Board of Directors
Jen2020Pace Dickenson - Chair
Youth Services Librarian
Polk County Public Library
Mark2020Franklin - Vice-Chair
Director, Customized Training & Development
Rutherford2020County Representative
John2020Carroll - Treasurer
Director, Family Services, Hospice of the Carolina Foothills
Rutherford2020County Representative
Phyllis2020Davis - Secretary
Public Dental Hygienist, NC Oral Health Section
McDowell County Representative
Dee Hunt
Rutherford County DSS Director
Rutherford County Representative
Tarah Simmons
Preschool Disabilities and Education Coordinator for Rutherford County Schools 
Rutherford County Representative
Sherry Bright
Executive Director, Family Resources of Rutherford County
Rutherford County Representative
Cathleen2020Cullen
Program Coordinator, ABC Quality Rating and Improvement System Division of Early Care and Education
Polk County Representative
Dr. Alice McCluney
Director, Early Childhood Education Program, Isothermal Community College
Rutherford County Representative
Sheri Ledford
Extension Agent, Rutherford County Coop Extension
McDowell County Representative
Kisha McDowell
Community Volunteer
Rutherford County Representative
Paige Ziegler
Retired Educator and Community Volunteer
McDowell Representative

Board of Directors – Partnership for Children of the Foothills

Kisha McDowell is a community volunteer and serves as a Rutherford County representative on the Partnership for Children of the Foothills board of directors.

GRAHAMTOWN TEAM

Grahamtown Team 

Board of Directors

Earl Thompson, Kisha McDowell - Executive Director, Selena McEntyre, Will McDowell

Grahamtown Team

Kisha works as executive director of the Grahamtown Team.

Healthy Living Programs - Grahamtown Team Community

2026 North Carolina General Election

🛡 4. Fiscal Responsibility with Student Impact

Position: The Board must ensure every dollar is spent with student success as the priority, including advocating for sufficient local and state funding when and where we can.

What I’ll do:

Seek creative opportunities to fill funding gaps.
Push to continue transparent budgeting with clear impact on classrooms, student support, and teacher retention.
Work collaboratively with county leadership to address local funding needs.

McDowell for Board of Education

Position: The Board must ensure every dollar is spent with student success as the priority, including advocating for sufficient local and state funding when and where we can.

What I’ll do:

Seek creative opportunities to fill funding gaps.
Push to continue transparent budgeting with clear impact on classrooms, student support, and teacher retention.
Work collaboratively with county leadership to address local funding needs.

Seek creative opportunities to fill funding gaps.
Push to continue transparent budgeting with clear impact on classrooms, student support, and teacher retention.
Work collaboratively with county leadership to address local funding needs.

Push to continue transparent budgeting with clear impact on classrooms, student support, and teacher retention.
Work collaboratively with county leadership to address local funding needs.

Advocates sufficient local and state school funding focused on student success.

Plans to seek creative opportunities to fill school funding gaps.

Supports transparent school budgeting that identifies impacts on classrooms, student support, and teacher retention.

Plans to work with county leadership on local school funding needs.

- Advocates sufficient local and state school funding focused on student success.
- Plans to seek creative opportunities to fill school funding gaps.
- Supports transparent school budgeting that identifies impacts on classrooms, student support, and teacher retention.
- Plans to work with county leadership on local school funding needs.

School Facilities & Resources

Advocate for curriculum supports that address diverse learning needs.
Promote equitable access to innovative learning opportunities like STEAM and leadership programming (High School Internships,Work programs and other career opportunities).
Support community and parent involvement so families are partners in student success.

Promote equitable access to innovative learning opportunities like STEAM and leadership programming (High School Internships,Work programs and other career opportunities).
Support community and parent involvement so families are partners in student success.

Promotes equitable access to STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math), leadership, internship, work, and other career opportunities.

Supports community and parent involvement in student success.

- Promotes equitable access to STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math), leadership, internship, work, and other career opportunities.
- Supports community and parent involvement in student success.

Access to Education

💡 2. Support and Retain Great Teachers

Position: Competitive compensation and workplace support are essential to recruit and retain high-quality teachers.
What I’ll do:

Advocate for teacher pay that reflects experience and dedication
Support initiatives to reduce turnover and incentivize retention locally.
Champion educator learning, mentorship and professional development systems to grow teacher leadership.

Position: Competitive compensation and workplace support are essential to recruit and retain high-quality teachers.
What I’ll do:

Advocate for teacher pay that reflects experience and dedication
Support initiatives to reduce turnover and incentivize retention locally.
Champion educator learning, mentorship and professional development systems to grow teacher leadership.

Advocate for teacher pay that reflects experience and dedication
Support initiatives to reduce turnover and incentivize retention locally.
Champion educator learning, mentorship and professional development systems to grow teacher leadership.

Support initiatives to reduce turnover and incentivize retention locally.
Champion educator learning, mentorship and professional development systems to grow teacher leadership.

Advocates teacher pay that reflects experience and dedication.

Supports local initiatives to reduce teacher turnover and encourage teachers to stay.

Champions educator learning, mentorship, and professional development to foster teacher leadership.

- Advocates teacher pay that reflects experience and dedication.
- Supports local initiatives to reduce teacher turnover and encourage teachers to stay.
- Champions educator learning, mentorship, and professional development to foster teacher leadership.

Teachers

Position: Every student should have access to a high-quality education rooted in research and evidenced based strategies, while fostering critical thinking, creativity, and readiness for the future.
What I’ll do:

Advocate for curriculum supports that address diverse learning needs.
Promote equitable access to innovative learning opportunities like STEAM and leadership programming (High School Internships,Work programs and other career opportunities).
Support community and parent involvement so families are partners in student success.

Advocates for curriculum support to address diverse learning needs.

- Advocates for curriculum support to address diverse learning needs.

School Curriculum

As of January 5, 2026, Kisha McDowell’s website did not contain information on this issue.

Student Wellbeing

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Kisha McDowell

Kisha McDowell
Community Volunteer
Rutherford County Representative

Kisha McDowell is a community volunteer and a Rutherford County representative for Partnership for Children of the Foothills.

Grahamtown Team 

Board of Directors

Earl Thompson, Kisha McDowell - Executive Director, Selena McEntyre, Will McDowell

Kisha McDowell is the executive director of Grahamtown Team.

Provided more than 700 school-supply backpacks and seeks donations, sponsors and volunteers to distribute 750 to 800 this year.

Kisha is the executive director of the Grahamtown Team.

School supplies are confidence builders - Rutherford Weekly

Alejandra Gracias

Buket Urgen

Kala Suttle

- The Board of Education runs the public school system. They create policies that establish standards, accountability and evaluation of essential operations of the school system.
- The Board of Education member hires a superintendent and can remove them when necessary. The superintendent assists the Board of Education in implementing the board’s policies. 
- The Board of Education is charged with deciding the school budget. This means they decide how to allocate money between different services, such as teacher pay, repairing school facilities, or access to technology.
- Board of Education members are elected every four years. 

Member of the board that governs your county's public school system