Walker County school board member Mike Carruth stepped down last week after serving nearly 20 years in the role, and the board is seeking a new member to replace him until the seat’s Nov. 5 election.
Carruth was one of two board members targeted by a September lawsuit seeking court action to stop alleged nepotism.
According to the lawsuit, Carruth has a son named Justin, who is the director/coordinator of career, technical and agricultural education for the school district. Open Georgia, a state database, lists Justin Carruth’s title as vocational director and his salary as nearly $96,000 for fiscal year 2022. Also in that fiscal year, he received more than $3,300 in travel reimbursements.
Superior Court Judge Brian House found that the relatives in question were coordinators, not administrators, and therefore their situation was not a violation of Georgia law.
When emailed for a comment, Carruth sent a statement that was read into the minutes of a recent school board meeting. He said he didn’t want to go into details but has been going through medical treatment.
“I have been told that I need to focus on my health so that I will be around for several more years,” he said. “I want to see my grandkids grow and see even more grandkids born (I hope).”\
Over the past two decades, he said he has poured his heart into serving the citizens, students, teachers and administrators that make up the school system. He said he’s proud of the accomplishments the school system has made, especially in the past decade.
“By doing this now, it will hopefully give several people time to run a campaign and be elected this year,” he said. “This new person will be able to attend new Board member training with the other new board members that are coming on.”
Damon Raines, Walker County Schools superintendent, said in a news release that people interested in interviewing and discussing the position with the board of education should submit their full name and current, physical address for verification of Post 3 residency.
Post 3 includes the Chattanooga Valley and Flintstone communities.
Candidates interested in finishing Carruth’s term can submit their name and address for consideration until Monday, the release said, via email at janetcobb@walkerschools.org or by calling 706-638-7949.
(READ MORE: Walker County Schools nepotism claim rejected by judge)
Interviews to replace the school board member will be held at Ridgeland High School on July 25, and potential candidates will be notified of their interview time. Raines said the new board member will be sworn in prior to the board’s planning session Aug. 13.
Qualifying for the Post 3 Walker County school board seat’s Nov. 5 election is Aug. 5-7, Chuck Fletcher, elections assistant for the county’s Elections & Voter Registration office, said in a phone call. He said that although the seat’s candidates must live in the Post 3 district, voters from all school board districts can vote in the nonpartisan election.
Candidates interested in being appointed or running for the school board seat can also contact the elections office to determine Post 3 residency, Raines said.
Contact Andrew Wilkins at awilkins@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659.