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Kevin Burke
It has been only six years since Kevin Burke graduated from Ooltewah High School, but the 23-year-old said he is eager to serve his former school system as a member of the Hamilton County Board of Education.
“What better way to get involved actively than to run for (school board)?” he asked. “The education system is the backbone of our community. Everything starts at the ground level with our kids.”
Mr. Burke will announce his candidacy today at the school system’s central office for the District 7 school board seat now occupied by Joe Conner, who has said he will not seek re-election.
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga senior finance major spent several years at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., before enrolling at UTC and starting his own business, Varsity Team Sports & Apparel.
Mr. Burke said one of his top priorities as a school board member would be improving the communication among the school system, board members and parents.
“The main objective is to be a liaison between the school system and the citizens of the district we represent,” he said. “I think the public has somewhat lost trust in our school system.”
He said transparency in local government will be crucial in the near future as Hamilton County’s public schools face the challenge of balancing the next school year’s budget with a projected $13 million deficit.
Mr. Burke said he believes in strict discipline in schools, and that disruptive and violent students should not be tolerated. He said he takes issue with Hamilton County’s single-path diploma, saying it forces some students to follow a path that might not be best for them.
Mickey Milita, director of guest relations at Erlanger hospital, is a longtime family friend of Mr. Burke. He said the candidate has a unique and fresh perspective since he was recently in school.
“Kevin is honest, he’s compassionate,” Mr. Milita said. “You really do not find many 23-year-olds that are that devoted and committed to local politics and what goes on in the community.”
When people ask him what education experience he has had, Mr. Burke said the answer lies in his lengthy academic tenure in Hamilton County.
“I just got done spending 13 years in our public education system,” said Mr. Burke, who also attended Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. “I don’t have a child in the system, but that’s not required to have an objective opinion. I really want to get young people more involved in local government.”
IF YOU GO
Kevin Burke will announce his candidacy today at 1 p.m. at the Hamilton County Department of Education at 3704 Hickory Valley Road.
Kelli Gauthier covers K-12 education in Hamilton County for the Times Free Press. She started at the paper as an intern in 2006, crisscrossing the region writing feature stories from Pikeville, Tenn., to Lafayette, Ga. She also covered crime and courts before taking over the education beat in 2007. A native of Frederick, Md., Kelli came south to attend Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in print journalism. Before newspapers, ...
