CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – After a deadlocked vote for the new board chairman last month, the Clarksville-Montgomery County School Board met with a different lineup on Tuesday and voted in Kent Griffy to return as chairman and newly elected Chris Lanier as the new vice chairman.

At the previous meeting on Sept. 24, the board was unable to break a tie for chair between Griffy and Jimmie Garland. Newly elected board member Kacie Bryant was absent.

On Tuesday night, Bryant nominated Griffy for chair, and there were no additional nominees. The vote was a unanimous, 6-0, and Griffy was named chairman. Herbert Nelson was absent.

Berry then nominated Garland for vice chairman, and Bryant nominated Lanier. Lanier won the vote 4-2, with Aron Maberry, Griffy Bryant and Lanier voting for Lanier, and Berry and Garland voting for Garland.

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During the board’s closing comments, Berry weighed on concerns from last School Board study session, telling Maberry that she disagreed with his statements that he has been in the political minority. She explained that the two previous board members, Margaret Pace and Charlie Patterson, were also Republicans, so he has always been in the majority.

“But Charlie and Margaret always made decisions that were best for the students of this county,” Berry said. “I want to say that I hope that we are on this board to serve Clarksville-Montgomery County. … I liked it (the School Board) better when it was non-partisan.”

Previously, School Board candidates ran without party labels, but the elections were opened to party primaries with the 2022 election.

Garland also spoke, thanking the board for allowing him to serve as the vice chair for the past two years.

“This is not my first rodeo,” Garland said. “I’ve been the chairman twice, and I’ve been the vice chair three times. The spectator seat is just another way of showing that this is the way democracy is supposed to work.

“Teachers, staff, board, don’t let anybody tell you that Clarksville-Montgomery County is not the best school board system in the state of Tennessee,” Garland said. “We’ve been doing things for the last 20 years that other boards wish they could do.”

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