Sadie Montanus officially joins Manatee County School Board District 3 race

BRADENTON -- After an issue earlier this week she called a "distraction" and a result of "superfluous finger pointing," Sadie Montanus has officially filed for the Manatee County School Board District 3 seat.

Montanus, a 22-year-old Bradenton resident, filed the paperwork Thursday and will hold a campaign kickoff event in October. Montanus joined Misty Servia as a candidate for the District 3 school board seat, which covers west Manatee and Anna Maria Island.

Montanus is in her second year of teaching at Palmetto High School. The 22-year-old graduated early from Florida State University, working as a policy analyst on Gov. Rick Scott's campaign before returning to Manatee County in September 2014 to teach.

"Coming from a policy background, and seeing how that policy is played out in the classroom, it's clear to me that students are being lost in the bureaucratic mess," Montanus said.

Montanus said more accountability is needed. She said site-based management is good because it allows schools some freedom, but there need to be checks.

"There needs to be more accountability from the instructional level to the administrative. And then from the administrative level to the district level," she said.

Earlier this week, Montanus ran into a potential issue because her campaign website was up and running, including a request for campaign donations, but she was not an official candidate yet. When asked about it, Montanus pulled the website down and pointed out there was no actual link to donate.

"I haven't accepted campaign dollars," Montanus said.

After conferring with Supervisor of Elections Mike Bennett, Montanus is confident she did not break any laws.

On Thursday, Bennett said he didn't believe Montanus' site crossed the line.

"In my estimation, she did not violate the law," he said.

Montanus said she will not run a campaign that distracts from the issues of educating children in the county.

When reached Thursday, Servia said her concern all along was campaign transparency.

"I'm just glad we're on a level playing field," she said. "We can get on with a campaign."

Servia has a kickoff event planned from 5 to 7 p.m. Sept. 21 at Soma Creekside Restaurant.

Montanus' kickoff event is planned from 5:15 to 7:15 p.m. Oct. 15 at Pier 22.

Dave Miner, the District 3 incumbent, has not filed for re-election yet.

Voters will also pick a candidate for the District 1 seat held by board Chairman Bob Gause, who has not filed for re-election.

The District 1 seat covers the northern part of the county, excluding downtown Palmetto, extending to the eastern border.

Challengers Xtavia Bailey, a Palmetto resident, and Edward Viltz, who works at Team Success, have filed for the seat.

It's also likely voters will pick a permanent candidate for the District 5 seat, which opened after board member Mary Cantrell died in July. The governor is expected to pick a replacement to serve until the 2016 elections when the public will elect a candidate to finish out the four-year term ending in 2018. The District 5 seats covers the eastern part of the county south of State Road 64.

The governor has not yet appointed a replacement.

School board elections in Manatee County are nonpartisan and voters can cast ballots for each seat. Candidates must reside in the district they want to represent.

Meghin Delaney, education reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7081. Follow her on Twitter@MeghinDelaney.

This story was originally published September 3, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Sadie Montanus officially joins Manatee County School Board District 3 race."