ASHEVILLE - The unofficial results are in for four Buncombe County Board of Education candidates who will serve the next four years overseeing public education for more than 22,000 county students.
The county school board has seven members representing six districts and the county at-large -- of which four spots were open for this November election: Districts 1, 2, 4 and an at-large seat.
Out of the three candidates vying for the at-large seat -- Glenda Weinert, Charles Martin and Arria Williams -- Buncombe County voters chose Martin for the position with 51.04% of the vote. Martin ousted incumbent Weinert for the role, who was appointed in June to fill the at-large seat left vacant by the resignation of Amanda Simpkins.
Martin, an Asheville native, is the senior pastor at St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church in West Asheville, which hosts an out-of-school suspension program in partnership with Partners Unlimited. He hopes to address the achievement gap between the city's Black and white students and the disproportionate disciplining of the system's Black students. The goal, he previously told the Citizen Times, is to make the schools better for all children.
After the impacts of Tropical Storm Helene on the Buncombe County school system, Martin said he would focus on six different tools to help county schools move forward, including updating emergency plans and offering mental health and support services.
Martin previously said the potential merger with Asheville City Schools -- now being studied for its feasibility under a mandate by the North Carolina General Assembly -- "could be a beneficial move for our students, staff and communities." However, he said he will not make a final decision before reviewing the analysis by Prismatic Services, due to the General Assembly in February 2025.
Martin was not immediately available for comment on his election to the board.
Who will represent North Buncombe schools?
For District 1 -- representing North Buncombe -- voters chose between Ann Franklin, the incumbent, and Greg Parks. Franklin received an overwhelming majority of votes over Parks, at 61.98%.
"I'm very humbled that many people voted for me, and I'm very honored to be given the opportunity to serve the people in Buncombe County as a board member," Franklin said in reaction to her win.
Franklin, who has served on the board since 2008, is a retired 36-year Buncombe County veteran teacher, according to the schools' website. She taught at Haw Creek and Flat Creek Elementary Schools.
Now that she's been re-elected, Franklin said one of her top priorities is to ensure the school system continues to provide support and a safe place to learn for students, teachers and staff after Helene. She pointed out how Superintendent Dr. Rob Jackson has secured extra social workers and counselors from other counties to help, which "we will continue to do," Franklin said.
"It's just horrible what these children have lived through," Franklin said Nov. 5. She represents a district that lost two young students in the storm.
"It's not going to go away. This time next year, we will still be talking about this, and we'll still have children that are living campers."
Frankin also touched on the potential merger with Asheville City Schools, saying "I'm not real clear on why it's important for us to merge," but that she's waiting to see what the recommendation from Prismatic is.
She said she plans to "sit with the county school board, Asheville city, and the commissioners to see how we feel about this -- and not just us as members on those boards, but how we feel about this as a community."
Who will represent Owen District schools?
For District 2 -- representing the Owen District in Black Mountain and Swannanoa -- Greg Cheatham narrowly won the seat over Sara Disher Ratliff and Nancy Shook Hargrove. Cheathem received 38.97% of the vote, compared to Ratliff's 29.46% and Hargrove's 31.19%.
Cheatham, who lives in Black Mountain, spent over 26 years teaching in Buncombe County as a second, third and fifth grade teacher, as well as a physical education teacher. He's taught both in the Reynolds and Enka districts. After retiring from teaching in 2023, he began "a second career in public service with the Asheville Fire Department," according to his website.
Cheatham was not immediately available to comment on his election to the board.
Who will represent Roberson District schools?
For District 4 -- representing the Roberson District in South Asheville -- voters picked incumbent Amy Churchill over Jim Fulton, with Churchill receiving 61.44% of the vote.
Churchill, a respiratory therapist at Mission Hospital who recently changed her political affiliation to Independent, was first elected to the board in 2012.
She ran for reelection this year because of her passion to keep arts programs in Buncombe County schools, and fears over the expansion of the state's private school vouchers, particularly on elective offerings. She's also passionate about backing initiatives to enhance mental health support in schools throughout the system.
Churchill was not immediately available for comment on his election to the board.
Elections come after new electoral map, and amid impacts of Helene
The Buncombe County Board of Elections will meet to certify results for the 2024 general election at 11 a.m. on Friday, November 15.
The election came shortly after the school board begrudgingly approved an electoral map that caused some parents to vote Nov. 5 for officials who will not represent most of their children's districts. The new map divides the county into six districts with nearly equal populations, after the state legislature required redistricting for the Buncombe school district during the 2023 session.
Previously, Buncombe was divided into six high school enrollment districts. Voters chose one candidate from each district and one to represent the county. For this election, residents selected just two candidates on their ballot instead of seven -- one for their local district and one for the at-large seat.
This school board election also comes on the heels of Tropical Storm Helene's severe impact on county school children, with four of the district's students killed in the storm and more than 400 who experienced a "significant impact" -- a death of a family member or friend; loss of a car or home; or displacement. More than 100 staff members were also significantly impacted.
Additionally, 776 students were experiencing homelessness after the storm as of Oct. 18, according to the district, an increase from 254 before Helene hit. More than 90 students have withdrawn from the district, the Citizen Times previously reported.
This story will be updated.