By JOYANNA LOVE/ Senior Staff Writer

When the new Chilton County Board of Education is sworn into office, there will be a number of new members from two political parties.

It has been six years (one term) since a Democrat was elected to the board.

Keith Moore, Lori Reynolds Patterson and Pam Plier Price are the only school board members who ran for re-election. Each was elected to another six-year term.

Republicans Brian “Bucky” Jackson, Angie Maddox Sanderson and Chris Smith were elected to fill three of the seven positions. Democrat Jacqueline Shields Sullivan received 10,333 votes electing her to the seventh spot on the board.

“I was just ecstatic, very excited,” Sullivan said of the win, especially since it had been close. “The first thing that went through my mind was that my dad would be proud.”

According to Probate Judge Bobby Martin, the last Democrat to serve on the board was Ann Thomas, who served from 2004 to 2012.

While Sullivan was surprised other Democrats in the county did not run for the Board of Education, it did not deter her from running. She said “it’s not always about the party, but the individual’s platform” and what they stand for.

She said word of mouth and social media were the predominate ways she campaigned.

Growing up, Sullivan said her dad had always encouraged her to go after what she wanted to achieve.

Sullivan had set a goal to serve on the Chilton County Board of Education after she retired from teaching at Maplesville High School. However, she did not expect it to be so soon. Sullivan retired after 19 years at the school in May 2017. She said several people had asked her to run in this election.

The win initially came as a surprise.

Sullivan said as a school board member,she would like to see financial literacy, including how to avoid and manage debt, added to what is taught. She also wants to ensure teachers and staff are receiving training on how to spot bullying and intervene.