McDonald Preparing To Be TSBA President

White County School Board Member Jayson McDonald preparing to take the presidency of the Tennessee School Boards Association January 1.

McDonald said he will be attending multiple conventions and leadership conferences to get ready for the new position. McDonald said as president he will aid in education lobbying efforts and attend trainings across the Southeastern United States to support and get help from other states in the region.

“Hopefully we can use our core values and the things that we value most in our home districts and just spread that out across the state,” McDonald said. “So that folks will see exactly how the rural communities and not just our metro government, our metro areas, run things.”

McDonald said he will be working to keep Tennessee at the forefront of education. McDonald said the job will be very similar to his current work as the association’s vice president.

“Everybody works together, it’s just basically a job title that gets put on there,” McDonald said. “At convention, the president will be the one who leads the convention in November. He will be the one that is standing in front of the crowd, introducing all the speakers, holding the delegate assembly.”

McDonald said he is the first person from White County to serve as the association’s president. He said the White County School Board has been very supportive of his goal to serve at both the local and state levels.

“I’ve had a lot of people call me and just congratulate me,” McDonald said. “To take on the leadership role and be the first one from White County is, again, very humbling and I’m honored.”

McDonald said he does not expect the role to have any negative impacts on his work with the White County School Board. He said serving as president may give his local board and the Upper Cumberland a larger voice at the state level.