Thursday night the community is invited to hear what the Board of Education candidates have to say about local and state education issues.

The 2008 Bryan County BoE Candidate Forum starts at 6:30 p.m. on the third floor of the Speir-Brogdon building, thanks to a site donation by Gene and Carole Brogdon.

During the forum, questions will be asked that were sent to the Bryan County News by members of the community. Following that, the floor will be opened up to attendees who would like to address the board with any additional questions

The school board is the final decision maker for issues that determine how Bryan County’s children are educated and how local tax dollars are being spent. The forum will allow members of the community to get to hear from those running before the general primary election, on July 15.

The vice chairman position and District 2 and 3 seats are all up for grabs.

Carrol Ann Coleman, a former BoE chairman, is running against Jeff Morton, current District 3 board member, for the vice chairman seat. Wanda Lane and Dennis Seger are both vying for District 2; and Charles Blakewood, Charlie Johnson and Candace Piper are all running for District 3.

All candidates are running as members of the Republican Party so the vice chair and District 2 positions will be decided July 15. If one of the three District 3 candidates wins by a 51 percent margin, they will be declared the winner. If there isn’t a majority winner, the top two candidates will face-off in a runoff election on Aug. 5.