At a time when the needs of students across the state of Georgia should be the top priority, state leaders, as far as Everton Blair is concerned, are distracted. 

“They are busy picking fights with each other and squandering a $3.6 billion surplus opportunity,” Blair told The Reckoning. “We are not taking advantage of the moment before us.”

Blair, currently chairman of Gwinnett County’s Board of Education, is running to be Georgia’s next school superintendent. By all accounts, his campaign is touted as a historic one. If he is elected, Blair will be the first Black, first openly gay, and youngest person to hold the position. But making history is not exactly the motivating factor for Blair. 

In a moment when we have faced our most severe challenges and leadership has had the opportunity to bolster the opportunities before us, but have not, Blair’s decision is motivated by one question—who else will run?

“Student populations are more diverse, yet our leaders are not in touch with what’s happening on the ground,” he said. “I am led by the conviction that someone has to do it. There needs to be someone who understands the moment we are in, is committed to student and teacher success, and has led successfully in times like these.”

In 2018, Blair was elected to represent District 4 on the Gwinnett School Board. At the time, he was both the youngest member and the first-ever Black member of the board. Not long after, on National Coming Out Day, he publicly disclosed that he is gay. At the time, he told Project Q, the announcement was more for his students than anything. A few years later, in 2021, he was voted unanimously to chair the board.    

“Personally, I am proud of who I am. But I do not want my work to be singularly attributed to my identity. My identity affords me a specific lens by which to lead. And, it is important for students to see themselves,” Blair told The Reckoning. 

The symbolism of his presence is important. For students who look up to him, it means a lot. 

“What it means in practice is that students know who they can go to for support. But also, my identity means that those who may oppose or support a specific piece of policy have to now look me in my eyes when they do so,” he said. “I have seen people change the tone of how they talk about things when they see the direct impact of their support of the opposition. All of those more incidental decisions are no longer swept under the rug.”

At the core of his campaign is a commitment to student and teacher service. As the next state school superintendent, Blair hopes the agency can become more of a service provider than what he describes as something more like “big brother” in past and recent years. 

If elected, his goals for his first 100 days in office include aligning his priorities for public education with those of the governor’s office—who he confidently believes will be Stacey Abrams. From there, he intends to take a closer look, an analysis, if you will, at the state of education in Georgia. The analysis will help in better understanding what services are needed and the direction the state needs to take. 

“To do this, it means visiting school districts, meeting with leaders to get an idea of what support is needed, and building relationships,” he said. “We have to be laser-focused. There is a teacher crisis and our students have very real needs. We have to make sure the necessary investments are being made so that our teachers and students are getting the support they need. It is vital and has to be the first order of business. It is important and practical work.”

It is work he has done. He points out the decisions they faced on the Gwinnett County School Board throughout the coronavirus pandemic, especially at the height of COVID-19. He had to choose, strategically, when to push up, push out, and push in.

Such success takes intention and clarity. For Blair, it means staying true to what is promised. 

“So much was changing that we had not experienced before. The community was looking at us as division was being stoked,” he said. “People want to talk about fringe topics all the time, but the fringe topics are not the dynamics we are really in. Fringe topics preclude us from doing the work to serve the widespread interests of our students and we add fuel when we do not use the space and power we have to advance progress. I try to be mindful of the opportunity as an elected representative to make a positive impact on a community.”