By T. Scott Boatright
The only three candidate election for Lincoln Parish School Board member is for the District 3 seat and features incumbent Clark Canterbury running against Paul Bean and Gloria Miller.
Canterbury was appointed in March to fill out the unexpired term of David Gullatt following Gullatt’s arrest the previous week on numerous charges, including obscenity and possession of methamphetamine.
A Simsboro cattle and chicken farmer, Canterbury said his mission is to do his part to keep the Lincoln Parish School system as strong as he feels it is.
“I’ve enjoyed being a school board member and have learned a lot in my short time serving on the board,” Canterbury said.
Canterbury said having three children currently attending Lincoln Parish Schools is one of the driving forces behind his decision to run again.
“I want to do everything I can to serve the community and help the school system continue operating at the high level it currently does. We’re at a good spot in Lincoln Parish. Everything seems to be doing good so I just want to do my part to keep it that way.”
Canterbury said he realizes his role is serving the voters of parents of schoolchildren living in District 3.
“I’m always open to listen to what people have to say,” Canterbury said. “I just want to continue being a part of serving one of the best school systems in the state and keep things moving forward.”
The recently retired Miller spent 21 years serving as a librarian and computer science teacher in the Lincoln Parish Schools system and said her passion for working with and teaching children led her to decide to make a run for the District 3 seat.
Miller started her career at Ruston Junior High School before moving on to teach at Choudrant High School for 18 years before spending her final three years in the classroom at Ruston Elementary before retiring in May.
“Running for the School Board is something that I’ve always wanted to do,” Miller said. “It’s always been in the back of my mind. We live in Simsboro, my husband and I have been here for 11 years now, and when the opportunity arose after the incident last spring with Dr. Gullatt’s situation, I realized that now is my opportunity to do what I’m passionate about, which is trying to help all children to succeed and be the best they can be.”
“So I dove right into it. I retired one day and made the decision to run the next day.”
Miller said raising three children into successful adults here in Lincoln Parish while serving as an educator herself has helped her realize that communication between parents and teachers as well as the school system itself is a big key for success and one that she would like to help improve on.
“We need to collaborate about our children — parents and teachers and the school board and schools,” Miller said. “Each child is unique and sometimes it takes unique thinking to reach them and give them the proper tools for success — sometimes different settings and teaching strategies are required.
“And we have to reach them at a young age, before any bad learning habits set in that will make it harder for them to overcome as they get older.”
That’s not saying Miller has any kind of drastic changes in mind.
“This school system is one of the best in the state and I do know that,” Miller said. “Teachers here do a wonderful job. I’ve seen a lot of improvement in my lifetime. I’m not coming in to change or stir up anything, but add to what the school board and Lincoln Parish schools already have.”
Bean is in his sixth year as assistant principal at Downsville Community Charter School and 28th year in education, and has three children who have received their educations at Lincoln Parish Schools.
“I’ve been a principal, I’ve been a teacher, I’m an assistant principal now and I’ve been an adjunct professor,” Bean said. “In the mid-1990s into the 2000s I worked at what was called Willamette at the time before being bought out by Weyerheauser as an education consultant for around eight years. So I’ve always been in education.
“We’ve been in Lincoln Parish since 2002, so the only home my two youngest children know is the house we moved into in Vienna in 2004. All three of my children graduated from Ruston High School, so needless to say education, especially in Lincoln Parish, is very important in my household.”
Bean said that he knows what a strong school system Lincoln Parish has but that he does see some things that can be improved on.
“I’ve got some concerns with some things in Lincoln Parish, like teacher retention seems to be a little problematic,” Bean said. “The hiring process, too. The Lincoln Parish School Board is not under the auspices of the state health benefits. And that causes some issues with experienced teachers coming into the parish, and I’m afraid that’s going to hit harder and harder as years go by.
“Something needs to be done to rectify that situation. From what I understand they’ve tried to get back under the Office of Group Benefits previously. That’s what I understand — I don’t know that for sure. We live in a place where we have two very good universities right there in your backyard. It shouldn’t be hard to hire talented, experienced teachers.”
Bean said his concerns aren’t about casting any dispersions.
“I just feel like I’ve been around this process for 28 years — most of my adult life,” Bean said. “I have been to many school board meetings, whether as a teacher, an administrator or as a parent. If you’re going to be a good school board member, you’re going to have to put in time and you have to put in real effort.
“And I’m not saying the current members there don’t — that’s not what I’m saying. But I do think that because of my experience I might have a better perspective than some would concerning what that might entail.”
