School Board Candidate Q&A — pg.
A Look at Local Artists — pg. 2
inform. educate. connect.
38002.com
Arlington & Lakeland’s Community Newspaper
theview
theview
Election Results: Clean Sweep in Lakeland;
Arlington Returns Incumbents
By Terry Louderback
Residents of Lakeland
overwhelmingly voted for
change on September 19 as
Wyatt Bunker defeated incumbent Scott Carmichael with
62% of the vote. Political
newcomer Sherri Gallick and
former Commissioner Clark
Plunk received the most votes
in the commissioner race,
outpacing incumbents Cecil
Tompkins and Don Barber.
“The citizens of Lakeland
were ready for a change,”
commented Clark Plunk, who
also credited his hard work on
the campaign trail for his success at the polls.
Wyatt Bunker attributes his
victory to residents’ interest in
reviving economic development; he states that during his
campaign, he continually found
voters concerned about paying
October/November 2013
WAY TO GO!
Local Elementary Schools
Recognized as Tops in Tenn.
Special to THE VIEW 38002
Arlington and Lakeland
Elementaries Named to List of
Reward Schools
Bunker, Gallick, Plunk to be sworn in Thursday, October 3 at
Lakeland City Hall
for a top-quality school system.
Bunker also cites examples of
businesses leaving Lakeland
and faults City Hall as being
“standoffish” with economic
development.
While he believes in using
rules to hold businesses accountable, Bunker believes that
sometimes they go too far.
“Silly rules are why they
Also Inside this Issue:
Meet Your Neighbor: CWO
Annie Grimes, USMC, Ret.,
pg. 7
38002 Under Construction,
pg. 18
Competitive BBQ: Behind the
Scenes, pg. 22
[businesses] opt to go across
the street.” For a community
that has seen a major hit to
sales tax revenue after the
closing of the Kroger store on
Hwy 64 and the initiation of a
first-ever property tax, Bunker’s comments hit close to
home.
Bunker identified two tasks
that he would like to concentrate on after taking office.
First, establishing term limits
for the mayor and commissioners in order to ensure a future
influx of “new blood” and
“fresh ideas.” And to make
sure that the budget is “in tune”
with the new mayor and board
of commissioners, an immediate review of the operational
and capital budgets passed last
June.
“A personal connection” is
what Sherri Gallick places at
the heart of her success, explaining that she knocked on
over 2200 doors during her
campaign. She believes that
listening to residents and perContinued on page 8
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman announced 169 schools as the
2012-13 Reward Schools, the
top 5 percent of schools in the
state for annual growth and the
top 5 percent for academic
achievement.
The Reward Schools span
52 districts across the state.
“Tennessee continues to set the
standard in education reform as
we maintain our focus on high
levels of achievement and continuous growth,” Haslam said.
“Our Reward Schools have
proven that all students can
learn and grow even though
their starting lines may be different, a critical part of our effort to prepare our students for
the jobs available in the marketplace now and in the future. We
are incredibly grateful for the
teachers and staff at each of
these schools and excited to
recognize their efforts on behalf
Continued on page 8
Photo by Jerry Borwick Photography
How do you photograph a school full of kids? From way up high.
Students at Arlington Elementary School enjoyed a “Fun Day” on
September 19 in honor of their recognition by the Tennessee Department of Education as having TCAP scores in the top 5% of
schools statewide.