LeFevre Named Station Manager for WCTE PBS

December 19, 2021
By:

WCTE PBS has announced Craig LeFevre as the new Station Manager. LeFevre, a former resident of Smithville and former sports editor for the Smithville Review, has been an employee of WCTE PBS for 17 years working in various engineering roles. He brings a wealth of knowledge to the role of Station Manager including the extensive station infrastructure understanding, FCC compliance experience, and technical grant writing. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism and an MBA in Management Information Systems, both from Tennessee Technological University, and he completed the Alabama Broadcast Association Engineering Academy.

Having served as Director of Technical Operations for WCTE since 2016, LeFevre will be working closely with the station’s leadership team in implementing the new three-year strategic plan, while also being responsible for guiding the station’s content and services, business and compliance issues, financial matters, profitability, and sustaining and building strategic alliances and partnerships. LeFevre’s new role will support the station’s President and CEO while fostering a culture that inspires excellence, diversity, equal opportunity, and a welcoming work environment.

“It’s exciting to have an internal candidate with so much experience step into this role who has the enthusiasm needed to lead our teams into the next phase of WCTE’s growth,” said Avery Hutchins, President and CEO. “With projects like ATSC3.0 (NextGen TV), and the Datacasting Pilot on the horizon, we are experiencing the many advances of broadcast television very quickly, and Craig is just the person that can lead the station through these very technical and new advances. I couldn’t be happier with how our station teams are coming together, and the depth and breadth of new talent on our staff is pushing WCTE PBS’ mission forward in new and exciting ways.”

WCTE Central TN PBS has served the Upper Cumberland 40+ years as the region’s premier storyteller and is the only television station in a 75-mile radius of Cookeville, TN., making it a strategic partner in education, health services, government, arts and music. WCTE is a 501(c) 3, and is owned and operated by the Upper Cumberland Broadcast Council. WCTE Central TN PBS is one of only 350 PBS member stations nationwide. ###

December 18, 2021
By: Dwayne Page

Candidates interested in running for one of the offices on the May 3, 2022, Republican and Democratic Primary ballots can pick up petitions at the local election office beginning Monday, Dec. 20.

“In addition to obtaining a petition, candidates will also be given additional paperwork and a published ‘guide’ to assist them throughout the electoral process,” said Dennis Stanley, Administrator of Elections.

“Both Deputy Administrator Tina Gee and I will be available to issue petitions and assist the candidates and the process will take approximately 10 minutes per candidate,” he added.

Offices on the May primary ballots include: County Mayor; Road Supervisor; Sheriff, General Sessions Judge; Circuit Court Clerk; County Clerk; Trustee; Register of Deeds; County Commissioner in all seven (7) districts; School Board members in districts 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7; Constable in District 4 to fill a vacancy; Circuit Court Judge Part I and Part II (13th Judicial District); Chancellor (13th Judicial District); Criminal Court Judge Part I and Part II (13th Judicial District); District Attorney General (13th Judicial District); and Public Defender (13th Judicial District).

Petitions must be returned by Noon February 17th.

There is an additional earlier deadline for Sheriff and Road Supervisor candidates. They must have appropriate paperwork to the Peace Officer Standards Training Commission (POST) for sheriff and the Tennessee Highway Officials Certification board 14 days before the qualifying deadline.

While the above offices will appear on May primary ballots, candidates also have the option to run as Independent candidates who will not appear on the ballot until August. However, the same qualifying deadlines apply.

Winners of the May primaries will square off against each other in the August DeKalb County General Election along with any properly qualified Independent candidates.

The local election office is open Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and is located on the first floor of the DeKalb County Courthouse.

December 18, 2021
By: Dwayne Page

Both the DeKalb County Democratic and Republican Parties will hold a primary school board election for districts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7 and any other vacancies that may occur on Tuesday May 3, 2022.

“I have received a proper request from the DeKalb Democratic Party to add school board seats to the May 2022 Primary,” said Administrator of Elections Dennis Stanley.

Local Democratic Party leaders met on Monday, December 6 to make it official.

“We request a May primary be held for any and all school board offices on the August 2022 ballot, including any vacancies that may occur”, signed by Chairman Billie Ann Tubbs-Trigueros and Secretary Carolyn Hawkins.

The Republican Party Executive Committee met on Monday, November 29 and voted to hold a DeKalb County School Board Republican Primary election on Tuesday May 3, 2022.

Party leaders had until December 10 to notify the election commission of their decision in time for the 2022 elections.

Under a new state law, candidates for local school boards in Tennessee can now run-in partisan races.

For many years local school board elections have been nonpartisan in Tennessee and candidates were barred from campaigning as a nominee or representative of a political party when running for school board.

Now, local political parties are allowed to direct county election officials to hold a party primary for the seats. Even with the change in the law, school board candidates do not have to run as Democrats or Republicans. They could still choose to run as nonpartisan or independents in the county general election as they have for the last several years.

In DeKalb County, there are seven school board positions, but the four-year terms are staggered, meaning five of the school board seats are filled in the same election year while the other two positions are filled in elections two years later. In 2022, the seats up for election are currently held by Danny Parkerson in the 1st district, Alan Hayes in the 2nd district, Jim Beshearse in the 3rd district, Kate Miller in the 4th district, and Shaun Tubbs in the 7th district. The other two up for election in 2024 are Jamie Cripps in the 5th district and Jason Miller in the 6th district.

In a letter to chairs of both the DeKalb County Democratic and Republican Parties, Administrator of Elections Stanley explained that the district offices for school board up for election in 2022 can be added to local party primary ballots in May 2022.

“The General Assembly passed legislation during their recent special session that allows parties to nominate candidates for any school board office. Because you have called a primary in May, you have the option to add school board offices that will appear on the August ballot to the primary. This includes county school districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 7,” said Stanley.

“If you would like to supplement your existing call for a primary to add school board offices, you must file an original written notice with our office no later than the close of business on Friday, December 10, 2021. Like any call for a primary, we request that it be signed by two members of the county executive committee,” Stanley said.

The election commission will begin issuing candidate petitions for the May 3, 2022, primaries on December 20, 2021.

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