Kelly Sheppard, candidate for the Anson County School Board, speaks before an engaged crowd
Lauren Monica | Anson Record
ANSON — The Anson County Chamber of Commerce hosted their fourth annual Politics after Dark to give community members a chance to hear where candidates for the school board stand on issues the county is facing.
“Our goal for tonight is to create a respectful and positive environment for these candidates to share and create an opportunity for these constituents to interact with and ask questions of their potential representatives,” said Caty Edwards, current vice chair of the Anson County Chamber of Commerce.
Candidates running for the Anson County School Board include Talesha Ray Sunshine, Kayesha Nivens, Kelly Sheppard, as well as returning board members Carol Gibson of District 7 and Frank Liles, who is running unopposed for District 6.
School board hopefuls largely focused on improving the district’s academic scores and their commitment to recruiting and retaining quality educators. Many shared past experiences of being an educator or having children in the school system, feeling these qualities provide a unique and fresh perspective on the direction the district should go.
Running for District 1, Kelly Sheppard says she wants to focus on retaining and recruiting qualified teachers to the district. As a parent with three children in the school system, Sheppard said she feels very discouraged by the district remaining on the low performing list of North Carolina schools and the county’s lack of opportunities for students within the district to get involved in the arts and recreational activities.
“I continue to dream of an Anson County School system where parents of East Union and Stanley want their kids to attend school in our district. I don’t want any parent to feel like a neighboring county or other schools provide a better tomorrow than what we can provide,” said Sheppard, who added she feels this can be accomplished by community support, utilizing federally funded grants and working within the confinements of the budget to introduce art and music back into the curriculum. “Now is the time to make critical changes and put our school system in the path of improvement … I have the fire in my heart to best serve this community,” she said.
Kayesha Nivens is running against Sheppard for District 1 of the school board. A life-long native of Ansonville, Nivens has three children enrolled in the Anson County School system and coached soccer for 11 years with the local parks and recreation department. She is also the current Anson Middle School PTO president.
“I am very well versed in the school system … I believe together we can create an environment where every student has an opportunity to thrive. I have seen the incredible potential in your students,” said Nivens, who volunteers every Friday at the middle school. “I also see the cares and the challenges that they do have in the school system.”
Nivens said she hopes to focus on three core objectives should she be elected to the board: collaboration, mental health of students and bullying. Nivens said she feels a combination of building strong partnerships in the community, with parents, as well as providing support and resources for school counselors, will improve school culture district-wide. Bullying, she said, is an issue dear to her heart, after watching one of her children be bullied and the impact it had on her child. Recognizing bullying affects children mentally, physically and emotionally, Nivens said she is hopeful addressing bullying early and providing school counselors’ support at the school board level will aid in accomplishing all of her core goals for the district.
“I am very passionate about the future of our school system and our students. I believe that with collaboration, with a commitment and focus on mental health, and a dedication to end bullying I really feel like we can put our students where they need to be,” Nivens said.
Talesha Ray Sunshine Heilig is running for District 3 of the school board and is a former educator and the mother of a student enrolled at Lilesville Elementary School. Heilig credits her grandmother, another former educator, with instilling in her the passion and drive to teach. Reflecting on growing up and seeing her grandmother’s former students run to her in excitement when they saw her outside of school, Heilig said she feels she understands the unique bond teachers share with their students. Heilig says she experienced this same bond when she followed in her grandmother’s footsteps, becoming an educator with students of her own to teach.
“I am a former teacher and have experienced classrooms first hand and how the intricacies of the relationship between the administration, the teachers, and the students can influence an entire culture of the school. I plan to bring some fresh perspectives to the Anson County School Board,” Heilig said.
A Lilesville native, Heilig attended college at NC State.
“Since I moved back, I feel God has been ushering me into opportunities,” said Heilig, who said she feels one such opportunity is running for the Anson County School Board. One focus of Heilig’s is for students to learn cursive writing. She said she was shocked to see it removed from the curriculum, more so when she was told the reason was the school does not have enough time to teach cursive writing. She stated she is looking to establish after-school cursive writing lessons.
“My question is how [students] are going to legally sign their contracts, checks,” said Heilig, who added she enjoyed learning cursive when she was a student and still loves writing in cursive today. “My vision is to bring innovation to the Anson County School Board and my focus is on supporting the schools and creating some bold individuals that fuse into prosperous classrooms. I believe the school board should be proactive in problem solving and care about the students’ welfare. My plan is to stick with my morals and values to achieve that. Remember your vote could be a decision that possibly changes the direction of our schools.”
Another former educator, Brandon Smith is also running for District 3. A product of Anson County Schools, Smith plans to serve with integrity and honor if elected. He said he hopes to focus on curriculum reform, retaining and recruiting qualified teachers and parental rights.
“It is our duty to educate our students, not indoctrinate them. Therefore, I would oppose any courses that encompass critical race theory ideologies. Meanwhile, I will support the following; literacy, arithmetic, and CTE to ensure our students are being equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to be deemed responsible and productive citizens,” Smith said.
When it comes to employee recruitment, Smith said he feels the Anson School District can have the best curriculum in the state but without qualified personnel to teach students, then it does Anson schools no good. In order to recruit and retain educators, if elected, Smith said he would offer incentives in the form of attendance, performance and sign on bonuses for personnel.
“Parents and guardians know what is best for their children. Therefore, their voices should not be ignored, which is why I am going to advocate for district-wide school choice for kindergarten through sixth grade,” Smith said.
Frank Liles, who is running unopposed for District 6, is the current vice chair of the Anson County School Board. A teacher for 24 years in Richmond County, Liles says he is passionate about education and loves being involved with the school system. His goal is to continue working towards providing students a quality education.
“Everyone is somebody,” Liles said.
Running again for the District 7 seat, Carol Gibson said she wants to continue on the school board facilitating projects she has been working on to fruition, such as the new Anson Middle School.
Gibson said she strives to see Anson County Schools removed from the low performance list and is working to ensure every classroom is taught by a qualified, licensed educator. She reminded constituents with the aid of State Representative Mark Brody, the board has implemented a teacher’s aide to teacher continuing education program within the schools.
“If you have a good TA in the classroom, then they are right here with that teacher and already have a head start,” Gibson said.
