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Published Tuesday, July 01, 2008 in Local

Dowdell unopposed as he seeks full term on Coweta school board

By Brenda Pedraza-Vidamour

The Times-Herald

Winston Dowdell boils down all issues facing the Coweta County Board of Education with one simple question -- How is this going to benefit the student?

"If it doesn't help the student, we don't need to do it," he said.

Dowdell along with two other incumbents are running unopposed for open school board seats this year. He was appointed to the board in January 2007 to fill the unexpired term of the late Mitchell Powell Jr. As the board's District 5 board member, Dowdell represents the concerns of those in the fifth district, which is occupied by Atkinson Elementary, Central Education Center, Jefferson Parkway Elementary, Newnan Crossing Elementary, Newnan High, Ruth Hill Elementary, the Centre for the Performing and Visual Arts and the Winston Dowdell Academy, an alternative school named in Dowdell's honor six years ago.

Dowdell's simple philosophy is rendered from 40 years in education. Dowdell retired in 2001 as the board's associate superintendent, having served in that position since 1994. For five years before that, Dowdell was assistant superintendent for special services.

He came to the Coweta school system in 1968 from Alabama. He started as a teacher at Grantville Brown School and later transferred to Moreland School and on to Newnan High in 1974. He was principal at Eastside Elementary and Fairmount Elementary. The school board decided in 2002 to rename Fairmount the Winston Dowdell Academy.

Dowdell, 67, was born in Opelika, Ala., graduating from the city's J.W. Darden High School. He returns to the school every two years for the school reunions. He received a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Alabama State University and master's degree in administrative supervision from the State University of West Georgia.

He hails from a family of educators. His wife Verneda, also a retired educator, taught in Coweta for 35 years. His sister and his brother are or were also educators in Georgia and Alabama school systems and so are their spouses. He explained while his parents weren't teachers, he and his siblings came of age during the Civil Rights era when a black student's most common vocation choice was either to be a "preacher or teacher."

The Dowdell's daughter Winifred, who they call "Windy," is a pharmacist at local Kroger. She married an educator who is an assistant principal at Smokey Road Middle. He transfers this year to Ruth Hill Elementary. The Dowdells also have two grandsons, a 9-year-old and 7-year-old, who attend Ruth Hill.

The longtime educator feels the big issues coming up for the school board next year will revolve around system growth, redistricting and the economy.

The system's 30th school, a new elementary school planned on Jim Starr Road, will be open by the 2009-2010 school year. Trees are being cleared in the area and more sitework should take place next week.

The Coweta school system, which has about 23,000 students, grows an average of 700-1,000 students annually, thus the system is continuously in planning mode to build schools to alleviate the school crowding. With each new school that's built, committees are formed to assist with the redistricting process. Basically, students from the schools in the affected area are reassigned to the new school along newly drawn district lines to alleviate the overcrowding.

Another concern is the economy to which Dowdell said board members just have to remain mindful of their responsibilities. The school system's new construction projects are mostly funded by Special Local Option Sales Tax, and with a worsening economy and people spending less, those coffers can't be relied on as much as they have in the past.

Likewise, school system operations mostly funded by property taxes would also be affected by a declining economy.

"We're just trying to be good stewards of the taxpayer's money," he said.

As far the recent disappointing results statewide with the standardized tests, Dowdell explained his problem with the tests are that they don't truly measure an individual student's overall progress.

He explained each student -- including those in certain subgroups such as special needs or English language learners -- begins at a different academic starting line, but he still has to meet that same academic finish line by the year 2014. What most people are not appreciating is that while the student who was further from the finish line is still far away, he is the one making the most progress because he is so much further away.

Although Dowdell is retired and was initially appointed to the board, he remains committed to serving the school system's needs.

"It's not about me, it's about students. I don't consider myself a politician. I'm an advocate for students and if it were not for that we're here for the wrong reasons."

Dowdell is deacon pro-tem at the Greater Mt. Zion Church.

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