Meet the Manatee County School Board candidates seeking change

The Manatee County School Board has undergone years of upheaval.

Since 2018, the district has had four superintendents, including one interim leader, while grappling with turnover, politically-charged debates over education, and ongoing challenges retaining teachers in a state ranked last in the nation for teacher pay. The district also has faced a string of educator misconduct allegations over the last two years.

Now, as voters prepare for the Aug. 18 primary, two of the nonpartisan board’s five seats are on the ballot.

Incumbent Cindy Spray faces four challengers in District 2 — Sharon Jefferson, JT White, Margi Nanney and James Golden — while District 5 is an open race following Richard Tatem’s decision not to seek another term. Candidates Camden Bedinghaus, Chantal Wilford and Jonathan Mullis are competing to fill his seat.

Incumbent Wesley Choate III faces no challengers in District 4.

Suncoast Searchlight invited every candidate to discuss the district’s biggest challenges, their priorities if elected and the experience they would bring to the board. Six of the eight candidates agreed to interviews. Spray declined because of a family emergency, and Golden did not respond to multiple interview requests.

Responses from those who participated, along with publicly available information, including campaign websites, revealed broad agreement on many of the district’s most pressing needs — particularly boosting student literacy and academic achievement, as well as supporting teachers — but different ideas about where the board should focus its efforts and how those goals should be achieved.

Candidates with 50% of the vote in the August primary will win outright. Otherwise, the top two candidates in each race will advance to a runoff in November. 

From supporting teachers amid a student population boom to finding new strategies to elevate the county to an “A” ranking, here’s a snapshot of what each candidate hopes to accomplish if elected.

JT White, District 2

White said he is ready to turn back the clock on a modern classroom staple: technology.

Though he said technology can be a useful learning tool, White said he believes the district has become too reliant on software that costs taxpayers money without improving literacy or academic performance.

“There is an overreliance of the technology in our education system, and it needs to be stopped,” White said. “These pieces of technology really don’t help any of the literacy rates or proficiency or comprehension. [Students] skim through things and don’t read things all the way.”

White, who grew up in Manatee County, has worked in several roles in the school district, including as a computer technician at Rogers Garden-Bullock Elementary and an Emotional Behavioral Disorders unit specialist at Palmetto Elementary. 

If elected, White said he wants to be visible in the community, spending time listening to parents and teachers outside school board meetings. He said the current board has become disconnected from those it represents and believes more direct engagement would lead to better decisions.

White has raised more than $3,000 in campaign contributions.

Margi Nanney, District 2

Similar to White, Nanney also believes there’s an overreliance of technology in the classroom. But the 72-year-old retired mother of two has a different approach: use technology as a supplemental tool and lift up trade schools that give students hands-on experience.

By supporting trade schools, Nanney said the district can put students on the career path they want before it’s too late.

“We need to make a correction and try to really understand how we can get to students to make sure that they become productive members of our society,” Nanney said. “Some students are going to become doctors, and some are going to fix your car, and both are equally as important.”

Nanney’s own career path is extensive. She’s served on the boards of the Manatee Chamber of Commerce, Manatee Economic Development Council, United Way, Salvation Army and Keep Manatee Beautiful. Nanney also served as the head of the district’s communications department and has worked as a teacher, paraprofessional and elementary graduation enhancement technician.

As school boards become more politicized, Nanney said she doesn’t believe politics should influence the classroom or her nonpartisan role on the board. However, she doesn’t shy away from expressing her personal beliefs. On Nanney’s campaign website, she describes herself as a “conservative Christian mother.”

If elected, Nanney said she wants to listen to parents and vote in the best interest of the community.

“I would not be a rubber stamp,” Nanney said. “I don’t want to be labeled into a certain group. I am who I am, and so I would vote with my heart, but I’d be well informed, and I would be able to back up my vote with facts.”

Nanney has raised more than $14,000 in campaign contributions. 

Sharon Jefferson, District 2

Jefferson, who’s been an educator in Manatee County for over 26 years and currently teaches social studies at Sugg Middle School, said she wants to support students and families by addressing the root problems.

Jefferson said she wants to improve teacher retention and support students’ mental and emotional needs in Title I schools, or schools that receive federal funding to support low-income students. Jefferson has worked primarily in Title I schools during her career, and said her reason for entering the race is because of “that particular demographic I’ve always served.”

“Our students in these economically disadvantaged schools have other needs that some of the schools in other districts may not have,” Jefferson said. “They could be social, emotional, physical…there are so many different factors that go into understanding why students are not performing.”

If the district wants an “A” grade, Jefferson said it starts with supporting Title I schools — which are most commonly found in District 2 — and their students so there are no educational gaps.

Jefferson said her versatile experience means she can navigate the appropriate systems to get work done. She served as the education chair for Manatee County NAACP and has developed tight-knit relationships with organizations including United Way and Manatee Chamber of Commerce.

Jefferson has raised more than $3,000 in campaign contributions.

James T. Golden, District 2

Golden did not return Suncoast Searchlight’s multiple requests for an interview. 

Golden is a former Manatee County School Board member, who cites his decades of community involvement and public service on his website.

A native Floridian, Golden has been active in the Manatee County community for more than 33 years. He was elected to the school board in 2018, served as chair in 2022 and has worked as a substitute teacher across all grade levels in Manatee County Public Schools. 

Golden’s campaign website does not outline a detailed policy platform or specific goals if elected. Instead, it emphasizes his experience in education, community leadership and public service. 

His record on the school board includes supporting master board training through the Florida School Boards Association and expanding opportunities for public comment during school board meetings.

During his time on the school board, Golden also supported a long-term improvement plan for the district, backed the renewal of the school capital millage, committed resources to improving third grade reading proficiency and supported expanding STEM education to STEAM by incorporating arts into the curriculum. 

Golden has raised more than $3,000 in campaign contributions.

Cindy Spray, District 2

Spray, an incumbent on the board, declined an interview with Suncoast Searchlight, citing a family emergency. Her campaign website highlights her focus as a school board member on “putting students first” by increasing resources in classrooms, supporting teachers and strengthening the district’s transportation department. 

Elected in 2022, Spray has advocated for additional security measures in schools and helped implement the “Safety Over Secrets” program, which encourages students to anonymously report potential safety concerns to school leaders.

Spray said she supports school choice and voted to extend funding from the voter-approved one-mill referendum to charter schools.

She has also promoted partnerships with community organizations to expand opportunities for students, including supporting Soar in 4’s efforts to establish a learning lab at the Tillman campus and backing the Taggart Family Foundation’s character and academic development program at Lincoln Middle School.

Spray has raised more than $26,000 in campaign contributions.

Camden Bedinghaus, District 5

Bedinghaus isn’t that far removed from the school district he wants to lead. 

The 23-year-old said his age is what makes him the best fit for the job, since he understands how the modern school system works through the eyes of a student.

He’s the director of the Turning Point USA Manatee County Hub and works as an independent journalist with Coastal Conservative News.

Bedinghaus said his “CAM Plan” — common sense academics, accountability and transparency and mastery of real-world skills — will address literacy issues, improve district communication with parents, and strengthen students’ understanding of practical topics like financial literacy.

Bedinghaus said he wants to declare a “reading emergency” on day one if elected, which would open the door to prioritizing new programs and funding.

He also wants to create a portal where parents can view classroom lesson plans to stay in the loop on what their child is learning.

“We can keep doing the same things, and we’ll keep getting the same results, or we can try something new and bring a fresh perspective to the board, a new generation of leadership from someone who’s been through this system and knows the flaws and struggles of this generation,” Bedinghaus said.

Bedinghaus has raised more than $5,800 in campaign contributions.

Chantal Wilford, District 5

Wilford said a representative with classroom experience is what District 5 needs — something her opponents can’t claim.

She serves as a substitute teacher in the county and taught English in Paris for a couple of years.

Wilford is also on the League of Women Voters’ Education Issues Action Team and has distributed books through the Lakewood Ranch Little Free Library Club.

Improving student performance and well-being is a priority for Wilford, especially when it comes to literacy engagement.

“We have so many people who complain about literacy levels in our schools, and at the same time, they try to take more books out of the schools and the libraries,” Wilford said. “It’s important to get more books in there, and for kids to read from paper books, not just their tablets.”

Wilford said she thinks the county can do better at retaining teachers by offering veteran educators better pay and supporting programs that help paraprofessionals become certified teachers.

Wilford has raised nearly $4,000 in campaign contributions.

Jonathan Mullis, District 5

Mullis said the county can do better in setting up younger and low-income students for success.

He said each student needs to have a plan after graduation, but there could be more opportunities to help prepare them. Mullis said he wants to expand vocational and technical programs.

Mullis also said students need more real-world exposure. 

Mullis, a physical therapist, said he allows anyone to come in and shadow him at the practice he owns to understand if that job is for them. He said that approach should be used in schools, giving students more opportunities for hands-on work.

Mullis said he recognizes the district is facing staffing shortages. He said he’d explore ways to get a volunteer program underway to provide more support in schools. Retired community members or those who want to get involved could tutor and mentor students to fill in the gaps created by a lack of staff and resources.

“Every hospital runs on volunteers,” Mullis said. “Why can’t we get hundreds, if not more, volunteers to work in the school system?”

Mullis has raised more than $25,000 in campaign contributions.

Clinton Engelberger is a contributor for Suncoast Searchlight. Email Clinton at clintonengelberger@gmail.com.

This story is part of a statewide partnership of 27 nonpartisan newsrooms and universities working to help Florida voters make informed decisions in the 2026 school board elections. Learn more about the Florida Elections Reporting Partnership at floridaelections.org (http://floridaelections.org/).