FAQs

As I keep getting asked similar questions by constituents, I will do my best to provide my answers here.  

If you have a specific question for me, please do not hesitate to reach out to me at 615-482-0081 and/or drmargiejohnson@gmail.com.

Why are you running as a Republican candidate and not an Independent?

In the 2020 school board race, all candidates ran as Nonpartisan candidates.  However, a state law was recently passed requiring local elections to be partisan elections; therefore, I had to declare to run as a Republican, Independent, or Democrat.  I could have chosen to run as an Independent; however, that would have been deceptive, which is against my core value of integrity.  

If you look at my public voting record, you will see that I vote in the Republican primaries because I agree with the Republican parties’ stances around the limited role of government and fiscal conservatism.  With that being said, I have seen educational laws and policies from both sides of the aisle be harmful for our children and write about this issue in my book, Child Champion: Advocating for a Great Education (2022).  If elected, my priority will be to Williamson County students, families, educators, and community.  With my 27+ years of experience in education, I will be able to ask the right questions to ensure we are doing what is best for Williamson County.

Since you agreed to sit down and discuss educational policy with a local political action committee or organization, do you support them? 

I want to address this question because in the last election all 3 candidates were asked to sit down and discuss educational policy with a  a particular organization.  The other 2 candidates declined the request to meet with them.  Because I was the only candidate that agreed to met with them, the rumor was spread that I fully supported this organization, which was not true.


As a candidate running for a public office, I consider myself a public servant.  In this role, it is my responsibility to meet with any and ALL group(s) of people or person(s) who want to meet with me and discuss educational policy no matter their beliefs or background as it has been my experience that the best ideas come from listening and honoring differing perspectives.  The bottom line is I want to unite our community to do what is best for all Williamson County students, families, educators, and community members and will work to make that happen.  If you would like to meet with me, please feel free to reach out to me at 615-482-0081 and/or drmargiejohnson@gmail.com.

Are you accepting political donations or support from any political action committees?

I will NOT be accepting donations or soliciting support from any political action committee.  I do not want anyone to think that I will be influenced by a particular organization while on the school board.  Instead, I will be garnering support from individuals, who want an experienced educator, who will represent them on the Williamson County School board to do what is best for supporting student success.

What do you mean my ideological beliefs infiltrating our classrooms?

Children are very impressionable, particularly the younger they are.  Therefore, personal beliefs and opinions have no place in the classroom as families need to teach these beliefs to their children.  For example, when I was a middle school science teacher, even though I am a Christian and a Republican, I did not hang a cross or Republican flag in my classroom nor did I teach students about my beliefs.  Instead, I taught them without a scripted science curriculum with teacher created evidence-based, engaging lessons.

Also, children need to be safe at school from exposure to sensitive topics and/or content.  Parental permission is required for students to be taught about certain topics and view certain movies.  Parents need to have the peace of mind knowing that their child will also not encounter content in books that is not age-appropriate.

What is your policy position on arming teachers in schools? ?

Regarding arming teachers in schools, I am not in favor of arming teachers with guns in the classroom. First and foremost, I know very few teachers who would want that extra responsibility.  I know when I was teaching in the middle school classroom, I would not have wanted to have a gun on me for fear that something harmful to my students might unintentionally happen.  We already ask teachers to do too much in the classroom; therefore, I would not want this added burden to them.  

Regarding the TN legislation that passed, if you read all of it there are several things that must be in place BEFORE a school employee may carry a gun to school.