Debbie Gunnoe

Debbie Gunnoe

Education

Bachelor's

Indiana University

Graduate

Webster University

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Air Force

Personal

Profession

Community activist

Contact

Personal website

Debbie Gunnoe was a candidate for the District 3 seat on the Santa Rosa County School Board in Florida. She faced Carol Boston, Fuchsia Ann Spann and Jim R. Taylor in the general election on August 26, 2014. Gunnoe did not advance to the runoff election.

Biography

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Gunnoe earned a B.A. in forensic studies from Indiana University. She later received an M.A. in management from Webster University. Gunnoe retired at the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force after 28 years of service. She is the founder of Navarre Patriots and lobbies against Common Core standards in Florida.

Elections

2014

See also: Santa Rosa County School District elections (2014)

The August 26, 2014, general election in Santa Rosa County featured three seats up for election. Diane L. Scott defeated a challenge from Sandra Nicely in District 1. Carol Boston, Debbie Gunnoe, Fuchsia Ann Spann and Jim R. Taylor were running to replace Diane Coleman, who did not file for re-election in District 3. Taylor and Boston advanced to the runoff election. Scott Thomas Peden won re-election without opposition in District 5.

The general election determined if candidates for each seat could garner a majority of the vote total. Because no candidate received 50 percent plus one of the general election votes in District 3, the top two vote recipients advanced to the runoff election on November 4, 2014.

Results

Santa Rosa County School District, District 3 General Election, 4-year term, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Nonpartisan	Jim R. Taylor	33.6%	5,565
	Nonpartisan	Carol Boston	31.7%	5,249
	Nonpartisan	Debbie Gunnoe	27.2%	4,509
	Nonpartisan	Fuchsia Ann Spann	7.6%	1,252
Total Votes				16,575
Source: Santa Rosa County Supervisor of Elections, "2014 Primary Election Official Results," accessed October 14, 2014

Funding

Gunnoe reported $3,275 in contributions and $2,840.08 in expenditures to the Santa Rosa County Supervisor of Elections, as of July 21, 2014.

Endorsements

Gunnoe received an endorsement from the Personhood Florida ProLife PAC.

Campaign themes

2014

Gunnoe outlined her campaign themes in an email to Ballotpedia:

“	Education belongs in the control of parents and the local community. The Federal Government and the US Department of Education have overstepped their bounds; they have no Constitutional foundation for directing standards, curriculum or testing in Florida. We must return to what fueled an American industrial revolution and placed man on the moon, a system that worked...American classical curriculum. Educational Goals: - Bring parents back to school and in control - Stop Common Core (now Florida Standards) - Stop standardized tests--let teachers teach - Parental textbook review - Ensure best education possible for all Santa Rosa County students My Stand On Common Core and Standardized Tests - Our children are NOT common...they are precious individuals who deserve the best education possible - Reduces the public education system into an ineffective one-size-fits-all program - Not taught how to think but instead what to think - Common core is just the most recent name of something that has been around for decades...Outcome Based Education - Purpose of outcome based education is to modify children's behavior to produce compliant, unquestioning workforce widgets for the labor market...craftily written to appeal to the ill-informed and legislators - Common Core (renamed Florida Standards) has been promoted as THE solution to our education system's problems...the system was never broken, and even if it was, no elementary or secondary teachers were ever consulted in formulating a solution - Teachers are mandated what they will teach and how they will teach it...tests, textbooks and worksheets are Common Core compliant, thus the curriculum must be as well - Textbooks are convoluted and confusing concepts that were previously well taught by teachers in clear ways and at developmentally appropriate times - Standardized tests used to determine the success of the standards are a burden on teachers, reducing the time they have educating their students...need the freedom to teach as they see best, not as mandated by out-of-touch legislators or corporations, or the US Department of Education - Child psychologists have shown introducing children to concepts and testing for which their minds are not prepared is detrimental to their development...testing children at too young an age may negatively impact their learning experience and comprehension - Teacher merit pay or retention should never be tied to standardized test results...their merit is their ability to convey knowledge to students, and they must be evaluated on that ability alone School was never about preparing kids for college or work, back in my day (and some might consider me ld...) it was about preparing kids to succeed in LIFE! We were taught truthful history so we wouldn't repeat the mistakes, we were taught civics so we knew about our government and how WE THE PEOPLE were supposed to be in charge, we were taught the basics so we could research what we needed to know beyond the basics, we were taught how to communicate in all media so we could remain part of humanity, we were taught how to live in a micro-society (schools) so we didn't grow up and become sociopaths or narcissists, and we were taught morals and ethics and respect for others. And we were taught just how exceptional it was to be born in America and not some other God-forsaken country. It wasn't just about college and jobs...	”
—Debbie Gunnoe email (2014)

Gunnoe's campaign website also listed her answers to questions asked by the Navarre Press:

“	What is your opinion on the use of corporal punishment in Santa Rosa County schools? Corporal punishment should be part of a range of disciplines available for school leadership to maintain control; however, it should be a last resort. Not all children respond to verbal reprimands or “time out,” yet to spank a child who has never been spanked could make things worse. Thus parents must be able to “opt out,” and if so, be on call to pick up their child if deemed necessary. It should be administered by assistant principles, and never done out of frustration or anger. Administrators are entrusted with children’s lives, why shouldn’t they be entrusted to discipline them appropriately? The State of Florida announced a replacement for FCAT. What is your opinion on the change? Far too complex for a 100-word answer… It will still be based upon the copyrighted Common Core Standards, absurdly renamed Florida Standards. Pam Stewart chose American Institutes in Research (AIR) to direct the assessment. AIR, a nonprofit behavioral and social engineering organization, uses statistics and psychometrics to complete psychological profiling and guide behavior modification. It also promotes acceptance of “LGBTQI2-S” lifestyles in schools. School is about education, not behavior modification; testing is to determine what has been learned, not to determine merit pay or retention. Today’s standardized testing must be discontinued so teachers can get back to educating. Who really is determining what your children are taught? How would you recommend making our schools safer for students, teachers and administrators (your answer may or may not include additional firearms in schools)? Although essential, physical safety cannot be guaranteed. Since the 1990 “gun-free school zone” act, schools are easy targets for people intent on committing violent acts. Classroom security systems, like steel doors and secondary exits so kids can get out another way, are sensible front line protections. But to overcome an attacker, there must be qualified personnel immediately available and equipped to protect all in the school with equal or greater force. With strict training and qualification, school employees should be able to exercise their right to protect life. House Bill 753 and companion Senate Bill 968 are a good start. A deputy today arrested a 16-year-old Navarre High School student who took a loaded pistol to school. Parents were notified via an automated call and email from High School Principal Brian Noack about 5 hours after the event happened. Deputy on the scene at 9 am and left at about 10:15 am. Notification provided to parents at about 3 pm. When an emergency situation happens at school (like the student taking the gun to Navarre High School 4/17), how do you think should parents should be notified and how soon after the incident happens and the property is secured? Parents need immediate notification of an emergency situation in their children’s school by any means possible, to include phone calls and emails, and definitely not hours later. Walton County is now considering moving from an elected superintendent to one hired by the school board. Do you believe having an elected superintendent or one hired by the school board is better and why? We should never give up an elected position, as we lose our ability to hire and fire that public official. Further, if the selection of the superintendent is left to the school board, it could turn into a “good ol’ boy” system. Floridians lost the ability to elect the state commissioner and board of education. We now have no control over the choices they make for Florida's schools, robbing the districts of local control. As a result, they inappropriately forced common core and data mining of private information upon students without their parents’ understanding and agreement. The Governor recently signed SB 864 bill that gives parents a chance to object to textbooks used at public schools. The bill was inspired by ongoing criticisms about the state's transition to new standards as well as a dispute in Volusia County over a textbook that some parents wanted pulled because of complaints that it offered a pro-Islamic worldview. What role do you believe parents should have in determining textbooks used in public schools? Parents should have a very active role in determining which textbooks are used to educate their children. I support local textbook selection committees of which parents are indispensable members. Unfortunately most textbooks are now Common Core compliant and some publishers are progressive leaning, increasing the complaints of biased, inaccurate and confusing textbooks and materials. Since 2011, school districts have been selecting textbooks from the Florida Department of Education’s approved list, instead of determining for themselves which are best. We need to return to local and parental control of our children’s education. Santa Rosa County students again were tops in the region (Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton) in the most recent FCAT results by the state. What factors do you believe contribute to our students’ success? First, we have great teachers; second, a high percentage of military families. But many variables impact results…demographics, home life, parental involvement, preparedness, stress, confidence, technology failures and others over which teachers and districts have no control. Even with good results, the FCAT doesn’t always reflect how well the students are educated. Too frequently honor roll students fail the FCAT and are penalized with retention or remedial programs. And standardized tests are inappropriate for young children who are not developmentally ready. High-stakes tests should be eliminated and replaced with tests that cover what the students have been taught throughout each year. What do you believe is the most important issue facing Santa Rosa County schools and why? We must stop the implementation of the mandated Common Core, rebranded Florida Standards. One-size-fits-all education does not account for individual learning needs; teachers are micro-managed. Concepts are imposed upon the youngest before they are developmentally ready; plus the standards are so lacking in higher grades, calculus and aspects of algebra had to be added. Students and parents are confused and frustrated, discouraging creativity and diminishing the desire to learn. I network with parents and teachers, attend state school board meetings and battle the legislature in order to eliminate Common Core. Put parents and teachers back in control, let teachers teach. School start times in the Navarre area vary widely with Holley Navarre Primary and Holley Navarre Intermediate having the earliest start times at 7:30 a.m. In contrast, Navarre High School students begin classes at 9:15 a.m. Some parents have suggested that the start time is too early for young children with some having to catch the school bus as early as 6:15 a.m. Do you think the school start times should be modified to allow younger children to begin classes later in the morning and why? There are no easy answers. Greatly varied start times were set to save vital dollars by using fewer buses. Later times promote improved learning and attendance for older students. However, for younger students, the very early start times decrease quality sleep and time with parents, both critical to their education. Scheduled times for younger students put them on the buses before most parents leave for work, but create safety issues when it’s dark and cold. Later start times for elementary students should be constantly re-evaluated to find the best solutions, providing optimal learning environments in their formative years. Salaries of school board members in Florida is based on a formula that relies heavily on the county’s population. The current school board salary in Santa Rosa County is $33,800. Do you believe the salary is adequate based on the position’s responsibility and should school board member’s salaries vary from county to county based on population? Please explain your answer. Absolutely, the salary is more than adequate for a part-time job. Per the National School Boards Association, 75% of small-district board members earn nothing and 25% earn less than $5000 per year. In large districts most receive salaries—per year, 22% receive $10,000 or more and 8% receive $15,000. The greater issue though is the pension earned with just 8 years vested service. Being a retired USAF officer, I served 20 years before I could even contemplate retirement, and teachers have been relegated to 401(k)’s. A life-long retirement for just 8 years in office is ridiculous and should be eliminated.	”
—Debbie Gunnoe's campaign website (2014)

Recent news

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Debbie Gunnoe News Feed

See also

• Santa Rosa County School District, Florida
• Santa Rosa County School District elections (2014)

External links

Suggest a link

• Santa Rosa County School District
• Campaign website