Allison Campbell

Allison Campbell is a member of the Marion County Public Schools school board in Florida, representing District 1. She assumed office on November 17, 2020. Her current term ends on November 21, 2028.

Campbell won re-election to the Marion County Public Schools school board to represent District 1 in Florida outright in the primary on August 20, 2024, after the general election was canceled.

Campbell completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Allison Campbell was born in Cleveland, Tennessee. She earned a high school diploma from Cleveland High School, a bachelor's degree from Lee University in 1998, a graduate degree from Regent University in 2001, and additional education from Regent University in 2023. Her career experience includes working as a public relations consultant.^[1]

Elections

2024

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1

Incumbent Allison Campbell won election outright against Beth McCall in the primary for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1 on August 20, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Allison Campbell (Nonpartisan)	52.7	29,844
	Beth McCall (Nonpartisan)	47.3	26,774

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 56,618
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Campbell received the following endorsements.

Ocala Marion County Association of Realtors

2020

General election

General election for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1

Allison Campbell defeated Lori Conrad in the general election for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Allison Campbell (Nonpartisan)	53.5	93,376
	Submit photo	Lori Conrad (Nonpartisan)	46.5	81,199

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 174,575
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1

Lori Conrad and Allison Campbell defeated Shelia Arnett in the primary for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1 on August 18, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Lori Conrad (Nonpartisan)	40.8	26,681
✔		Allison Campbell (Nonpartisan)	36.2	23,641
		Shelia Arnett (Nonpartisan)	23.0	15,045

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 65,367
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

Allison Campbell completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Campbell's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I made Ocala/Marion County my home when I was recruited to move here from southeast Tennessee. A young, single, professional woman, fresh out of graduate school, with a master’s degree in communication studies, I persuaded my fiancé to move here where Andy and I are raising our sons in Ocala.

I've worked in for-profit and nonprofit businesses, as well as building my own small public relations business. In my chosen profession I've earned and maintained the Accredited in Public Relations (APR) and the Certified Public Relations Counselor (CPRC) designations. Always a proponent for education and personal growth, I graduated with my Doctor of Strategic Communication degree in 2023.

As a wife and mother to three students enrolled in Marion County Public Schools (MCPS), I continue to provide unique and valuable perspectives to the Marion County School Board. With experience as a corporate executive and small business owner, I see MCPS from the perspective of our students’ future employers. As an adjunct professor for the College of Central Florida and Southeastern University, I appreciate the excellence produced by MCPS but also see gaps where students could be more prepared.

Voters in 2020 blessed me with the opportunity to effect change in MCPS. I made promises then to improve our schools. It's working, but we need to keep going! As a strong voice for taxpayers and families, with the focus of a parent, not a politician, I’m driven to work for you.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

I have vision for Accountability, because high expectations produce greater results. I have a voice for parents of current Marion County Public Schools' students. and will continue to ask the tough questions to ensure our students and families receive the best.
I have vision for Budgeting for Student Success, because funding should follow students. I have a voice for strong fiscal management, to ensure wise investment of the resources managed by the school board. It’s the school board's job to ensure teachers and students have what they need to be successful.
I have vision for Common Sense in Education, because our next generation deserves the best facilities, best instruction, and best decision makers leading our District. I have the voice for every Marion County voter who understands the education our children receive today will impact this community for generations to come.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Since becoming a school board member, my passion for education policy has only grown. Working directly with our legislators in Tallahassee to frame and shape legislation that's student-focused remains a top priority for me. It's imperative that we ensure parents have a strong voice and a seat at the table for their students' education. I'm grateful to be that voice for our community and board.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Florida school board members statutory responsibilities are policy and budget. Electing community citizens with strong backgrounds in both areas will lead to the most productive outcomes for the school district as we strive for the vision of "helping every student succeed."

What legacy would you like to leave?

My life's motto is to "effect change." I hope to have a meaningful impact on the jobs, offices, people, and students with whom I interact and that I will "effect change" everywhere I go.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

I remember being in the fourth grade and watching the Challenger explode while we watched in on television in my classroom. We didn't fully comprehend what had happened, and I remember our teachers turning off the TV and trying to maintain their composure amidst the tragedy.

What is your favorite book? Why?

The Bible. I use it as a guidebook for life and quote it often.

What is the primary job of a school board member in your view?

The school board frames the "what" for the school district, and the superintendent creates and manages the "how." Essentially, the board oversees all policy, codes of conduct, and rulemaking. We also oversee and approve the budget, staffing plans and ratios, job descriptions, and what the strategic plan and vision are for the district. The superintendent then follows the board's lead to create and manage the "how."

Who are your constituents?

As a public relations professional, I look to constituents like "target audiences." Therefore, you consider each audience and may work with each differently. Audiences include students, parents and families, future students, alumni, staff (including educators and non-educators, school-based and district), taxpaying citizens, other community citizens, elected officials and other governmental entities, and members of the media.

What existing district policies would you like to change, or what new policies would you like to implement?

As legislation changes, we continually tweak policy to align with state statute. As we implement new policies, we also see areas to improve language or move items from policy to procedure. That work continues, but I am looking forward to new policies coming soon including a voluntary chaplain policy.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Senator Dennis Baxley, Florida Senate President Pro Tempore

Faith and Freedom CoMission
Marion Education Association

North Central Florida AFL-CIO

How do you feel like your school district handled the coronavirus pandemic? What, if anything, would you do differently in the future?

Florida, in general, handled the pandemic better than other states. Voluntary masking should have been in place much sooner, as families made decisions they felt were best for their students. Mandatory masking became such a burden for classroom management.

Our board voted to provide bonuses to employees who received the COVID vaccine. I voted against that and would continue to vote against it. My hope is the full board would not have approved it in the future.

What are your preferred strategies for faculty, staff, and administration recruitment?

Recruitment involves narrative and storytelling. Working with the District to "sell" not only Marion County but also MCPS becomes a part of the story. There are so many good things happening, and this is a great community. I chose to live here as a single woman out of graduate school when I only knew three people in town. It's time to tell that story a little more loudly and broadly in the community, in the state, and outside of Florida.

What are your views on financial transparency and government accountability?

Both financial transparency and government accountability are essential to our representative democracy. Without transparency, there's no accountability. Without accountability, elected officials operate out of self-interest rather than citizen need and desire.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

2020

Allison Campbell did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

External links

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Candidate

Marion County Public Schools school board District 1

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 23, 2024

[1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 23, 2024

[1]

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Allison Campbell

Contents

Biography

Elections

2024

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1

Endorsements

2020

General election

General election for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Marion County Public Schools school board District 1

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

2020

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2025 Elections

2026 Elections

2024 Election analysis

Trending

Public Policy

Information for candidates

Get Engaged

Services

Additional analysis

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