Candidates for the Akron Board of Education vied to make themselves stand out in a crowded field during a debate Wednesday, with eight candidates vying for four open seats on the board.
The candidates are Nathan R. Jarosz, Greg Harrison, Karmaya Kelly, Cynthia Blake, Phil Montgomery, Diana Autry, Carla Jackson and Gwen Bryant. Harrison, Autry and Jackson are incumbents; Jackson is the current board president and Autry is the former board president.
During the debate, Bryant highlighted herself as one of the candidates with the most experience in classrooms, noting she's an educator with 30 years of experience. She currently works as a national education consultant. Jackson similarly highlighted her experience as an educator for 20 years and as leader of the school board through challenging times, including leadership transitions and budget challenges. She works as an administrator at a private Christian school in Akron. Autry, a nurse at Akron Children's Hospital, said she's visited every school in Akron and highlighted her knowledge of the community, formed from living and working there and thousands of hours of volunteering.
Montgomery, the director of budget and finance for Summit County, highlighted his experience managing a large public agency, and his deep knowledge of public finances as assets in his run. Cynthia Blake spoke of her work over the years in Akron helping homebuyers obtain loans, and throughout the debate highlighted herself as somebody who would question all aspects of the district's operation and look out for property owners who feel overburdened by school taxes. Kelly said she would be a voice for students and parents, people with whom she interacts with regularly as a mental health advocate and healthcare worker.
Harrison, a former Akron police officer and local pastor, said he has a proven track record on the board of seeking accountability for district decisions and asking hard questions about district finances. Jarosz noted his experiences working at a local education-focused nonprofit in helping students achieve and grow and said leaders should be expected to have the same "growth mindset."
Recent controversies at Akron Public Schools loomed large in the debate. The board recently voted to part ways with former Superintendent Michael Robinson, the district's third since 2021, after an investigation found he had bullied employees and created a hostile work environment. That same night the board approved the separation agreement, the board also voted, after a marathon meeting, to hire longtime APS employee Mary Outley as the district's permanent superintendent.
The biggest divide among the candidates was shown when they were asked to evaluate if the board should have hired Outley in that fashion. Jackson, Autry, Blake and Bryant said they agreed with hiring Outley without conducting a search or seeking other candidates, while Montgomery, Kelly, Jarosz and Harrison said they believed the board should have taken its time and brought in community input, despite their support for Outley as a leader.
Autry said surveys the district conducted showed significant support for Outley, and the district saved money by not conducting an expensive, lengthy search.
"This is one of those decisions of leadership that wasn't meant to be popular. I had to look at the whole picture," she said.
Harrison was one of three board members who did not vote for Outley's appointment due to concerns about a lack of process. He also noted the amount of money the district has paid out to previous superintendents.
"We paid $460,000 to buy the contract out of (former Superintendent) Christine Fowler-Mack," he said. "We paid $200,000 to buy the contract out of Superintendent Michael Robinson, we are a district that relies on taxpayers' money. We cannot exclude taxpayers from decisions and processes."
The candidates were also varied in their responses when asked if the district should have approached Robinson's investigation and removal differently. Autry and Jackson said they balanced their roles on the school board, citing a need to provide due process to the former superintendent while listening to concerns as they bubbled up to the surface. They also raised concerns about anonymous complaints being lodged frequently at Akron Public Schools, being used as a kind of cudgel to attack employees who might rock the boat too much.
Montgomery and Harrison both argued the board should have placed Robinson on leave immediately in December of last year, as allegations began to be lodged against the superintendent.
"He never should have been hired to begin with. I mean, if we would have done our due diligence in advance and read his resume, that might have been preventable," Montgomery said.
Blake said the board could have approached Robinson's investigation differently, but also defended Robinson as a leader who got results, along with Fowler-Mack.
"He's not gonna be able to get credit nor will Christine Fowler for the state report card where we had an increase in graduation rate, where we went to a 3.5 (star rating out of five)," she said.
The candidates were also asked about academics. Many urban school districts face challenges in improving students' reading and math scores. There are also financial issues with Akron saying it will need to make cuts in the coming years to avoid a deficit.
Kelly said there are too many students at the district who can't read or write, something she's noticed as a mentor to some students.
"This goes back to environmental factors and barriers children face in how they process and how they retain and how they learn," she said. "We have to find stronger ways to support parental involvement."
Jackson said students' experiences vary across the district from school to school, something she said she was aware of from visiting classrooms regularly.
"In order for us to hold ourselves and the district accountable, we have to be visible and engaged, so what you expect you must inspect," she said.
Bryant said her expertise in curriculum will help the district look past dollar amounts and recognize good curricular investments for teachers and students.
"Numbers are important, but also, how do those numbers impact systems in a school district? That part, I know," she said.
Jarosz said he would be a careful steward of public dollars if elected due to his experience working with nonprofits but also noted the state leaders are not making public schools' jobs any easier.
"We live in a hostile public education state," he said, noting Ohio's recent expansion of school vouchers. "Our state legislature and our governor have consistently been anti-public school."
The debate was sponsored by the Akron Press Club in partnership with Ideastream Public Media, the Akron Beacon Journal and Signal Akron.
