Ga. schools chief candidate pays visit to her roots

Dr. Beth Farokhi, an Augusta native, returned to her roots Monday, campaigning locally to become Georgia's next state school superintendent.

• Photos

Rainier Ehrhardt/Staff

State school superintendent candidate Dr. Beth Farokhi (left) listens as Pastor Dr. H. Kelly McKnight addresses some local leaders. The Monday visit to Bible Deliverance Temple Church was a return home for Farokhi, who attended Augusta schools.

Farokhi, who was Beth Dupree when she graduated from the Academy of Richmond County in 1966, now lives in Cobb County.

Farokhi had a busy schedule in Augusta on Monday, meeting with some area leaders, including a stop at Bible Deliverance Temple Church on Fenwick Street. As the June 20 primary nears, Farokhi said she wanted to visit Augusta to reconnect to "where a lot of my values were created and established."

"People are interested in the campaign," she said. "They're interested in what I have to say about moving Georgia more into a learning environment for our kids rather than a (state-mandated) testing environment."

Farokhi is one of three Democrats running for the state's top education job. Kathy Cox resigned from the post last month to become the founding CEO of the U.S. Education Delivery Institute. The two other Democrats challenging are Joe Martin, of Atlanta, and Brian Westlake, of Decatur.

Two Republicans also are vying: John Barge, of Rome, and Richard Woods, of Tifton. Brad Bryant, who was recently appointed interim superintendent by Gov. Sonny Perdue, plans to run as an independent.

Farokhi majored in elementary education and health and physical education at LaGrange College, earned a master's degree from Emory University and a doctorate in higher education from the University of Georgia.

She has more than 35 years' experience as an educator, starting as a public schoolteacher in Cobb County and leading to her time as an administrator in the College of Education at Georgia State University, where she retired almost five years ago.

Farokhi said that in Augusta she attended Forest Hills Elementary and Langford Junior High schools. She said she also played basketball at Richmond Academy when girls were allowed to play only half-court ball, out of fear that their stamina might not hold up.

"Things have changed a lot," she said with a chuckle, noting that her stamina has seen her through the past year of campaigning.

She said she has already received endorsements from several Augusta-area Democratic state legislators, including Sen. Hardie Davis and Reps. Gloria Frazier, Quincy Murphy and Henry Howard.

Farokhi said she's running for state school superintendent to give teachers greater support, to re-examine the use of state-mandated tests and to provide a more balanced curriculum for students.