By PAT NEWMAN
pnewman@thecititzennews.com

Janet Smola, candidate for Post 1 on the Fayette County Board of Education, faces no opposition in her bid, but that hasn't diminished her efforts to stay informed about the issues.

She will take over from Debbie Condon, who announced she will not seek another term.

As cochairman of the Fayette County Citizens for Excellence in Education, a group that formed last summer to disseminate information about a proposed 1 percent special local option sales tax that was defeated by voters in a September referendum, Smola will continue to act as liaison between citizens and the board until a successor can be found.

“Right now we're going through House Bill 1187 and the budget process for the school system. In all honesty, when I look at House Bill 1187 and upon completion of the advisory councils the governor has assigned to each and every school, there should be no need for the FCCEE,” Smola said. Until the advisory councils are phased in over three years, according to the governor's directive, the FCCEE will continue, she said.

“My greatest concern about the advisory councils is uniformity, a universal approach to each school individually. If you don't have that, it's very likely that you'll have (for example) Starr's Mill managed very differently than Sandy Creek. The creation of these councils is going to have to have a common denominator in order to keep the school system on an even keel,” Smola said.

Smola said she has always been an active participant in the goings-on in the schools system. “... only because I have three children and I have strong opinions about things and always feel that you have your right to voice your opinion... but the prudent thing is to have all the information surrounding a subject before you voice your opinion.”

When the decision was made by the school board to try and finance new facilities and expansion of existing facilities through a special local option sales tax, Smola said she wanted to know why they came to that decision rather than taking the traditional bond route. “I wanted to see the budget. I had heard all kinds of things, people throwing around words like misappropriation of funds and mismanagement.”

She has a working knowledge of financial issues, having been a licensed securities dealer and insurance agent.

“When I looked at that funding issue, I could understand why that board made the decision that they did. To fund those facilities through bonds would have cost the school system more money, a lot more money,” she said. Smola is still in favor of a SPLOST.

“I will do everything in my power to influence this board to put a finance funding opportunity on the ballot. The only way you're going to get a fair vote in terms of the numbers of people, is to put it in a general election.

“The facilities issues are not going away,” she added. “They are increasing in severity. If Peachtree City annexes the property [a 1,200-acre proposed west village), it's going to grow in leaps and bounds, and it's going to be an issue the school board is going to have to deal with,” she added.

Smola sees the key issue facing the upcoming board as complying with the Education Reform Act. “We have to comply with what the governor has set forth... there are lots of things the governor is looking at and one of those things is the fact that Fayette County has twice denied funding to the children here... now if in the future the governor decides to help with facilities issues, which counties do you think are going to get the help? The ones that are helping themselves and still need help, or the ones who haven't helped themselves and are looking for a handout?”

Smola said she is concerned about the school district maintaining its high level of student performance given the change in funding from the state, for instance, taking away funding for nonscientific labs. “I see some shifting of expenditures and that's definitely going to be an issue for the school board.”

Despite serving as cochairman with Don Apking for the FCCEE, Smola said she would not vocally endorse any one candidate for posts 2 and 3. “I have to remind myself that whatever I do is going to have an impact on my position on the school board. Regardless of who is elected, I will serve with two people in two seats and I don't know who is going to sit there.”

Smola said she didn't want to create hard feelings or set herself up in an adversarial position before she even took office. “But I have made it clear that I will come out and support those candidates that are well versed on the issues,” she added.

Another goal Smola has set for herself is to “reopen the lines of communication within the governing board [school board].”

“The best way to do that is by example.” Smola said, adding that if you disagree with a board member, put the issue behind you and move on.

She also advocates making decision that are in the best interests of the students in the county and not what the voters necessarily want to hear. Smola gave the example of the current board turning down a recommendation by superintendent Dr. John DeCotis to raise the millage rate to 20 mills, simply because the voters had just turned down the SPLOST.

Smola is known in the community as a professional fund-raiser. For approximately five years she worked to raise money for the Joseph Sams School. She is now free-lancing as a fund-raiser and event planner for political hopefuls.

Smola and her husband, Mike, a Delta employee, have three children, Zachary, Andrew and Evan. The Smolas live in Tyrone.