Meet the candidates running to represent Tucker on the DeKalb school board

Five candidates are running for the DeKalb County School Board to fill the District 4 seat left vacant by Allyson Gevertz, who is not running for reelection. These candidates, who represent schools in the Tucker and Lakeside clusters, will be on the ballot on May 19.   

Tracy Brisson, Alison Cundiff, Crew Heimer, Jamison Murphy, and Sonja Szubski are running for the position. Brisson is a DeKalb parent, former teacher, and veteran public administrator. Cundiff is a DeKalb resident, middle school teacher, and local union president. Heimer is a DeKalb parent, a former co-chair of the Briarlake Elementary PTA, and a licensed engineer. Murphy is a DeKalb parent and a science teacher in the Atlanta Public Schools system. Szubski is a DeKalb parent and communications professional for the City of Tucker.

Rough Draft reached out to each candidate with questions about what parents and children in District 4 most need, from transparency amid the DeKalb County School District’s Student Assignment Project to creative methods of student engagement. Election Day is May 19, and early voting begins April 27. Polling information can be found on the Secretary of State’s My Voter Page.

Quotes have been edited for grammar and clarity.

Related story: Tucker City Council voices concerns over proposed school closures

Q: What are the biggest problems facing students and families in District 4? How do you plan on addressing these issues? 

Tracy Brisson: The issues facing District 4 students stem from systemic problems affecting other students in our district: aging buildings, mismanagement of our capital spending program, an oversized central administration, and a lack of focus on academic performance and high standards for all.

The reality is that the SAP plan the district has proposed for District 4 schools lacks funding, let alone closing some of the highest-performing and replicable educational programs in the district. I hope the board votes on a SAP proposal with a narrower scope, focusing on district clusters with the longest unmet needs that the November ballot’s ESPLOST bill can fund. It will not go far.

One universally accepted sentiment from the SAP process is that everyone believes feeder clusters should stay together. In that case, I would ask community members in the Lakeside and Tucker clusters to collaborate on listing their needs regarding major upgrades, potential consolidations, educational investments, and missing programs for future funding. Also, the Lakeside & Tucker communities must be included in conversations about boundary adjustments that will take place when the Sequoyah schools open.

Alison Cundiff: Many District 4 buildings have facility problems. Old buildings that have exceeded their 50-year lifespan have not been maintained and are riddled with mold, toxic building materials, and other issues. DCSD appears to hope that parents won’t notice these problems, but letting kids and staff get sick is a morally bankrupt way to run a school system. My solution is to create a public maintenance dashboard that tracks operations at each facility and commit to a robust program of renovation and maintenance.

School choice, which was a well intentioned but clumsy solution to unequal academic opportunity, has deepened a webwork of inequity throughout the district by concentrating resources in schools now scheduled for disruption by the SAP. We need to bring committees of stakeholders together to decide how to wean ourselves off this unhelpful system.

Additionally, the district’s top-down SAP implementation leaves no room for our families to provide meaningful input on these dramatic changes. Instead of proactively and authentically reaching out to discuss the SAP, the district treats parents and families like children. 

At Lakeside HS, parents were practically pitted against HPM reps and DCSD principals who had no ability (or in HPM’s case, no desire) to answer valid questions. Because previous Boards of Education bucked responsibility for over a decade for the problems SAP is meant to solve, and this board chose to chuck the problem at a consulting company, we are here today. I will deal with problems as they come, regardless of whether it helps my election chances. We take on this job to do it, not put it off.

Crew Heimer: I think the biggest challenge we face is that the world has changed. There are many distractions that make it hard for kids to focus on learning. Compare that with my childhood, when the bookmobile arriving in town and checking out a new book was the event of the week.

One example of “good intentions” problems is system standardization to aid in measuring rules compliance. We need to focus on learning goals rather than redetermined curriculum… The second challenge we face is a flawed SAP process which attempts to merge two conflicting goals. The first goal of the SAP, to close some schools, is excellent, albeit unfortunately five-years overdue. It is impeded by the second, and flawed SAP goal, which is to reconfigure elementary education into supersized schools. The school system adopted large elementary school metrics years ago, but the SAP process has forced those contradictions to the forefront.  

The SAP proposes closing some of the best functioning schools – because the existing sites are too small for future super schools – while adding capacity at recipient schools in North DeKalb to accommodate the moved students. Why are we proposing to build school seats during a process designed to reduce seats? 

…The advantage of 500-student elementary schools is the connectivity between teachers, staff, students, and parents. When my kids went to elementary school, the two front-office staff knew everything going on in that school and could quickly resolve any issues through those contacts. Double the size and that connectivity is dramatically reduced, as is responsiveness.

Jamison Murphy: The biggest challenges facing students and families in District 4 are declining trust in leadership, inconsistent academic outcomes, and aging school facilities that no longer meet the needs of our community. Families are also frustrated by decisions that feel disconnected from their input—especially when it comes to school closures, redistricting, and long-term planning.

I will address these issues by focusing on three priorities: First, restoring accountability at every level so decisions are made in the best interest of students—not convenience. Second, ensuring our schools are safe, modern, and conducive to learning by making responsible use of ESPLOST and other funding. Third, strengthening communication and engagement so families are part of the process—not reacting to it after the fact.

Sonja Szubski: The current conversations seem to be solely centering on the proposed SAP recommendations. I believe the intent of this proposal is correct that something must be done to turn the tide of dwindling enrollment, distrust of the board and leadership while also serving our students in the best way. The goal is correct, but the mark has been missed. I encourage the board to vote to pause this process, focus on hiring a permanent superintendent and allow the next board to reevaluate the process.

But there is much more to student success and the hurdles some must overcome. Some would say it is access to special programs, others would say it is access to choices, and others would say access to food and shelter. I say it is equitable access to it all, basic human rights, diverse programming across the board, and quality teachers and administrators. I believe this is possible by electing and hiring the highest quality leaders. The power of the school district is in the parents and families that choose to send their children to our public schools. When they trust the leadership they will engage and invest in their schools, enabling the teachers and administrators to flourish.

Q: Many parents have expressed concerns about transparency during the SAP process and the hiring of former superintendent Devon Horton. How will you maintain transparency and build trust with constituents if elected?

TB: I commit to following both the letter and the spirit of the open meeting law and conducting the district’s business in front of the public. I am committed to hiring a permanent, ethical, well-qualified superintendent who embraces the role of a hands-on executive. I publicly opposed Dr. Horton’s hiring in 2023 and emailed the board accordingly. I opposed the hire based on his public track record in Illinois and the controversy surrounding the three contracts ultimately included in the indictment. The SAP Process was started by Dr. Horton and was not designed to have anyone truly in charge. This has allowed a construction company to play a large role in the project, which is why it feels less transparent to the public. As a board member, I would have voiced my objections to the process’s design when it was proposed.

AC: First, it’s important to understand the votes of some of our Board of Education members. A conversation with one of them suggested a key problem: lack of experience. Allegedly, Horton convinced Board of Education members that the first federal investigation against him was racially and politically motivated and shouldn’t reflect on him as a candidate. Any experienced board director can tell you that hiring anyone with even a whiff of investigation is like putting a time bomb under your own chair: you are setting yourself, and everyone who depends on you, up for disaster!

I am experienced enough to understand that my duties to students and taxpayers come first, and to hell with anyone’s assumptions about why I fulfill them. I have reported concerns about unethical employees in the past and was validated when one was brought up for fraud and another for failure to perform duties. 

…The factors leading up to the SAP process should have been handled a decade ago, but ultimately, cowardly board members wanted to get re-elected, and told people what they wanted to hear. Now here we are. The most basic thing that DCSD should begin with is authentically including families as key decision-makers in deciding what academic programming will be available at their schools, since that is why people moved to District 4 (and other districts) in the first place. For example, we have the opportunity to house distinct merit or lottery-based conservatory, IB, and DLI programs within larger schools that have more available resources, as other Metro Atlanta districts have done.

CH: I went to the Lakeside SAP presentation. It was well-presented and well-communicated. So well-presented that it appears to be a sales pitch and hence the fear, real or not, that [parents] will not be heard. The SAP response to concerns about closing Oak Grove Elementary illustrates why the school district response seems predetermined to parents even when the schools think they are listening. SAP offered an alternative to be considered that rather than close, they would use Oak Grove for grades K-3 (and do the same in a neighboring school) with Briarlake Elementary then taking grades 4-5 from both schools – thus obviating closure. SAP failed to explain to the neighborhoods why disrupting, dividing, and rearranging three well performing schools, yet not closing any would be an advantage over the existing structure. 

…I believe in full transparency with two exceptions that are traditional in all government: discussions about personnel and potential real estate value negotiations. In my 12 years with the State of Georgia, I learned that it is important to not just avoid conflicts of interest, but any possible interpretation that could be construed as a conflict of interest.

JM: Trust has been damaged, and rebuilding it starts with consistent, honest communication—not just during moments of crisis. The SAP process made many families feel unheard, and that cannot continue. Transparency means more than sharing information—it means engaging the community early, often, and meaningfully. I will advocate for clear timelines, open data, and opportunities for real input before decisions are made.

When it comes to leadership decisions, the standard must be higher. Dr. Horton should not have been included in the candidate pool while there were still unresolved investigations that had not been fully cleared prior to his transition into this role. That decision raised valid concerns in the community and contributed to a loss of confidence. Moving forward, I believe the hiring of a superintendent must include meaningful input from both the state and community stakeholders, because their constituents are directly impacted by the leadership of our school system. This process must be transparent, thorough, and reflective of the community’s expectations.

SS:  I will be accessible to my district parents and students in a variety of ways. I have learned that a best practice is to not go back and forth in the comments of social media. If a person asks a question that can benefit the larger audience then I make a separate post. If it is a personal issue then I will contact them directly. I will make sure to keep the district informed on upcoming agenda items, progress on major projects, celebrations of accomplishment and any smaller items of interest. Initially, my platform will be on socials but if there is an interest in a newsletter then I will create one. I plan on having monthly meetups throughout the district. Additionally, about half the district already has my personal email address and cell phone number.

Related story: Parents demand student-first approach to school districting

Q: What do students in your district need to thrive?

TB: Our students need a board and superintendent that focuses their time, attention, and resources on what works well in the district and serves students the best. We need a student-centered redistricting plan that preserves our best programs and expands and replicates them in other areas of the district. I believe we need to create a task force to research how to improve our middle-grade and middle school education grades where the district loses an incredible number of students to private options. I also believe we need mandatory unstructured breaks in middle school and better working conditions for middle school teachers. I would also like the board and district to consider recommendations for Chromebook use and be more transparent about student privacy policies for the software it purchases. 

AC: The most urgent need is a board willing to hold DCSD accountable for wasting resources and retaining Operations directors who consistently screw up ESPLOST projects so badly that some vendors now charge a 20-30% “DeKalb fee” for working with DCSD. In the long term, all students need access to high-quality academic programming and safe, accessible facilities. We must also meaningfully include students with disabilities in all emergency and day-to-day operational planning – in the event of fire, a student in a wheelchair on the second floor should not have to wait by the staircase for someone to find and carry them! We can only accomplish this by committing, as board members, to putting student interests before our own. This is such a simple idea, yet board member candidates who do not see these problems from the classroom view will never be able to conceive of classroom realities. 

Board members without Georgia teaching experience will not understand the severity of issues that crop up in a non-collective bargaining state. And ultimately, a board member without Georgia classroom experience has no idea how to be anything but a naive puppet of district executives. These executives tend to favor the status quo because it ensures they are well-paid without needing to make changes.

CH: Engagement. Caring parents and creative teachers. And where there are gaps in that engagement, we need to find ways to fill those gaps. One simple example: a key marker of learning success is parents reading to kids. If parents do not read to their kids, we need to find time for kids to be read to and the volunteers or staff for reading.

JM: Students in District 4 need safe, well-maintained schools, strong and supported teachers, and access to consistent, high-quality academic programs. They also need stability. Constant uncertainty—whether from potential school closures, redistricting, or leadership turnover—disrupts learning and creates unnecessary stress for families.

Beyond that, students need to feel valued and supported as individuals. That means investing in both academic excellence and whole-child development, including mental health resources and extracurricular opportunities. Ultimately, thriving students come from thriving schools—and thriving schools require leadership that makes sound decisions, uses resources responsibly, and builds a culture of trust with families and educators.

SS: I believe that students need equitable access to resources to thrive in school. It starts with trust and filters down to smart budgeting to provide for smaller class sizes, and adaptable teaching methods. I have heard from several teachers that a common root issue is behavior issues in the classroom. I would like to see a larger budget for development that includes substitute teachers. Investing in our teachers is investing in our students.