Eddins, Catalano win third terms to Walton County School Board
Three incumbents were reelected to the Walton County School Board on Tuesday.
Board Chair William "Bill" Eddins Jr. and Jason Catalano both won third terms. Kim Kirby ran unopposed for the District 2 seat.
The election comes at a time when schools across the nation are having to find ways to address teacher and staff shortages. Parental involvement in schools has also been a key issue, along with decisions on which educational materials are appropriate.
Walton County Schools Superintendent Russel Hughes' decision to remove two dozen books deemed problematic by the Florida Citizens Alliance off school library shelves made headlines in May. The winning candidates all supported his decision.
Teacher, staff shortages: Okaloosa, Walton schools face 'unique challenges' in hiring teachers, bus drivers. Here's why.
Books pulled from library shelves: Walton schools pull 24 books deemed 'extremely age-inappropriate' and 'harmful' off shelves
District 3: Bill Eddins Jr.
With all 21 precincts reporting and 17,514 ballots counted, Eddins won the race for District 3 by almost 52%.
Eddins has been a resident of Walton County since 1989. He is employed by a management company for whom he works as a teacher and administrator in several Northwest Florida Charter schools.
Prior to going into education, Eddins owned Southern Exposure Insulation, a small Walton County business. He has twice been recognized for raising student achievement.
Eddins agreed with the superintendent's choice to remove 24 books from school libraries, and said he values parents' communication on those issues. He plans to look for affordable housing incentives for teachers.
His opponent, Gordon Porter, a project manager and commercial drone operator for BE-CI in Destin, ran on a platform against "threats of Critical Race Theory," mask mandates and the "far-left agenda," according to his website.
District 5: Jason Catalano
Catalano beat his opponent MH Carr by almost 52%, with all 21 precincts reporting and 17,514 ballots counted.
Aside from his board experience, Catalano brought his work in the county's Planning & Development Department as the Building Plans Review Manager to the table. He is also a certified floodplain manager and a state certified roofing contractor.
He ran on a platform of "proven leadership with conservative principles." Some of his listed accomplishments while on the board have been improving the budget and school ranking.
Based on the 2021-2022 Florida Standards Assessments results, the Walton County School District is ranked third out of 67 school districts. The school district ranked 10 or higher in 20 out of 21 state assessment categories.
Read more: Walton County District 5 School Board candidates answer questions on staff shortages, more
More about the race: Incumbent Eddins faces newcomer Porter for Walton District 3 school board seat
Catalano said he supported the superintendent's decision to remove books from the school libraries as a part of new requirements on reviewing and approving books. He promised to "continue to keep chaos out of our classrooms" if re-elected to the board.
"It was a close race, but I'm excited that the Walton County voters entrusted this responsibility to me again," Catalano said Tuesday night. "We have the goal of being No. 1 in the state, so this is just the opportunity to get there."
He faced a highly qualified and well-funded opponent. Carr retired from the Walton Education Foundation in 2021.
She had served as that nonprofit's executive director for six years, working to provide school and classroom grants and educational assistance to at-risk students through the county's Take Stock in Children program.
She boasted in campaign literature of increasing Walton Education Foundation funding by 781% in her time on the board. Her campaign motto was "You get out what you put in. If you want more, give more."
Her platform included clear communication from the school board, adding policies that would build Walton County's workforce, engaging with students, parents and teachers, and inspiring involvement from post-secondary schools, according to her website.
This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: Eddins, Catalano win third terms to Walton County School Board
