Marcus Arnett running for Sumter Board of Education

Published 9:44 am Wednesday, March 14, 2018

AMERICUS — Marcus Arnett has qualified as a candidate for an at-large seat on the Sumter County Board of education.
Arnett is a native of Americus. He is a class of 2006 graduate of Americus-Sumter High School. He is also a graduate of Georgia Southwestern State University with a bachelor’s degree in business management. He is married to Sheena Arnett and they have two sons, Logan and Ayden Arnett who both attend Sumter County Schools. Arnett is the son of U.S. Army veteran Joseph and Percillia Arnett of Americus.
He is currently employed as the service manager at Southeastern Pneumatic Inc. in Ellaville. He is an ordained Christian minister and serves as associate minister of Union Oak Grove Baptist Church in Andersonville.
“As a student, I often took for granted the opportunities that our community offered,” he said. “It is my goal to challenge every student to utilize the resources available both domestically and abroad to optimize their life and career goals. I remember what is was like to feel the support of my community encouraging me on my journey through school. I want all students to feel that love and support. There is an African proverb that states, ‘it takes a village to raise a child.’ As a village here locally we owe our students the best support that we have to offer. I plan to work tirelessly to be an active village member for all students.
“As a parent, I learn every day how difficult it is to raise children in this day and age. We have to keep up with the changing technology, and the different demands that present themselves frequently. The daunting task of keeping up with your personal work demands, homework, special projects, extracurricular activities, and more can sometimes be overwhelming. As your representative on the school board, I want to help find solutions to make your life better as well. I will make it my mission to make it easier for parents to support their kids in all of their scholastic endeavors.
“As a citizen I want to live the greatest life possible, but I know that any greatness I may achieve is worthless while there is inequity throughout our community. This is why I believe Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ‘I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be and you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be.’ So, as a citizen and resident of Sumter County I pledge my life to this cause. I plan to give my all to furthering the growth and development of all students. I want to ensure adequate resources are available to ensure their success, while also finding innovative ways to reduce any unnecessary burden on taxpayers. We will benefit from a community of citizens that are college bound and career ready. We will benefit from having the best administrators, teachers, and support staff at every school in our district that will produce the best students and citizens. Our citizens make up a majority of these roles and will continue to do so with our support. We must listen to them and find out the best way that we can help them accomplish their goals of educating our students. We will build bridges and not walls. We will build pipelines to college and careers. Now is the time for us to come ‘All in, All together.’ In the words of John Donne, ‘No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.’ ”