During this year’s legislative session, the Georgia General Assembly passed SB 369 that changes the elections for Gwinnett County Board of Education from a partisan race to a nonpartisan race. Candidates will no longer have a political party affiliate next to their name on the ballot. Also, the election will be decided in the May 24 primary. Governor Kemp signed the bill into law shortly after its passage.

Due to this change, the Gwinnett Chamber hosted a Candidates Forum yesterday for the seven candidates running for School Board Districts 2 and 4. Steve Knudsen, current Board Member for District 2, is being challenged by Michael Rudnick, who works for the City of Lawrenceville as a Fleet Director. Knudsen was first elected in 2018 and currently serves as the board’s Vice Chair.

Five candidates will be on the ballot to replace Everton Blair, Jr. who is not seeking reelection. The five candidates are Kelly KautzTony SellersDr. Adrienne SimmonsMatt Sones, and Dr. Alexis Williams. Kautz is a former Mayor of Snellville and currently works as an attorney and Guardian Ad Litem for Gwinnett’s Juvenile Court. Sellers taught at Gwinnett County Public Schools for 18 years. Dr. Simmons works for the Georgia Department of Education. Sones works as a Government Policy Analyst. Dr. Williams is a licensed attorney.

Candidates were asked a series of questions on education as it relates to business in Gwinnett, including workforce and college readiness. The questions were prepared by the chamber’s Public Policy Advisory Committee. The forum was moderated by Nick Masino, Gwinnett Chamber’s President & CEO. Click here to watch a recording of the event.

Gwinnett County Public Schools is the largest school system in Georgia with over 180,000 students. Recently, the Georgia Department of Education announced 23 Gwinnett County public high schools were named AP Honors Schools and 21 high school seniors were recognized as 2022 Georgia Scholars.

To learn more about Gwinnett County Board of Education, visit https://www.gcpsk12.org/Page/23296.


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