Lori Conrad, Joseph Suranni compete for District 2 seat on Marion County school board
Veteran school teacher Lori McKnight Conrad and veteran elementary school dean Joseph Suranni will square off in the Aug. 23 primary for Marion County School Board in District 2, a seat that is being vacated.
The winner will replace Don Browning, 79, who was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in August 2021. Browning, who was cleared of creating a hostile work environment, announced in June that he was retiring to spend more time with family.
Browning was selected to replace Beth McCall, who won in 2016 and was unopposed in 2020. She left office in 2021 after she moved out of the district she represented. The winner will be decided in the Aug. 23 primary.
Local election guide: Here's what Marion County voters need to know
Because the appointment of Browning came more than 20 months before the 2024 election cycle, this is a special election in 2022. The winner of this race will have to run again in 2024.
School Board races are nonpartisan and elections are countywide, but members must live within the district they represent. Board members serve four-year terms and make an annual salary of $42,627, an amount set by the state.
It is the second time in two years that Conrad has run for a board seat. In 2020, Conrad sought to represent District 1. Vice Chairwoman Allison Campbell narrowly defeated Conrad in the general election, capturing 53.39% of the vote.
Conrad, 51, a 27-year veteran teacher, was in the news a lot during her 2020 campaign after she discovered that her home was a few blocks outside District 1. She moved to a family barn apartment in District 1 during the election.
This time, Conrad and her husband purchased a home on Lake Weir. Conrad said she and her husband are empty nesters and decided to move from their Ocala home to a smaller home in Ocklawaha, which is in District 2.
Conrad believes her years of teaching and the fact she grew up in Marion County shows her dedication to Marion County Public Schools. Conrad graduated form Forest High School in 1989.
"I feel like my longevity here in Marion County makes me the best candidate," Conrad noted. "I've been to Marion County Public Schools. My children have been through Marion County schools. I went to CF (College of Central Florida). We also have a small business that just celebrated its 50th anniversary in Ocala."
Conrad announcement: Teacher Lori Conrad to run for Marion school board member Don Browning's District 2 seat
Suranni announcement: Marion County School Board: Joseph Suranni to run for seat now held by Don Browning
Whose running: State qualifying ends: Marion school board incumbents King, Browning not running in 2022
Meanwhile, Suranni says his multi-faceted education experience as a teacher, assistant principal and dean, coupled with his master's degree in business, makes him the most qualified candidate for the job.
"I feel like I'm the superior candidate," said Suranni, who has worked on the curriculum side of the house as assistant principal and dean. "I'm able to look at curriculum (and school finance) a little differently, with a little more breadth and depth. I also think people should vote for me because I have the educational qualifications."
Candidates on the campaign trail
In political fundraising, Conrad leads with $32,200, including $20,000 of her own money and $12,200 from 26 donors. Suranni has $1,800, all in personal funds.
Conrad and Suranni were interviewed by the Star-Banner for 30 minutes each to discuss educational issues. They were asked about the district and how it has been on a downward slide for more than a decade.
Back in 2005-06, during the first Florida school district ranking by SchoolDigger.com, Marion County ranked 31st of the state's 67 counties, after two lab school districts were removed from the tally.
By 2011-12, the district was ranked 44th. By 2015-16, the ranking slipped to 56th and by 2019-20 it slid to 60th. Under Marion's first appointed Superintendent of Schools Diane Gullett, the district is now 59th.
On the campaign trail, many of the candidates for school board have shared that they should to be elected to right a sinking ship. But it has taken more than a decade for the decline and some say it will take time for it to rise back up.
They were asked about ways to increase parent involvement in a technology-driven era and how to make sure that students are progressing now that state testing has been replaced with progress monitoring.
Here is a synopsis of the comments made by those candidates, who are listed in alphabetical order.
Lori Conrad
Conrad believes that constant changes in curriculum over the years, especially after former school superintendent Jim Yancey retired in 2012, has in part led to the declining state ranking.
The last two elected school superintendents George Tomyn (2012-16) and Heidi Maier (2016-20) both enacted their own curriculum. Gullett has gradually changed her approach and is leading the district in a positive way, Conrad said.
"I heard she is a very smart woman and she makes good educational decisions," Conrad said. "I admire her and I appreciate that her first year (2020-21) she didn't come in and upset the whole apple cart."
Conrad also said the district is still feeling the effects of COVID-19. Conrad believes that boosting attendance, focusing on teacher retention and addressing veteran teacher pay will help right the ship.
"I basically see it in attendance," Conrad noted. "So kids are still going home with a headache and their parents can still keep them out for 21 days or 14 days, and we really don't have any way of forcing them back to school."
Once COVID-19 is no longer a way for students to miss school, "we have to tackle the district's attendance and truancy policy." She said the district needs to begin following the code of conduct and seek out more certified teachers.
Conrad said she is pleased the state Florida Standards Assessment exams are now going away and will be replaced with three state progress monitoring tests given by the state at the beginning, middle and end of the year.
"I think there's a lot of value for progress monitoring,' Conrad said. "Where's the student when they come in? Where is the student middle of the year? And where do they end up? They may not be on grade level, but I can (as a teacher) show a year's worth of growth. And so that's beneficial."
In recent years, mainly due to the 1 mill tax for operations, the district has greatly expanded vocational opportunities. And Conrad believes that the district should not step off the gas.
"We are headed in the right direction," she said. "The district has added programs because we were basically down to nothing as far as vocational education. But I do feel like there's room to grow."
Another topic that many candidates have been discussing is parent involvement.
"COVID put a big damper on parent involvement," she said. "We have get back into rejuvenating programs for parents to attend. We need to let parents know they are welcome at our schools."
Conrad noted the district has a great volunteer program, whereby "parents would read with struggling readers or help with basic math." Conrad added, however, that technology has led to more parents getting involved away from school.
"I think Marion County does a really great job of communicating what's going on," said Conrad of the district's automated phone calls, texts and interactive website.
Conrad earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Saint Leo University in 1991 and since has earned early childhood K-3 and media specialist certifications. Conrad was a Golden Apple Teacher of the Year finalist in 2012.
"I feel like that I am very much in touch with the needs of our students and getting them to high school graduation," she said. "I have been in the classroom for 27 years and I can give that prospective on the school board."
Joseph Suranni
Suranni, currently a dean at Belleview-Santos Elementary School, touts his array of experience and education for why he is the best person to fill Brownings' shoes. He believes Gullett is working hard to move the district up a tall ladder.
Suranni said "we're coming back to a new school year, so we're starting to see some of the things that the superintendent is putting in place."
"I've had a chance to look at some of the programs that we're going to use," he noted. "I think what she has put together for K-5 is a very robust group of interventions to help these children get back on grade level."
Suranni said he brings to the table an understanding of curriculum.
"I have worked as a supervisor of curriculum at a school," he noted. "So when the superintendent brings forth these programs, I am able to understand them immediately. I am able to determine if purchasing these programs is the best bang for our buck."
Suranni also agrees that moving to progress monitoring testing is best for students. He said FAST will be given to students soon after students start back to school on Aug. 10. He said "progress monitoring three times per year" will be beneficial.
When it comes to parent involvement, he says it is time to get parents involved in their child's education. Surrani said he works in a position where he sees firsthand the impacts of parent involvement, or lack there of, on schools.
"I think parents want to be involved," he said. "I think that we enable them by putting so much out there on the internet. We have a website, our teachers have a texting app and they can just real quick send a text to the parent."
He wants principals and teachers making phone calls to parents regularly. Surrani believes direct communication, and even in-person conferences, are a must to get a student on track.
"The art of communication is getting lost," he said.
Surrani also believes that the district and the Ocala/Marion County Chamber & Economic Partnership are working well together. Surrani said the district has done a great job setting up some of the vocational programs.
"College isn't for every child, " he said, adding the district just needs to continue making sure programs are relevant to the workforce. "We need plumbers and electricians just as bad as we need accountants and doctors."
In closing, Surrani said "people should vote for me because I have the educational qualifications." He pointed to his master's degree in education from Saint Leo in 2007 and his master's degree in business from Webster University in 2005.
"I was raised in the Jesuit tradition, religiously and philosophically," he said. "I'm a conservative, so I think that that coupled with the advanced degrees that I have, both in education and in finance, I think I am the best candidate."
Joe Callahan can be reached at (352) 817-1750 or at joe.callahan@starbanner.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoeOcalaNews.
About the job
School Board candidates in District 2 are non-partisan. They must live in District 2, though voters across the county can vote. Board members earn $42,627 annually, a salary set by the state. The winner will be decided at Aug. 23 primary.
Lori Conrad
Age: 51
Residence: Ocala
Experience: Teacher for 27 years; she teaches second grade at Dr. N.H. Jones; Golden Apple Teacher of the Year finalist in 2012.
Education: Bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Saint Leo University in 1991; earned early childhood K-3 and media specialist certifications.
Family: Married to husband, Tom, for 31 years; two adult children.
Learn more: Go to Lori Conrad for District 2 page on Facebook.
Joseph Suranni
Age: 49
Residence: Belleview
Experience: 16 years in education, first as an exceptional student education teacher at Howard Middle School, and then as assistant principal/dean at Shady Hill, Reddick-Collier and Belleview-Santos elementary schools.
Education: Suranni earned an education specialist degree (EdS) from Saint Leo University in 2009. An EdS degree is an advanced degree for teachers who want to specialize in a particular area, such as leadership, education technology or early childhood.
He earned his master's degree from Saint Leo in 2007, a master's degree in business from Webster University in 2005, and a bachelor's degree from Canisius College (Buffalo, New York) in 2002.
Family: Married for 20 years to wife, Carolyn; His daughter is a senior high school and his son is in college.
Learn more: For more information, go to Suranni's campaign website.
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: Lori Conrad, Joseph Suranni compete for Marion County school board
