The Knox County school board race in the largely rural 8th District was already notable in December, when it became the only open seat on either the school board or County Commission with no Democratic candidate in contention.

One of the two candidates will be a school board member next week.

That means that the March 5 Republican primary between candidates Tommy Lakins and Travis Wright will effectively decide the contest. The primary winner will go on to the Aug. 1 general election unopposed.

But then 8th District incumbent Mike McMillan, who had held the seat since 2010 and was not seeking reelection, died in early February after a long illness. That left the position not just electorally open but vacant, with more than six months left in McMillan’s term.

Knox County Commission has the legal responsibility to appoint someone to serve out the term, so that the district doesn’t go unrepresented on the nine-member school board. Given the looming Republican primary and the lack of any other candidates, county commissioners voted at their monthly meeting on Monday to call a special meeting on March 6 and immediately appoint the primary winner to the seat. 

The two men contending for the position both tout roots in the district, which stretches across all of East Knox County and includes areas north of Halls as well as Corryton, Gibbs, Carter and Mascot. Both are first-time candidates, although Wright can claim politics in the family — his uncle is state Rep. Dave Wright, who previously represented the 8th District on County Commission.

Wright has a fundraising edge, reporting $19,459.99 through Jan. 15 to $11,764.59 for Lakins. Maybe more significantly are the names on the donor lists, which for Wright include multiple members of the Haslam family as well as Knoxville Focus publisher Steve Hunley — whose support is often crucial in the 8th District.

Wright is also less accessible than Lakins — despite efforts to reach him by email and phone, he was the only candidate in any local race whom Compass never heard back from. So the candidate profile below was drawn from publicly available information. (Lakins, in contrast, readily agreed to an interview.)

Here’s a look at both contenders.

Tommy Lakins

Lakins is a native Knox Countian who graduated from Fulton High School and earned a degree from the University of Tennessee in 1981. He has worked in information technology for the past 42 years, first with BellSouth/AT&T and then Regal Entertainment Group, before joining Elavon. He is an assistant vice president and senior director of the company’s Global Support Center.

“What happens is when something fails, an alarm comes up to my team and I have to have six people in line at all times around the world,” Lakins said.

He added, “I'm known as the Hallmark guy, because I'm the oldest individual in the senior leadership team, and they're all the time saying every time I open my mouth I sound like a Hallmark card. Maybe that's because I have a lot of the old-school leadership styles and things that to me just never go away.”

He has been married for 28 years and has two grown children, a son and a step-daughter, who both graduated from Gibbs High School and went on to advanced degrees. Lakins was active in school parent organizations while his children were students, and he almost ran for school board once before, in 2000. That time, he held off when another candidate he supported entered the race.

But this year, he said he thought it was time to give it a shot. He still has close connections to the 8th District schools thanks to two grandchildren who attend them, both elementary students. 

“Over the last two or three years many other parents, people who were not inside the school system, educators, and several principals have asked me, will I please consider running for the school board,” Lakins said. “After some prayerful consideration over the last year and a half, my wife and I decided it was time for a change. And that’s been the theme of my campaign.”

McMillan had held the seat with minimal opposition since 2010. Prior to that, he had served on County Commission, in a seat he more or less inherited from his father, Joe McMillan. But the last time McMillan ran, in 2020, he was hospitalized for much of the campaign, and his ability to serve actively in the seat was significantly curtailed in the last few years by his health issues.

“I've really dedicated a lot of my time in the last eight months in listening to what the parents and other individuals felt their schools needed and what we need to have priorities on,” he said.

He has identified four primary areas of focus:

• Safety: “I believe there are many more things that can be done to make our children, staff and teachers safe.”
• Technology in the classroom, including both the promise and perils of artificial intelligence. He said he is well positioned to help, as the current chair of the Knoxville Technology Council.
• Fiscal accountability: “I’ve run departments with millions of dollars in the past. I feel that I can use that same skill set I've had in business to to assist with some of the budget.”
• Accessibility: Lakins said he has heard frustration with the inability of district residents and school staff to interact with their board member. In addition to regular check-ins, he said he would host quarterly “Talks With Tommy” in the district for anyone who wants to come share any comments, questions or concerns.

He also wants to help with communications from Central Office, which he thinks can be inconsistent and confusing. He said he saw that in his own family as his grandson had to navigate the implementation of the new third-grade reading law, which imposes requirements on students who score below “proficient” on state tests.

“Communication was very awkward, it was not consistent, it was not the same from school to school,” Lakins said.

Asked about Gov. Bill Lee’s proposal to expand a school voucher program statewide, Lakins said he supports parental choice. He said Knox County needs to focus on improving its own schools and meet students’ needs, which will keep families from seeking other options.

“Competition is not a bad thing,” he said. “I am a Republican. We are driven by competition. My entire life has been competition. I don't know how we can walk backwards and say that being competitive is not a good thing.”

On the other hand, he is not persuaded by concerns raised by Moms for Liberty and other culturally conservative groups about materials in school libraries. After reviewing the issue and talking to district officials, Lakins said he is satisfied with the processes that are in place.

“I’m very impressed with the (current) policy,” he said. “I don’t know that we can really improve on it.”

Lakins’ financial contributions through Jan. 15 came primarily from supporters in the 8th District.

He promised that if he is elected, he will strive to represent everyone in the district — not only those who agree with him or vote for him on this race’s Republican-only ballot.

“Sixty-eight to 70 percent of the 8th District are Republicans,” he said. “Well, that means 32 percent are Democrats. So 32 percent of my district is not going to get to make a selection for a school board position. I don’t want that.”

Travis Wright

According to a profile in Hunley’s Knoxville Focus, Wright was born in Corryton and has lived in the 8th District his whole life, graduating from Gibbs High School. He earned a degree from UT in 2002 and then worked at First Tennessee Bank, before starting his own business, Informed Logic, which helps with audio-video system design and installation for homes and businesses.

He currently has a son at Gibbs Middle School, and is a volunteer baseball coach in the community.

Wright told the Focus that he supports parents’ rights and wants to be a voice for those in his district, particularly for fiscal responsibility. 

His family ties have paid dividends in support and endorsements. Besides contributions from Hunley and the Haslams, he has been endorsed by current board Chair Betsy Henderson and Vice Chair Steve Triplett, who have touted him as “a strong conservative voice.”

U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett has also signaled support, saying, “My wife Kelly and I live in the 8th district and we are voting for Travis for the 8th district school board seat and I hope you will too.”

Wright initially committed to appear at a school board candidate forum last month organized by the League of Women Voters of Knoxville/Knox County, but he did not show up. (Lakins also missed the forum, because he had a previously planned out-of-town anniversary trip with his wife.)

Wright did appear at the Three Rivers Republican Club in January. You can watch his presentation here, courtesy of Republican blogger Brian Hornback.