While her opponent touts his inexperience in government as a selling point, Debra Matthews says her 10 years’ of experience on the Hamilton County School Board makes her better qualified for the District 4 seat.

“I’ve been here, I know the educational system,” she said Tuesday, speaking to the editorial board of the Chattanooga Times Free Press. “I’m not having to depend on someone else to speak or tell me what to say.”

Her opponent, Gregg Juster, a Chattanooga transplant and longtime businessman, said Tuesday that he is willing and able to bring fresh ideas to the board because he is new.

A teacher by trade, Ms. Matthews maintains that the downtown schools are improving and wants to continue her work in low-income schools with the Benwood Foundation and the Public Education Foundation.

“I am seeking re-election to continue the work I started 10 years ago when the district was at its worst, countywide,” she said.

Schools in District 4 continue to make progress, and voters should re-elect her in order to keep “moving in the right direction,” she said.

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