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Sandra Jackson Lett elected Rockdale County school board chair after roll call
Summary
At a Rockdale County Board of Education work session, Sandra Jackson Lett won the board chair election by roll call after nominations and discussion; several members abstained or voted no during the roll call.
Sandra Jackson Lett was elected chair of the Rockdale County Board of Education at the board's work session after a roll-call vote of board members.
Nominations opened for chair with superintendent Dr. Terry Oates presiding. Board members nominated Sandra Jackson Lett and incumbent Pamela J. Brown. Pamela J. Brown declined the nomination, saying, "I want to not accept the nomination at this time." The board then proceeded with a roll-call vote on the sole remaining nominee, Sandra Jackson Lett.
During the roll call, several individual votes were recorded aloud: Board member Heather Duncan said, "That's a no for me." Board member Pamela J. Brown stated, "I abstain from my vote today." At least one board member voiced a yes: "It's a yes for me." Following the roll call, the board announced that Sandra Jackson Lett "has received the majority of the vote and is elected the new board chair." The meeting was then turned over to Chair Jackson Lett to preside over selection of the vice chair.
The board held a separate roll-call election for vice chair immediately afterward. Janie Jones was nominated and, after the roll call, "has received a majority to vote and is elected the new board vice chair." During that roll call, Akita Palmer announced, "I abstain."
The board did not take other formal actions tied to the chair vote during that item. The chair and vice chair elections followed the board's nomination and roll-call procedures; the board subsequently continued with the evening agenda.
The new leadership takes over at the start of the board's calendar year. The session included public comment, superintendent and cabinet reports, and a presentation on the budget process that the board discussed later in the meeting.
(For the record: roll-call tallies were conducted by oral roll call during the meeting. The transcript includes named individual votes (Pamela J. Brown: "I abstain from my vote today."; Heather Duncan: "That's a no for me.") and at least one explicit yes. The full roll-call record as announced in the meeting was summarized by the board as a majority in favor of Sandra Jackson Lett and a majority in favor of Janie Jones for vice chair.)
