Candidates Prefiled for Supt of Education 2016

Two prefiled at this time !


Trisha Porter Johnson - Republican

Jennifer Tice Nick - Republican

 

What are their qualifications?

 

J. Nick was on the Ad in the paper as a School District Employee with a significant salary, so we can assume she is a district employee with probable teaching background.

The family is the "Nick" family that owns the two popular restaurants with their name.

Some how there is a family connection to Larry Jones there but I forget the exact connect the dots on that one.

T. Johnson ran in the past and lost. Father is Gordon Porter (a political big wig in some circles). Unknown about any qualifications on her.

Both very politically connected.

 

Thank you, John G. I knew the political and family backround of both. I am asking fore qualifications! (Experience and Education)

 

Experience: both familar with good ole' boy politics.

Education: lived in Walton Co. All their lives.

If I'm wrong, please correct and educate me...

 

Jennifer Nick is not from Walton County. She is from Alabama. Met her husband in college, and moved here when she married him. His family is from Walton county, not hers. They own Nicks restaurant. She holds a masters and specialist degree and I believe is currently pursuing her Doctorate. Taught for many years before going to district office last year.

 

OK that's what we are looking for, some facts! Thanks! Sounds like a shoe in.

Connected / related to Larry Jones?

What is a Specialist Degree?

Doctorate in what and from where?

When one prequals two years in advance you open many doors for many questions.

 

A Specialist Degree is what you earn after a Masters Degree. next comes Doctorate. I believe it's in Educational Leadership. Don't know Larry Jones so I can't say if she's related or connected to him in any way. Stop by Nicks on the Bay most any night and you can ask her yourself. Very friendly lady, always out talking to the customers at the bar and in the restaurant. If nothing else, she's not afraid of hard work. For many many years, she taught special education at freeport all day, left there and ran that restaurant until it closed every night.

 

Jennifer sounds like a winner to me. I know most of the Nick family as I have lived close by to Nick's at the beach for many years. The whole family are hard workers and a credit to Walton County or anywhere else. I wish her good luck.

 

I should not single this point out, because it is really about the constant use of "good ole boy" politics that bothers me. Everyone in a smaller area has some set of family connections, if not business connections. Just go ahead and assume that, and if it turns out to be untrue, then fine. But don't assume that those relationships are the same thing as a good ole boy network. Does such a thing exist, sure, just don't make wild assumptions.

My reason for calling out your comment is that you asked for facts, got a fair response, and then proceeded to further inquire AND included your alleged fact in it as those it was offered up as true. You mentioned some connection to Larry Jones. I have no idea if that is true or not. What if someone said she is connected to Scott Brannon or to Suzanne Harris? Those are other hot topic names apparently, and people will form opinions based on such connections. To just link someone to another person without any real basis is a bit absurd.

Best of luck to all who want to run for office or be involved in local government, but it is things like this that make it very hard to find qualified people willing to run for office.

 

I truly hope that lingering bitterness over the elected/appointed superintendent vote does not get in the way of choosing the best qualified person to fill the job for the next term. Both of these ladies are fine people and deserve to be judged on their relative merits instead of who they are related to. As the old saying goes, you can choose your friends but family is what it is. As far as "good ole boys" this has almost become a code word denigrating any long-term resident of this county. If you have lived in an area for several years and have carried on business there, you are going to have connections with other people. These connections do not mean you cannot judge issues fairly. Or that you will not carry out the duties you were elected to perform to the best of your ability.

 

Code words abound in Walton County.

The other code words are "I'm a 5 generation resident" of Walton County.

Seems just as prevalent as "good ole boys" to me.

 

Opinions are always subjective, but I know several teachers that don't speak very highly Jennifer Nick. As far as seeing her at Nick's on the bay, my personal experience was not positive. She was not friendly at all, in fact she was arrogant and rude. Her husband is definitely part of the good ole boy club. For anyone who did not see it, he ran an ad in the paper to inform everyone his wife was not the Nick that became the new teachers union president, and left out the part that new union president is his sister-in-law. I know none of this is relevant to qualifications, but it does with character, which is also important. Electing a Superintendent with qualifications any less than a Phd, and experience in educational administration, is a big part of what is wrong with the Walton Count School System. It's highly unlikely there will be a highly qualified leader for Superintendent in this county with the elected selection system. That's why the majority of schools districts throughout the country hire their Superintendent. But enough ranting, we've got what we got, hopefully some better choices will come forward, but I will not vote for Jennifer Nick.

 

Some of the clowns running for office claim to have family ties in Walton County predating the landing of Ponce de Leon at St. Augustine.

 

Help me please. Why file now for an election in 2016?

 

One of the reasons other than putting voters on notice of intent is they can begin to raise campaign contributions.

 

Show Me The Money!!!

 

This may be a little off point but I recall seeing a life size photograph of some guy in the back of the School board room with the caption "It's Miller's way or the Highway". Who is/was this Miller dude? Was he a superintendent?

 

Just curious...what are Alexis Tibbett's qualifications?

 

I believe Tibbett's has a doctorate.