CARROLLTON – Carroll County’s contested races in Tuesday’s general election include one for the county’s school board and one for its election commission.
The Beat 3 school board race has three candidates. Incumbent Ben Shute is running for his second full term. He has served five years, including two as board president.
Shute, 61, said he thinks the district has improved during his tenure.
“We’ve reduced the dropout rate overall,” he said. “The rating of the school has come up. We built a band hall and have started on a field house. We haven’t raised taxes.”
Shute said he wants to see continued improvement in the dropout rate and test scores.
He said he represents the people of Beat 3 rather than the superintendent. “I talk to them all the time and get feedback, most of it positive,” he said.
Shute is a retired bank examiner for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and has a degree in accounting from Mississippi State University. He works now as a consultant for BancSolutions LLC, a subsidiary of Jones Walker Law Firm.
Daniel Vest, 31, is also running for the Beat 3 spot. Vest has three children in the public school system, and he and his wife, the former Bridgette Wiggins, are both graduates of J.Z. George High School. He believes his personal experience with the system will enable him to have a direct interest in its improvement.
Vest works at Greenwood Utilities and serves as youth director at Hillview Baptist Church.
“I have a great interest in young people,” he said. “Since my children are in school, I want to be more involved in the system. I know money is tight and the economy is tough, but we’ve got to think first of the kids. They need a voice on the board.”
The third candidate is Marvin Dwayne Coward, 49, who works as an operations manager. He is married to the former Theresa Braswell, and they have a 23-year-old daughter.
Coward earned an associate’s degree from Mississippi Delta Community College. He says he wants to work for the students and watch over budgeting.
“I want to be part of furthering education for the students on Carroll County, as well as watch how the school board budget affects the tax base,” he said.
Two election commissioner slots are up for grabs. In Beat 5, newly appointed Christy Noah faces James Stovall. Although April S. Neill is running unopposed in Beat 1, voters may write in candidates if they wish. Due to the death of Donnie Perkins after the qualifying deadline, write-ins will be counted, in accordance with state law.
