Miranda Christy
Miranda Christy was a candidate for District 5 representative on the Metropolitan Nashville Board of Education in Tennessee. The general election was held on August 4, 2016.[1] Christy lost the election.[2]
A candidate forum held in June 2016 highlighted the charter school debate in the district. Incumbents Will Pinkston, Amy Frogge, and Jill Speering refused to attend the event due to concerns that the organization hosting the forum promoted "unabated charter school growth." Only the candidates seeking the District 5 seat were able to face off at the event.[3]
Winners of the district's 2016 board of education election inherited a lawsuit against the state over education funding. In June 2016, the school board voted to approve the lawsuit, saying the state had not provided enough funding for the district's English language learners for the 2016-2017 school year.
Biography
Christy is the director and counsel for UBS Investment Bank. She previously worked as an attorney with Stites & Harbison. She is a big sister in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program and serves as a member of their Ambassadors Circle Leadership Program. Christy is also involved with the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce Education Committee, the Equal Education Opportunity Group (EEOG), the Nashville Classical Charter School, Crossroads Campus, Governor Bredesen’s Mentoring Initiative, and the Davidson County Foster Care Review Board. She previously served on the Charter School Application Review Committee for Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools. Christy earned a bachelor's degree in religion and philosophy from Kentucky Wesleyan College, a master's degree in theology from Vanderbilt Divinity School, and a J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law.[4]
Elections
2016
Five of the nine seats on the Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools Board of Education were up for by-district general election on August 4, 2016.[5] District 1 incumbent Sharon Dixon Gentry defeated challenger Janette Carter to win another term. In District 3, incumbent Jill Speering also won another term by defeating challenger Jane Grimes Meneely. Norman Merrifield originally filed to run for the District 3 seat, but he withdrew from the election. Christiane Buggs, Miranda Christy, Corey Gathings, and Erica Lanier ran for the District 5 seat, which was left open when board member Elissa Kim did not file to run for re-election. Buggs was elected to the seat. The District 7 race featured incumbent Will Pinkston and challenger Jackson Miller. Pinkston was re-elected to another term. District 9 incumbent Amy Frogge faced challenger Thom Druffel. She was also elected to another term.[1][6][2]
Results
| Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, District 5 General Election, 4-Year Term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Christiane Buggs |
58.27% | 2,812 |
| Miranda Christy | 27.31% | 1,318 |
| Corey Gathings | 7.09% | 342 |
| Erica Lanier | 7.02% | 339 |
| Write-in votes | 0.31% | 15 |
| Total Votes | 4,826 | |
| Source: Metro Government of Nashville & Davidson County Election Commission, "August 4 Election Results," accessed January 12, 2017 | ||
Funding
Christy reported $70,871.00 in contributions and $70,871.00 in expenditures to the Davidson County Election Commission, which left her campaign with a $0.00 balance in the election.[7]
Endorsements
Christy was endorsed by The Tennesseean, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce SuccessPAC, and the national education nonprofit organization Stand For Children.[8][9][10]
Campaign themes
2016
Christy highlighted the following statement on her campaign website:
| “ | I’m running for School Board because Nashville’s future rests on making sure every child, in every neighborhood, has access to a high-quality public education. I have spent the last decade advocating for kids, and I am deeply acquainted with the challenges our kids face inside and outside the classroom. In addition to my hands-on experience advocating for kids and their education, I bring a wealth of experience listening and responding to concerns, analyzing policy, participating in data-driven decision making, and solving problems creatively – but most importantly, my track record of community involvement reflects a strength of working with a team to act as one and get things done.
To improve our schools in Nashville we need to focus on what unites us as a community. With hard work, strong leadership, and smart decisions, together we can make a difference for our children’s futures. That’s why I’m asking for your vote on Election Day.[11] |
” |
| —Miranda Christy (2016)[12] | ||
About the district
The Metropolitan Nashville Public school district is located in Davidson County in central Tennessee. The county seat is Nashville. Davidson County was home to 678,889 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[13] The district was the second-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 82,806 students.[14]
Demographics
Davidson County outperformed Tennessee as a whole in terms of higher education achievement from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 36.5 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 24.4 percent of state residents. The median household income in Davidson County was $47,434, compared to $44,621 for the entire state. The poverty rate was 19.9 percent, compared to 18.3 percent statewide.[13]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Miranda Christy' 'Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, Tennessee
- Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools elections (2016)
External links
- Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook page
- Twitter page
- LinkedIn page
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Tennesseean, "Who's running for the Nashville school board?" April 7, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Metro Government of Nashville & Davidson County Election Commission, "August 4 Election Results (Unofficial)," accessed August 4, 2016
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedriseforum - ↑ Miranda Christy District 5 School Board, "About Miranda Christy," accessed May 19, 2016
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "Election Calendar 2016," accessed March 30, 2016
- ↑ Davidson County Election Commission, "County General Sample Ballot: August 4, 2016," accessed July 12, 2016
- ↑ Davidson County Election Commission, "Financial Disclosures," accessed November 29, 2016
- ↑ The Tennesseean, "Endorsements: Nashville school board election," July 11, 2016
- ↑ Nashville Scene, "Who Are the Players in Nashville's School Board Race?" June 17, 2016
- ↑ Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, "SuccessPAC endorses candidates for the Metropolitan Board of Public Education," July 1, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Miranda Christy District 5 School Board, "Miranda Christy for School Board District 5," accessed May 19, 2016
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 United States Census Bureau, "Davidson County, Tennessee," accessed April 11, 2016
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
- ↑ Tennessee Secretary of State, "Election Results," accessed June 26, 2014
