Sumter School District Teacher Forum to host 3 meet-the-candidate forums Oct. 11-13

The month of October in any election year means campaign season, and the leading Sumter School District teacher group will host three forums for the public to meet all school board candidates next week.

The district's Teacher Forum, composed of current and also immediate-past campus teachers of the year, has organized forums for Tuesday through Thursday nights (Oct. 11-13) at the district's three high schools spread throughout Sumter County, according to a flyer released Friday from a district spokeswoman.

With all nine trustees' seats up for election in the November midterm election, each forum will feature candidates from three district (alternatively called area) races with a meet-and-greet time followed by a panel discussion.

Each forum will begin with the meet-and-greet from 6 to 6:30 p.m., and then the panel discussion will be from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. to include pre-submitted questions for each candidate, according to Shelly Galloway, the district's executive director of communications and community engagement.

Tuesday's forum will be at the Sumter High School Auditorium and will include candidates from districts 3, 8 and 9, which represent much of the City of Sumter.

Wednesday's forum will be at the Lakewood High School Fine Arts Center and will be for candidates from districts 4, 5 and 6, which generally compose the southern portion of Sumter County.

The final forum on Thursday, Oct. 13, will be at the Crestwood High School Fine Arts Center and include districts 1, 2 and 7, which represent the northern portion of the county.