The six candidates vying to represent District 3 on the Hamilton County Board of Education all agreed the most important decision facing the board is the selection of the district's next superintendent.
Sitting on the stage at Hixson Middle School, the candidates faced their only public interview Monday night, as the Hamilton County Commission is expected to name someone to the post Wednesday morning.
The seat on the school board was vacated by Greg Martin after being elected to the county commission in the Nov. 8 election. Whoever is chosen by the commission will serve the remaining two years of Martin's school board term.
Unless commissioners set up one-on-one interviews, this was their only chance to ask the candidates questions and hear their pitch for the job. Just five of county's nine commissioners were seen in the crowd Monday night: Martin, Sabrena Smedley, Tim Boyd, Chester Bankston and Randy Fairbanks.
Two of the candidates hoping to be named to the post representing Hixson, Lakesite, Middle Valley and Big Ridge ran against Martin in previous elections. James Watson, a 42-year science teacher who currently works at Ivy Academy, ran against Martin for the school board post in 2014, and long-serving YMCA Regional Director Joe Smith challenged Martin on the November ballot for the commission seat.
Other applicants include longtime sports broadcaster Randy Smith, financial management business owner Bradley Church, caregiver and former teacher Ann Morgan and Michael S. Kirk, director of operations for Boyd-Buchanan School.
Talking about superintendent qualifications, several of the candidates said they'd consider a non-educator for the job.
"As far as the individual's background, I'm not sure it's necessary they be a career educator," Kirk said.
Having a superintendent who takes responsibility was a quality both Randy Smith and Church said they wanted.
"I want someone who chooses to take full responsibility for the performance of the schools," Church said.
Joe Smith said the next superintendent needs to be someone willing to make tough decisions and with experience managing tax-payer dollars. He compared running the school district to leading a non-profit.
As a teacher, Watson said he thinks communication is the biggest problem within the district that the next superintendent should fix.
"We have to have a superintendent that is a good communicator, that listens to people," Watson said.
Morgan said she wants a superintendent who can take a hard look at the district's budget. Randy Smith, Joe Smith and Church agreed, suggesting the school system could better manage its funds.
The topic of bus safety was also addressed.
The Woodmore Elementary school bus crash that claimed the lives of six children last week should have never happened, said Randy Smith. Mentioning the complaints filed against the driver before the crash, he said someone in the school system should have listened and not allowed the driver to remain behind the wheel.
"We need a leader," Randy Smith said. "Someone that's going to step up and say 'I'm responsible.' We haven't had that in a long time."
The board's decision to contract with Durham School Services, the private company that operates most school buses in Hamilton County, was an economic one, Kirk said, and the problem is that leaders did not deal with the issues and complaints before the tragedy happened.
Joe Smith said the school board needs to re-examine the contract with Durham.
"This shouldn't have happened and should never happen again," he said.
Watson said he is in favor of the district only using independent contract drivers, which are drivers who own their own buses and work directly for the school district. The district has less than 50 independent contract drivers now, and Durham employs more than 200 drivers across the county.
About 60 people attended the forum, which was hosted by Friends of Hixson and the Hixson Kiwanis Club.
Martin thanked each of the six applicants for being willing to serve.
"It's really important we have a community that is interested and involved in our public education system," Martin said.
Contact staff writer Kendi A. Rainwater at 423-757-6592 or krainwater@timesfreepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @kendi_and.