SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – Carter Bedford is one of four candidates seeking to unseat longtime Caddo Parish School Board Dist. 12 representative Dottie Bell in November.
Bedford has 42 years of experience as an educator, principal, and administrator in the Caddo Parish school system, including at Booker T. Washington High School, Woodlawn Leadership Academy, Fair Park High School, and Caddo Magnet High.
Bedford says he believes that experience will help him make positive changes as a member of the school board. One of the focuses of his campaign is fulfilling the needs of students who choose not to go to college after graduation.
“Maybe put some of the apprenticeship programs in place put some vocational education classes back in, in our high schools you know we moved all those to the Career Center. Only a few kids can get into the Career Center.”
Bedford has a game plan for students who have fallen behind due to the pandemic, as well. He says no child should be left behind and there is still time to catch up.
“I understand that they’ve had a problem in getting all those kids back in school and on target. I think that I would institute probably some schools on weekends probably after-school tutoring to help those students catch up.”
“I have seen a lot of things from the teacher perspective, assistant principal perspective, and principal perspective.”
District 12 covers West Shreveport all the way to the Texas line from west of Cross Lake to just south of Buncombe Road. It includes Huntington High School and Walnut Hill Middle School.
Also running for the District 12 seat are “No Party” candidate Joy Sims and Democrats Barbara Johnson Simpson and Sheila Crosby Wimberly.
