Members of the Columbus City Council are expected to make two appointments to the Columbus Municipal School District Board of Trustees in coming meetings. Below is a summary of applicants for the two available positions.
Currie Fisher
On CMSD board since March 2010. Current term set to end this month.
“The need is great, and I believe the school board is going in a good direction, as far as following policy and statute,” Fisher said. “I see improvement, and I’d like to continue helping with that if I can…I had to make sure I was still doing what the Lord wanted me to do, which is to do for those who can’t do for themselves. That’s our children.”
Stephen Jones
Jones, an agent with RE/MAX in Columbus, sits on the local real estate board and is a member of the Mississippi Association of Realtors’ membership and technology committee.
If appointed hopes to work toward changing the image of the city’s public schools until it is more level with that of the Lowndes County School District.
“I’m a product of the system, my kids went through the system and I’ll probably have grandchildren go through the system,” Jones said. “Anything I can do to help the kids in the Columbus city schools, I want to do it.”
Lee Russell Peeples Sr.
Retired in 1999 after serving as middle school principal and assistant principal at Caledonia High School. Both of his children graduated in the 1990s from Columbus High School.
“I would love to see the system become the great system it can become,” Peeples said. “I remember what it was like when my son and daughter went through, and it seemed to be stronger academically.”
Willie Petty Sr.
Has pastored Jerusalem Baptist Church in Columbus for 28 years. Worked as a teacher in Missouri for eight years before moving to Columbus in 1987. He taught one semester in Columbus schools and has served as a substitute teacher ever since. Children graduated from Columbus High School, and Petty said he had been a foster parent for several years.
“I’m familiar with children and the aspects of what they need,” Petty said. “I’m not happy with the way things are being done (at CMSD), but I don’t feel like I can make it change unless it changes from the top.”
Lori LeVar Pierce
Foreign language teacher at the Mississippi School for Math and Science who has lived in Columbus for 11 years. Has three children who attend school at CMSD. Has been active with the parent-teacher associations at all CMSD campuses and has served on the superintendent’s advisory committee.
“I recognize the role of education in creating a solid economy in Columbus,” Pierce said. “The best thing we can do for our local economy is to provide a quality education for all students.”
Josie S. Shumake
Columbus native and graduate of city school system. Holds a doctorate in English literature from the University of South Carolina and retired in 2009 as public affairs officer with the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Information Agency. Has volunteered with several local organizations, including the Friends of the Library and Columbus Arts Council. Said her education, work experience and love for the community could help the board face the school district’s challenges, not the least of which is its academic standing.
“The school board, by itself, cannot change the system overnight, but it can offer the leadership necessary to make tough decisions and follow through with those,” Shumake said. “I believe that I can help make this happen. My professional career essentially consisted of pulling different constituencies together, looking for points of agreement and expanding those to reach workable solutions to complex, tough problems.”
Eric Thomas
Motley High School graduate and has worked as an independent insurance agent since 2007. Before that, worked as a production supervisor at Bryan Foods in West Point. Has a daughter who attends CMSD. If appointed to the board, would focus on ways to raise students’ reading levels, as well as the district’s morale and parental involvement.
“The morale of the students and teachers is low,” Thomas said. “It seems to me that everybody is blaming everybody else for problems, be it parents blaming the teachers or teachers blaming the parents. Everybody must be held accountable. That means teachers being held accountable for doing their jobs and parents being held accountable for doing theirs.”
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