Chattanooga, Tenn. — Hamilton County is filling a vacant District 11 school board seat through a public town hall, open interviews and a late-October commission vote rather than a special election.
Commissioner Montrell Besley will convene neighbors at 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 19, at the Erlanger Park room at Lookouts Stadium. He wants applicants on stage so residents can hear goals for local campuses and pose questions before commissioners decide.
Jill Black left the board a few weeks ago after her husband took work in Canada. She had won the District 11 post as a Democrat in 2024. Schools in the zone include the Lookout Mountain elementary campus, Lookout Valley sites and Howard.
Anyone seeking the appointment must turn in a letter of interest and resume no later than 4 p.m. this Friday. Materials can be mailed, dropped off or emailed to Faith Fisher on the commission staff. Coverage said an idea to put the seat on the Nov. 3 ballot for District 11 voters stalled when Republican commissioners opposed it.
Candidate panels are set for the morning of Monday, Oct. 26, between 9 and 11 o clock in the commission chamber. The Education Committee will lead questioning, fellow commissioners are invited, and the county plans a YouTube livestream.
The full commission is set to appoint someone at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 28. Besley has asked people outside the district to pay attention because board members shape systemwide policy.
District 11 remains empty until that vote. Families in those school communities can size up contenders at Monday night forum, then watch the Oct. 26 interviews and the Oct. 28 appointment agenda.
Residents who want input can show up Oct. 19, follow the Oct. 26 panel in person or online, and track the Oct. 28 commission meeting when the appointment is scheduled.
Section: More Chattanooga TN politics news
