Chattanooga 2.0 will host three final school board debates this week, in the Hamilton County districts with contested county school board elections.
The debates will be live-streamed at 7pm each evening with recordings and coverage afterward by the Chattanooga Times Free Press, and Local 3 News. The debate schedule for the remaining districts is as follows with candidates listed in ballot order:
- July 19 — District 3: Joe Smith (R) and Jenn Piroth (D)
- July 20 — District 5: Charles Paty (R) and Karitsa Mosley Jones (D)
- July 21 — District 6: Jon Baker (R) and Ben Connor (D)
Last week, candidates in district 8, along with candidates in the two new districts, 10 and 11, met virtually to debate topics relevant to public education such as school funding, bullying, book banning and curriculum, school safety, educational equity, and more.
“Chattanooga 2.0 was born out of a recognition that strong educational outcomes, birth through career, are essential to our community’s economic growth and progress and require community-wide commitment and action,” said Keri Randolph, executive director of Chattanooga 2.0. “We believe that strong leadership, at all levels of the educational system, is necessary to our success as a community, and we recognize just how important these races are during today’s challenging times and into the future.”
To view the recordings of last week’s debates or tune in to the remaining live debates this week, visit www.chatt2.org/vote. On the page, residents can check their voting district, and view links to check their voter registration status, candidate campaign pages, sample ballots, and election deadlines.
Early voting is now through July 30 and election day is Aug 4. The final day to request an absentee ballot if residents cannot vote in person is July 28.