It was a foregone conclusion, according to one school board member, when the Polk School District Board of Education refused to consider county- wide voting and reduce the board’s size from nine to six members during a called meeting Monday.

Guy Rutland Jr. who introduced the proposal in Novemer 2001 said before the meeting Monday the effort would fail.

Rutland was right.

The board approved a resolution by a 5-4 vote to send local legislation to the Georgia General Assembly requesting that district lines be redrawn to reflect changes since the last census, but not to change the system’s district voting or to change the number of board members.

The voting once again pitted east against west with one swing vote making the difference.

Those voting for the resolution to submit only the redrawn district lines were Chairman Tommy Sanders, Dan Forsyth, Harold Lumpkin and Frank Plant—all who represent the east side of the county, plus Dr. Harold Wingfield of Cedartown, who proved to be the swing vote on this issue.

Those voting against the resolution were Rutland, Rick Lundy, Beth Warner and Regina Roberts, who represent the west side of the county.

The called meeting drew a large gathering and a few members of the audience spoke to the panel regarding the issue.

Four speakers including Bobby Brooks, Jim Mayben, Patti Dooley and Dave Grove asked the board to turn down the resolution and add countywide voting for the school board, instead of the current district voting.

Their short presentations drew strong applause from the mostly packed boardroom.

Grove urged the panel to table the resolution and study countywide voting.

Mayben said the board members need to represent the entire school district, so it can focus on the interests of the students and represent all the people.

Two speakers, Kenneth Jones and Eunice Darden, spoke in favor of the resolution urging the board to keep district voting.

Jones said he favored the district voting because some people cannot afford to run countywide. Jones said the districts don’t matter if everyone works for Polk County.

Darden urged the panel to keep district voting which he said promotes the inclusion of a diverse community. He said minorities could be neglected if district voting is not maintained.

Rutland said the school board needs countywide voting because it’s confusing to voters when the county commission and school panel have different districts. He said the majority of people in Polk County want countywide voting.

Lundy said the school board needs to adopt countywide voting and a smaller panel, such as six or seven members, to be a more progressive county.

Beth Warner said she hears from county residents on a regular basis who want countywide voting for school board members.

Only one board member who supported the resolution offered to speak. Frank Plant said he did represent all of Polk County. He said he would continue visiting in the schools, listening to principals, teachers and students.

The vote marked the second time the panel has voted on the issue. In December, the board turned down the same request by a vote of five to three with one abstention, that being Mrs. Roberts, who changed her vote this time for countywide elections of school board members.