John M. Davenport Jr.
John M. Davenport Jr. represented District 1 on the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Board of Education in North Carolina. He was first appointed to the board in 2011.[1] Davenport ran for one of three at-large seats in 2014 rather than seeking re-election to District 1. He ran against fellow Republican candidates Robert Barr and Mark Johnson and three Democratic candidates in the general election on November 4, 2014. John M. Davenport Jr. lost the general election on November 4, 2014.
Biography
Davenport graduated from East Forsyth High School. He earned his B.S. in civil engineering from North Carolina State University in 1991 and an M.S. in engineering from North Carolina A&T State University in 1998. He worked as a civil engineer for the North Carolina Department of Transportation before starting Davenport Transportation Consulting in 2002.[2][3][4]
Elections
2014
John M. Davenport Jr. and fellow Republican candidates Robert Barr and Mark Johnson faced Democratic candidates Elisabeth Motsinger, Katherine Fansler and German D. Garcia in the general election on November 4, 2014.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Elisabeth Motsinger Incumbent |
18.4% | 52,582 | |
| Republican | Robert Barr |
17.1% | 48,789 | |
| Republican | Mark Johnson |
16.9% | 48,418 | |
| Democratic | Katherine Fansler | 16.8% | 48,115 | |
| Republican | John M. Davenport Jr. Incumbent | 16.5% | 47,125 | |
| Democratic | German D. Garcia | 14.2% | 40,636 | |
| Total Votes | 285,665 | |||
| Source: North Carolina Board of Elections, "2014 General Election Results," accessed December 30, 2014 | ||||
Funding
Davenport had not reported any contributions or expenditures to the Forsyth County Board of Elections as of April 30, 2014.
Endorsements
Davenport was endorsed by the Winston-Salem Journal for the general election.[5]
Campaign themes
2014
Davenport provided the following answers to questions from the Forsyth Education Partnership:
Why do you want to serve on the Board of Education?
| “ | I love our community. I am Winston‐Salem and Forsyth County fan! A solid educational system is the foundation of a strong community. It is essential for economic development. I love kids. I have 5 of my own. My service on the Board extends that love to all of the kids in Forsyth County. I love education. I frequently mentor young people. I love to see them grow.[6] | ” |
| —Forsyth Education Partnership's Voter Guide for Winston‐Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education (2014)[4] | ||
What do you think is the most serious challenge to education in North Carolina and Forsyth County?
| “ | We must "win the battle for the third grade." Our students must be reading on grade level by 3rd grade. With limited resources, this is what we must be focusing on. This issue crosses the lines of race and ethnicity, and has major implications for the achievement gap and graduation rate ‐ as well as adult literacy.[6] | ” |
| —Forsyth Education Partnership's Voter Guide for Winston‐Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education (2014)[4] | ||
If you were asked to do an elevator speech 'selling' WSFCS, what would you say?
| “ | Our District is the only major urban school district in the State that offers the benefits of a Charter School in a public school setting. Our choice plan, while not perfect (and we will be focusing on that with this upcoming term) guarantees that no student is forced to attend a school that he or she does not want to. We have strong community partners and an engaged business community.[6] | ” |
| —Forsyth Education Partnership's Voter Guide for Winston‐Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education (2014)[4] | ||
With a high rate of teacher turnover in many WS/FC schools, what do you think the district can do to attract high quality teachers and keep them?
| “ | While we (School Board) do not have a direct influence on pay, we can certainly work to make working conditions favorable for our teachers. This means policies that minimize teacher frustration. Often, the implementation of "good ideas" becomes a burden for already stressed teachers. We need to support our teachers in the area of discipline. Too often our schools are the only place where some students get much needed guidance in this area. The teacher, within guidelines, needs to know that the District supports them. Finally, we must to a better job at promoting the great things our teachers are doing. Too often, the things people hear about our schools is negative. We use terms like "failing schools" too loosely. The teachers in these schools often work harder than others, but because they have a difficult demographic, they are not viewed as successful.[6] | ” |
| —Forsyth Education Partnership's Voter Guide for Winston‐Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education (2014)[4] | ||
Do you think North Carolina and Forsyth County have competitive teacher pay? Would you do anything to change our rank at 46th in the U.S., and if so, what?
| “ | We need to continue to advocate at the State level to change this issue. However, we must be willing to
be a partner in the solution, not just another voice that wants more at the expense of other agencies.[6] |
” |
| —Forsyth Education Partnership's Voter Guide for Winston‐Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education (2014)[4] | ||
While some schools and student groups perform very well within the WS/FC school system, there are striking gaps between White students and minority students and between economically disadvantaged students and those who grow up with access to more resources. Why do you think this is the case and what do you propose the district do differently to better serve these students?
| “ | This is a very complicated COMMUNITY issue which just happens to show up on the steps of the school house. At the district level, we must continue to adjust our system to a changing demographic. We need to be flexible and understand education in the future will look different than what most of us experienced when growing up. We must acknowledge as a community that one size does not fit all. We also must partner with other agencies (City, County, etc) as well as non profits (Church, United Way) to attack this problem at all levels.[6] | ” |
| —Forsyth Education Partnership's Voter Guide for Winston‐Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education (2014)[4] | ||
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "John + Davenport + Winston + Salem + Forsyth + County + Schools"
See also
- Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, North Carolina
- Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools elections (2014)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The Chronicle, "Davenport to run At-large," January 15, 2014
- ↑ LinkedIn, "John Davenport," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Davenport, "Meet John Davenport," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Forsyth Education Partnership, "Winston‐Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education Voter Guide," 2014
- ↑ The Winston-Salem Journal, "Endorsements 2014: WS/Forsyth school board races," October 21, 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
