retired educator with 36 years experience, including 11 years as an adjunct professor at Pensacola Junior College.
The school board position pays $36,014.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Gay Marriage Ban Amendment Passes
November 5, 2008
Florida Amendment 2 passed Tuesday, with more than 60 percent of Florida voters voting for the constitutional ban on gay marriage in the state.
Florida law already bans gay marriage, but Amendment 2 adds the ban to the state constitution, defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. It also bans “legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof”.
Under a new state law, the amendment needed 60 percent of the votes cast in order to pass. In previous years, amendments needed only 50 percent of the vote.
Pictured above: A campaign sign along Highway 4 at the First Baptist Church of Bratt. NorthEscambia.com photo.
Harvest Night Tonight At Ray’s Chapel; Dr. Ted Traylor Is Guest Speaker
November 5, 2008
Harvest Night at Ray’s Chapel Baptist Church in Bogia will feature the pastor and worship leader from one of the area’s largest churches.
Dr. Ted Traylor, pastor of Olive Baptist Church in Pensacola, and Olive’s Minister of Music Dr. Leo Day will conduct Harvest Night at the invitation of Ray’s Chapel’s Pastor Nathan Brown who interned at Olive and accepted the pastor position a few months ago at the Bogia church.
“Nathan is a dear friend, and he’s even from my hometown,” Dr. Traylor told NorthEscambia.com. “It will be a night of harvest outreach to the community.”
The Harvest Night begins with a free pizza supper at 6:00 tonight. The Harvest Night service begins at 7:00. The public is invited to attend.
Ray’s Chapel Baptist Church is located at 170 West Bogia Road, just off Highway 29, in McDavid.
Complete Escambia Election Results
November 5, 2008
Here are the complete, unofficial results from Tuesday’s General Election in Escambia County.
These results are with 90 of 90 precincts reporting, and include absentee and early voting totals.
