Press Release
The Charleston Coalition for Kids, an organization dedicated to the improvement of public education in Charleston County School District (CCSD), has released the list of school board candidates they will support in the upcoming election.
After seeking responses from their candidate questionnaire and evaluating the views and experiences of those in each race, the Charleston Coalition for Kids has chosen to endorse the following eight candidates:
- District 1: Keith Grybowski, Director of Education, Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum
- District 2: Grace Cowan, Founder and Board Chair of Birthday Buds
- District 3: Ashley Peele, Vice President of Alliance for Full Acceptance
- District 4: Courtney Waters, Vice Chair of the CCSD School Board
- District 6: Eric Thome, Director of VentureSouth Charleston
- District 7: Jen Mieras, Former Chair of Orange Grove Charter School
- District 8: Dr. Helen Davis Frazier, Board Member of the CCSD School Board
- District 9: Graham Smith, Board Member of Charleston Digital Corridor
“We believe these candidates represent a renewed energy and passion for quality education in Charleston County,” said Dustin Daniels, Executive Director of Charleston Coalition for kids. “Each candidate is deeply invested in empowering great teachers and principals and ensuring excellent public schools for every family regardless of their zip code.”
The questionnaire, which was released to all candidates last month, sought information to identify individuals that align with the organization's mission to spark real and lasting change in the community and demand positive improvement and success for all schools and students.
For the first time in a generation, all school board members are up for election at the same time, and this new board's first major decision will be the selection of a new Superintendent. The Charleston Coalition for Kids will now work to advocate and educate local voters about the importance of the upcoming election on November 8th, and the opportunity for Charleston to seize educational change in unprecedented ways.
Before the Coalition's inception in 2018, on average less than 50% of Charleston voters participated in school board races. Since that time, that number has climbed to over 70%; a testament to the ongoing work to increase the awareness and the importance of the CCSD school board on issues that impact the children of the community.
Charleston County residents are encouraged to vote in the upcoming election on November 8. To register to vote, learn your polling location, or learn how to support your local candidates, visit scvotes.gov. To learn more about the Charleston Coalition for Kids, visit chskids.org
About Charleston Coalition for Kids
The Charleston Coalition for Kids is an organization of parents, educators, policymakers, and community advocates joined together to demand and support the positive improvement and success of all schools and students in Charleston County. The organization’s mission is to spark real and lasting change in our community—through measurable and transparent improvement of schools and by bringing more opportunities to all students. The work of the coalition focuses on rallying the community around the need for School Board Members that are urgently focused on ensuring excellent public schools for every family.
