In the Loop
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BOE Picks Antwon Stephens as New Member
Photo Credit: photo via Twitter
A 23-year-old political consultant will serve out the year as the District 2 representative on the Clarke County Board of Education, other board members decided Thursday. A majority of the BOE selected Antwon Stephens from among five applicants to replace Frances Berry, who resigned in December.
In a speech to the school board at its Jan. 16 meeting, Stephens said he is concerned about the school-to-prison pipeline. He called Vernon Payne—who held the East Athens seat for decades before illness forced him to resign—a mentor. “I’m tried, I’m tested, and I’m ready to serve,” he said.
Stephens is perhaps best known as a potential candidate for Athens-Clarke County mayor in 2018, although in the end he opted not to run because of health problems. He also made headlines in 2013, when he ran for chairman of the Democratic Party of Georgia as a 17-year-old and faced charges of not paying speakers at a tea party conference he organized. Despite not being old enough to serve in Congress, he has been running as a Democrat against U.S. Rep. Doug Collins (R-Gainesville).
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Wallace Announces Bid to Retake House Seat
Watkinsville Democrat Jonathan Wallace will try to retake the seat he lost in 2018 to Rep. Marcus Wiedower (R-Watkinsville).
Wallace won the GOP-held District 119 seat in a 2017 special election, defeating three Republicans, including Wiedower, with 57% of the vote. He was helped by a sales tax referendum that drove turnout in heavily Democratic Clarke County, but with higher turnout in heavily Republican Oconee County the following year, Wiedower beat Wallace 53–47.
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Hospital and Medical Office on Prince Will Be Renovated
Piedmont Athens Regional and the medical office across the street will both look different soon.
Owner Richard L. Thompson of Atlanta-based StructSured is renovating the medical office at 1270 Prince Ave. The building will receive a new white facade that will blend in with the medical office under construction where the landmark bar Allen’s used to be, as well as interior improvements, Thompson said. “Hopefully it will enhance the area, make it more attractive to the eye,” he told Flagpole.
The building currently houses Piedmont QuickCare, Athens Women’s Clinic and several other practices. They are all staying, and an additional 1,900 square-foot suite will be available for lease once renovations are complete, according to Thompson.
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Mokah Johnson Officially Announces State House Run
Local educator and civil rights activist Mokah Jasmine Johnson will formally kick off her campaign for the Georgia House of Representatives later this month.
Johnson has been exploring a run against Rep. Houston Gaines (R-Athens) since August. She will make it official at a City Hall rally Jan. 18.
“Over the past few months, I have listened to the people of our district and worked to understand the issues that are most important to working families,” Johnson said in a news release. “I believe it’s time we bring bold progress and fearless leadership to the State House from District 117.”
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The Best and Worst Athens Politics Stories of 2019
Here are top five best and worst things that happened in Athens government in 2019, courtesy of the Athens Politics Nerd.
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John Knox Won't Run for Re-Election to BOE
Clarke County Board of Education member John Knox won't run for re-election this year, he recently announced.
The UGA geography professor posted a message on his Facebook page Dec. 21 stating that his growing academic duties do not allow him enough time to devote to serving on the school board.
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Accreditation Agency Will Conduct 'Special Review' of CCSD
School accreditation agency Cognia will conduct a "special review" of the Clarke County School District in response to complaints that board members attempted to micromanage and undermine the authority of former superintendent Demond Means.
Cognia—formerly known as the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and AdvancED before recently merging with another education nonprofit—informed CCSD of the special review in a letter dated Dec. 16.
Unknown parties filed complaints with Cognia in August, and Means wrote a letter to the company in September inviting it to investigate the allegations. SInce then, more unknown parties have come forward with similar complaints, according to Chief Certification Officer Annette Bohling.
Among Means' allegations:
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Both Athens Congressmen Vote Against Impeachment
Rep. Doug Collins (R-Gainesville)
It should come as no surprise, given that both are Republicans, but Athens congressmen Jody Hice and Doug Collins voted Wednesday night against impeaching President Donald Trump, although they were defeated by a Democratic majority, so the GOP-controlled Senate will now quickly dispense of the charges hold a trial on whether Trump should be removed from office.
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