School board elections are approaching, and this year’s race looks a lot different than those of years past. Due to a state law passed during a 2021 special legislative session, this year’s elections will be partisan, which is uncommon in local elections and especially in school board races. Though the Metro Nashville Public Schools board urged political parties not to engage in partisan elections (the law makes it optional), both Democrats and Republicans announced their plans to hold primaries in December.
Primary elections for the school board will take place May 3, with early voting beginning April 13. With school board seats in districts 2, 4, 6 and 8 up for election, a total of 14 candidates are running — three independents, four Republicans and seven Democrats. Those running independently won’t have to win a primary election, but they won’t have the recognition associated with a political affiliation. Here’s an introduction to this year’s candidates.
District 2
Incumbent board member Rachael Anne Elrod hopes to keep her seat in District 2 — the most crowded field of the four races. She’s vice chair, has served on the board since 2018 and is endorsed by the Metropolitan Nashville Education Association Political Action Committee for Education. Elrod has experience as a teacher, supports pre-K expansion and is the only Democrat running in her district.
Edward Arnold, who is running as an independent, ran for this seat in the past two elections. He’s retired, having formerly worked as an information resource specialist for the state, and is currently a doctoral student at Tennessee State University. He wants to change the way Metro schools are funded with Teacher Incentive for Public Schools — an idea he created that would provide incentivized pay for teachers who work with English learners and in low-performing schools.
Janeen Kingma, Todd Pembroke and Mark Woodward are all running as Republicans. Kingma does not appear to have an online presence and did not respond to the Scene’s interview request. Pembroke is an insurance agent who lives in the Davidson County portion of Brentwood and is an active member of the U.S. Army National Guard. Though he doesn’t have any kids in school, one of his three young daughters will start kindergarten in the fall. Pembroke wants to go back to “the traditional forms of curriculum and [leave] anything divisive and confrontational or controversial out of the equation.” This, he says, includes teaching about race and gender — matters often misidentified as critical race theory. He also says he’d like to see more discipline and accountability in schools. Woodward teaches drama and music at a Montessori school in the Davidson County portion of Brentwood, and serves on the executive committee of the Davidson County Republican Party. He says he wants to “help us to rethink our approach to early childhood education, which needs attention desperately.” His children are homeschooled.
District 4
District 4 candidates include incumbent Democrat John Little, Democratic challenger Berthena Nabaa-McKinney and Republican Kelli Phillips.
Little ran for and won the District 4 seat after then-representative Anna Shepherd died in 2020. He works for education nonprofit Nashville PROPEL and has faced residency challenges, which were ultimately dismissed by the Davidson County Election Commission. Little supports charters.
Nabaa-McKinney was appointed by the Metro Council to temporarily represent District 4 after Shepherd’s death, though she ultimately lost the seat to Little. Nabaa-McKinney owns an education consulting firm and has worked as a teacher and principal; she also serves as the Parent Advisory Council’s secretary. Her priorities include centering school staff and parent voices when making board decisions and figuring out how to sustain and improve school resources. Nabaa-McKinney has an MNEA-PACE endorsement.
According to a Facebook video, Phillips’ priorities revolve around banning critical race theory and enhancing transparency in the school budget. Phillips has also campaigned on removing the district’s mask mandate — the current board has already voted to remove the mandate, but it’s an issue that could pop back up amid future COVID-19 variants or surges. Phillips has addressed the board at several meetings via public comment.
District 6
Independent incumbent Fran Bush is running for reelection in District 6. In 2021, the teachers’ union filed an ethics complaint against Bush for fighting with teachers about reopening schools. She has been vocal about COVID-19 matters and wanted the MNPS mask mandate removed sooner than it was. Bush also supports charters, parent involvement and raises for MNPS staff.
Bush’s two opponents are running as Democrats. Natalie Martin has been a teacher and assistant principal in MNPS and currently teaches at Stratford STEM Magnet School. (She’ll have to leave that role if she wins, as MNPS employees cannot serve as board members.) Martin wants to see better pay for support staff and involve more of MNPS’ non-English-speaking families at board meetings. She also wants to combat youth violence.
Candidate Cheryl Mayes is running again after serving as chair of the board. She lost her 2014 reelection bid as well as a race for a Metro Council seat in 2019. Mayes works for Rep. Jim Cooper and could not be reached by the Scene to discuss her goals for the school board. Mayes has an MNEA-PACE endorsement.
District 8
District 8 incumbent Gini Pupo-Walker will not run for reelection. Instead, she is endorsing Democrat Erin O’Hara Block, who recently left her job as executive director of the Tennessee Education Research Alliance at Vanderbilt University. She wants to implement goals and strategies for district improvement and create an “integrated system” that connects the school system with city leaders to address and support mental health.
Chris Moth is also running as a Democrat in District 8. A press release states that Moth opposes censorship and school privatization, wants to decrease standardized testing, and thinks school days should start later. Moth notes that he has endorsements from state Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville) and state Reps. Bob Freeman (D-Nashville), Mike Stewart (D-Nashville) and Bo Mitchell (D-Nashville), as well as from MNEA-PACE. Moth unsuccessfully ran for the state House of Representatives in 2014 and 2016.
Amy Pate is running independently. She works in sales for a construction company and was a member of the Let Parents Choose group that urged MNPS to reopen when the district closed schools due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Pate says she supports parent involvement and transparency.
