MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. — This November, Mecklenburg County voters overwhelming cast their ballot for change on the Charlotte Mecklenburg School Board.
Three incumbent board members lost their seats as a result.
Tuesday night, those who won took their place on the school board with two other newly elected board members -- and one returning incumbent.
There were many cries and words of goodbye as CMS Board Members bid farewell to their seats on the dais.
"Margaret Marshall you are the heart of this board, you are the heart of it. You are the center of it," CMS Board Chair Elyse Dashew in one of her goodbye speeches to outgoing board members said.
The new members are Melissa Easley, representing District 1; Gregory “Dee” Rankin, representing District 3; Sneed; Lisa Cline, representing District 5; and Summer Nunn, representing District 6. Thelma Byers-Bailey, who represents District 2, was re-elected to a third term.
The five new members on the board have dubbed themselves the fresh five and bring a new voting bloc to the board that flexed its influence Tuesday.
Byers-Bailey was replaced by newcomer Stephanie Sneed as the board vice chair. The new board members also showed solidarity and a sign of cooperation going forward voting board chair Elyse Dashew to the post again.
"I am over the moon excited to work with Ms.Sneed as vice chair slash co-chair, sort of like copilots in this work," Dashew said.
It was notable that Sneed was nominated for the post by Lenora Sanders-Shipp, an at-large board member not up for reelection this year. Dashew was nominated for her post by Easley, a new board member. Both Sneed and Dashew received unanimous votes for their positions an outward show of unanimity and cooperation of the new board.
The new board members also sent a message of moving quickly and impactfully to lead the district in the new direction voters are asking for.
"I'm data-driven -- I'm a systems thinker, but I'm also equity-centered," Rankin said in his first board member report. "In every decision that we make, I hope we can make sure we keep equity at the center of all our decisions."
How the fresh five will impact the board going forward will likely flesh itself out during the upcoming superintendent search. These new members will serve a three-year term ending in December 2025.
Contact Shamarria Morrison at smorrison@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.