Fayette school board vice-chair won’t run for re-election. Former principal files for seat.

Turnover is coming to the Fayette County Public Schools Board, with a second longtime member deciding not to run for re-election.

Board Vice Chairman Raymond Daniels, who has represented District 3 since 2016, said he recently decided not to run for re-election.

The filing deadline for the Nov. 3 election was Tuesday and the only other person who filed for the third district seat was Tom Jones, who retired from the school district in 1999 after serving as principal at Bryan Station Middle School. Jones more recently worked in school accreditation.

Five people filed to replace Daryl Love, a board member since 2010 who has said for months he is not running for re-election for the District 5 seat that covers parts of south Lexington. Those running to replace Love are Camisha Boyd, Amanda J. “Amy” Green, Mark Stringer, Arnold L. Farr and Amy Beasley. Boyd announced in January that she was running. The other candidates could not immediately be reached for comment.

Daniels, owner of a strategic sourcing company, said serving on the school board for the past 5 1/2 years “has been an incredible experience.”

“Unfortunately my time is up and it’s time for another voice and perspective. I will continue to be an advocate for Fayette County Public Schools and look for ways to impact the district outside of the board,” he said. Daniels is the 2020 Board Chair for Commerce Lexington.

The third district includes much of the eastern part of Fayette County from roughly New Circle Road to the county line.

After 27 years of employment in the school district, Jones retired from Fayette County Schools in 1999, a news release announcing his candidacy said.

He served as principal of Bryan Station Middle School for 16 years where he led the establishment of the traditional magnet and Spanish immersion programs. Prior to that, Jones taught English at Bryan Station High School, and was a community resource specialist and assistant principal at Leestown Middle.

Following retirement from Fayette County schools, Jones served as state director for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools/AdvancED.

In that capacity he directed the accreditation activities in schools and districts throughout Kentucky and led district quality assurance reviews in other states

In 2012 he was appointed Director of Education Improvement for AdvancED. In this role he helped develop and implement products and services to support school, district and state department improvement efforts in several states including Kentucky.

Jones retired from AdvancED in 2016 but has continued to work on a part-time basis as lead evaluator for district accreditation reviews and diagnostic reviews in Kentucky and other states.

Jomes earned his undergraduate degree in English at Transylvania University and a master’s degree in secondary curriculum and instruction from the University of Kentucky College of Education. He also holds a Rank I in school administration from UK.

He is a Fayette County native, married to Loraye Jones, who retired from Fayette County Schools in 2015. She had been a former principal of Dixie Elementary School and Fayette County’s former elementary school director.

In District One, which covers parts of Western Lexington, only current board member Christy Morris is running. She was elected in 2019 to serve out a one year term.

This story was originally published June 4, 2020 at 4:25 PM.