Jamie Deonas is running for Nassau County School Board – District 1 in this year's general election.
Jamie Deonas
Website: https://www.votejamiedeonas.com/
Email: jdeonas@yahoo.com
Phone: 904-753-4076
CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE
With Nassau County growing so quickly, how would you use your position on the school board to ensure students are accommodated for?
Growth is one of the largest challenges our district faces countywide. In 2018, we introduced mitigation agreements with developers to pay their “fair share” to the school district for all new multi-family developments to help pay for new schools and improvements to current schools. In 2019, our school district established a land growth committee to identify properties and sites for new schools in our county. I work closely with our facilities director on opportunities for expansion to existing schools utilizing current infrastructure. My goal is to keep our classroom sizes small and our teaching levels high.
Even though Nassau County has been doing relatively well in regard to teacher retention in comparison to other districts across the state and the country, many teachers are finding jobs outside the Nassau County School District. As a board member, what would you do to help them stay?
Recruiting and retaining highly qualified and highly effective teachers is a challenge nationwide. Our school district has been very proactive in attending recruitment and employment fairs introducing the Nassau County school system and opportunities in our district. I continue to work closely with our teachers and support staff listening to their concerns and working to make our district the best it can be. I am a huge supporter of our teachers and support staff and believe our district's success is because of their hard work and dedication to our students.
How will your specific background help your efforts to make the Nassau County School District the number one in the state?
I was born and raised in Nassau County and graduated from the Nassau County public school system. I am a small business owner and deeply rooted in our community. I believe my good working relationships with our teacher and support staff unions, the Board of County Commissioners, the Town of Hilliard, Callahan and Fernandina make me the best candidate in continuing our district's success and making us number one in the state.