2009 ALL-STATE SCHOOL BOARD NAMED

BIRMINGHAM – (December 2009) – Distinguished service has earned Steve Freeman of Cullman County, Dr. John Hinton of Tuscaloosa County and Karen Phillips of Oxford the Alabama Association of School Boards’ highest honor. They were honored with a plaque and special recognition during AASB’s Dec. 3-5 convention at The Wynfrey Hotel in Birmingham.

“These school board members exemplify the highest standards this award sets,” said AASB President Florence Bellamy of Phenix City, who was installed at the annual convention. “They are excellent school board members committed to doing the job well and serving the interests of all students in their communities and across Alabama.”

The All-State School Board Recognition Program, now in its 18th year, commends a select group of past or present school board members across the state who have exhibited exemplary boardmanship. All-State candidates are nominated by their fellow board members and judged by a panel of distinguished former school board members. Winners are proven education/community leaders and activists who are committed to ethical standards and have a rapport with local officials.

This year’s winners have actively participated in AASB’s School Board Member Academy, an ongoing school for school board members that features four achievement levels. Credit hours are earned by attending training in eight key areas: roles and responsibilities; policy and planning; financial accountability; the optimal learning environment; academic achievement; staff development; board meetings and school law; and community engagement.

Steve Freeman

Freeman has attended 30 AASB conferences, earned 75 academy hours and reached the third academy level. In addition, he is former chairman of the Alabama Risk Management for Schools Board of Trustees and served as a delegate to AASB’s annual business meeting. He has also participated on AASB committees and has moderated an AASB convention clinic.

Freeman has been a school board member since 1997 and is in his fourth term on the Cullman County school board. He has been both president and vice president of his board. Freeman has represented his school board on a variety of committees dealing with such issues as school calendar, capital plans, budget/finance, board policy and technology.  He is very active in education and community circles – from serving on task forces, assisting with a school reading program, presenting student/youth awards and speaking engagements to accompanying students on field trips and participating in school clean-up days and community fund-raisers. He is senior vice president for Peoples Bank of North Alabama and is a deacon, Sunday school teacher and minister of music at Bethlehem West Baptist Church in Cullman.

Freeman is a persistent advocate and has joined local and state officials in efforts to support and increase educational opportunities for students. Nominees say Freeman was instrumental in successfully lobbying elected officials for financial help when a local school was damaged and another destroyed by arson. They also point to Freeman’s role in convincing the county commission and local legislative delegation to increase county sales tax to help fund Cullman County’s school system. A half-cent sales tax will be on the primary ballot in June 2010.

 “Steve Freeman has consciously and deliberately executed decisions that have a lasting impression on children and student learning,” wrote Cullman County Superintendent Dr. L. Hank Allen in his nomination letter. “He possesses the special skills necessary to be a positive influence on the academic achievement of students not only in his district but across the county.”

Fellow board member Sheila Kretzschmar describes Freeman as “a valued member of the Cullman County Commission on Education” and says “his enthusiasm, innovativeness and genuine concern for education are exemplary. His flexibility in working with students, teachers and the public has earned him an enviable reputation as an excellent board member who really cares about education and the community.”

Rep. James C. Fields Jr. used similar words to support Freeman’s nomination. “He is a leader on the board and communicates well with other members of the board, as well as other state and local elected officials,” Fields explained. He added that Freeman is “an advocate for education” who has “been active in representing the school board on several legislative issues in Montgomery.”

Dr. John Hinton

Hinton has attended 22 AASB conferences, earned 103 academy hours and reached the third academy level. In addition, he has participated on the AASB Bylaws Committee and has twice been a voting delegate for the Tuscaloosa County school board at AASB conventions.

A native son of Tuscaloosa County, Hinton has been a school board member since 2006 and has been a part of the Tuscaloosa County School System since 1967. He attended Big Sandy Elementary School and graduated from Tuscaloosa County High School. Hinton was educated at the University of Alabama, where he received a bachelor’s and master’s in music education and earned an administration certification and doctorate in education. Hinton also taught choral music for five years in the Tuscaloosa City School System, followed by a 35-year career in the Tuscaloosa County School System. When elected, the retired assistant superintendent became the highest ranking former system employee to be win a seat on the Tuscaloosa County school board.

As president of the Tuscaloosa County Board of Education, Hinton serves more than 17,800 students and nearly 2,100 employees on 32 campuses and at the central office. Since his election to the board, the state Department of Education has consistently ranked the system as one of the most efficient in the state and notes the system’s continued increase in standardized test scores.

Nominees say Hinton was instrumental in successfully working with the Tuscaloosa County Commission to secure financing for the largest school construction project ever undertaken by the county school system. They credit Hinton with encouraging the school board to pursue a four-year, one-cent sales tax to go directly to new school construction, portable classroom elimination and facility upkeep and maintenance.

Those who supported Hinton’s All-State nomination point to his involvement in parent-teacher-student organizations and willingness to serve in a number of capacities. He has been president of the Alabama Association of Personnel Administrators and the Alabama Vocal Association, as well as a member of Pi Kappa Lambda music honor society, the Captsone College of Education Society and the Arts Council of West Alabama Board of Directors. He also serves on the Northport Personnel Board. Hinton has been awarded for his service, including his selection as 1973 Outstanding Young Educator in Tuscaloosa County, 1994 Northport Citizen of the Year and 2002 recipient of the Council for Leaders in Alabama Schools’ highest honor, the Leadership Award. Northport even proclaimed March 9, 2009, as Dr. John Hinton Day for his contributions to the community.

“As a former classroom teacher, supervisor, principal, assistant superintendent and current board member, Dr. Hinton is recognized throughout Tuscaloosa County as one of the most knowledgeable and well respected educators in all of west Alabama,” noted Superintendent Dr. Frank P. Costanzo in his nomination letter.

Hinton’s fellow board member James Barnett agreed, saying: “His enthusiasm for public service has positively impacted the entire community. His work at Northport Baptist Church for the past 45 years has only complimented his efforts as an educator.”

Karen Phillips

Phillips attended 15 AASB conferences, earned 65 academy hours, reached the second academy level and has been a voting delegate for the Oxford school board once and an alternate delegate twice at AASB conventions. She has been a board member since 2006. Within the school system, she is a member of the Baseball Booster Club and was secretary of the Jacket Pride Booster Club for two years.

Phillips has 25 years experience as a social worker, including former service in a county office of the Department of Human Resources and current service with the community-based Health Services Center. She puts that experience to work, exercising a sensitivity toward the needs of disenfranchised students, sharing facts about such social issues as bullying and teenage pregnancy and using her expertise to link school administrators to community resources for meeting the emotional needs of children and families.

Nominees say Phillips passionately supports the system’s SAFE School, a separate educational setting that provides traditional educational services to troubled or at-risk students in a somewhat nontraditional manner. She is also actively involved in her community as a member of Betta View Hills Church of Christ and the Coosa Valley unit of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). She is the 2009 state recipient of NASW’s Social Worker Lifetime Achievement Award.

“Though Karen’s persistence in becoming fluent in all areas of board operations is nothing short of phenomenal, it pales in comparison to the one area I feel she has no peer – her concern and compassion for her fellow man,” noted Superintendent Dr. Jeff Goodwin in his nomination letter. “Her commitment to children, work ethic, willingness to learn and championing of those who might otherwise have no voice in our community make her a truly special board member.”

Phillips’ fellow board member Alex Davenport describes her as “an indispensable asset” to the Oxford school system and her community.

“The passion she has had for families all her life has directly transferred to her role as a superior school board member. I can personally attest that her contributions to our board discussions and governance decisions have enriched our board policies by considering how they affect all students in our system,” Davenport wrote.

Oxford City Councilman Steven C. Waits knows Phillips as the conduit for teamwork between the school board and the city council. Waits said the combination of proration, limited funding and exponential growth in the student population has forced the local school board to “think outside the box and find solutions to meet the ongoing needs of our schools. Mrs. Phillips and the school board have worked with the city council to not only meet those current needs but to begin construction on new state-of-the-art facilities that will meet the needs of the children in our community for years to come.”

The Alabama Association of School Boards’ mission is to develop excellent school board leaders through quality training, advocacy and services. AASB represents all of the state’s public local school boards. Since 1949, AASB has served education leaders and the interests of local lay control of public education.

For additional information, contact AASB Director of Public Relations Denise L. Berkhalter at 334/277-9700 or PublicRelations@AlabamaSchoolBoards.org.

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