Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 28, 1995 TAG: 9504290026
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Frank Thomas, longtime chairman of the Roanoke County School Board, will give up his seat and leave the board in December.
Thomas said Thursday night that he will not be a candidate in November to remain as the Catawba District representative on the board.
He surprised school officials by saying he decided not to run because of the increased time demands of his job as vice president of Thomas Bros. Inc., a family-owned excavation business.
"I didn't have the time to do three jobs," Thomas said. If he had run, he said, he would have been forced to run a political campaign at the height of the construction season while still serving as a board member.
"It is taking more and more time to be a board member, and I don't see it letting up," he said.
Thomas, 54, has been a board member for 12 years and chairman for a decade. His announcement, which was unexpected, came at a School Board meeting.
He said he has other goals in life that he wouldn't have time to pursue if he remained on the board.
Thomas said it was a hard decision that he took a long time to make. In the end, he said, the deciding factor was that he didn't have the time to devote to the post that he believes it deserves.
Thomas is the fourth School Board member to decline to run since the county started electing board members last year.
Maurice "Buck" Mitchell, who has represented the Cave Spring District for six years, announced earlier that he would not be a candidate in November.
Last year, Barbara "Bootie" Chewning and Charlsie Pafford declined to run. Mitchell and Chewning said they did not like the idea of having to campaign to keep their seats.
Thomas' decision attracted widespread attention because he is the senior board member. Friends and some board members had urged him to run.
Thomas said he is leaving the board in good hands, saying Vice Chairman Jerry Canada, Tom Leggette and Michael Stovall are outstanding members.
"I felt comfortable in leaving with the leadership we have on the board," Thomas said.
As chairman, Thomas has helped oversee several building programs and the selection of a new superintendent, Deanna Gordon.
He is the third generation of Thomases to serve on the board. His grandmother was a member in the 1950s and '60s. His uncle, Joe Thomas, was on the board in the '70s.
Thomas and his wife have participated in Parent-Teacher Association and school activities for more than 20 years.
County voters, who elected School Board members in three districts last year, will choose members this year in the remaining two districts - Catawba and Cave Spring.
There are no announced candidates in those districts, but several potential candidates have asked the county registrar's office about the procedure for getting into the contest.
To run, a candidate needs to collect the signatures of 125 registered voters and file by June 13. There is no provision in state election law for political parties to nominate school board candidates.
by CNB