As a former Cobb County School District teacher, Nichelle Davis sought in her initial run for public office in 2022 to be an advocate for the needs of students in the classroom.
As she seeks re-election to Post 6 on the Cobb Board of Education, Davis said some good progress has been made in improving student outcomes and other academic initiatives.
But after running unopposed four years ago, Davis is facing a firebrand Democratic primary opponent who accuses the incumbent of settling for the status quo.
Davis, a native of Florida who taught at Lindley Middle School, is vying for a second term on May 19 against Jennifer Susko, a former Cobb school counselor who regularly blisters the district and school board (our Susko profile can be found here).
Davis recently voted to extend the contract of Superintendent Chris Ragsdale, and for Susko, that was more than enough to challenge her.
As one of three Democrats on the seven-member board, Davis told East Cobb News that “I am not a polarizing candidate. That’s not who I am.”
She says that “I represent a unique voice” and her mission is a simple one: “To get the job done” to help students achieve academic success.
Here’s Davis’ campaign website; she is senior manager at Achieve Atlanta, a non-profit which helps students prepare for postsecondary education.
Early voting in the primaries began Monday and continues through May 15; consult our early voting guide for more information.
The winner of the Post 6 primary will be elected to serve a four-year term on the school board, since no Republican qualified.
Post 6 (see map) includes the Campbell and some of the Wheeler high school attendance zones
It formerly included Walton zone but has been redrawn to boundaries that have made it a predominantly Democratic post.
Susko has received the endorsement of Davis’ predecessor, Charisse Davis (no relation), who was at the center of several school board controversies during her one term.
But Nichelle Davis said that as the only black female member of the board, she understands the importance of treating students fairly.
Susko thinks that minority students in particular are at a greater disadvantage than they should be, and supports restoring banned Critical Race Theory and the 1619 Project program.
Nichelle Davis said that she was “surprised” when Susko announced her candidacy but that “advocacy for everyone looks a little different.
“I lead with joy.”
In explaining her vote to extend Ragsdale’s contract, Davis said that she went on the “facts and data presented to me” about his job performance. She wouldn’t get into details, since those were discussed in executive session, but she said that she made her decision based on “what he has done, based on how we measure success.
“I think we have a lot of good things going on [in the Cobb school district] and I recognize that there is a lot of room for improvement. . . . I made the best decision in that moment.”
She said her approach to serving also reflects the reality of being a Democrat on a Republican-majority board.
“We may not agree on everything,” Davis said, “but we have to move from a space of being confrontational to having courageous conversations. Positive things have been happening” in the district and on the board in moving forward on some of those priorities.
“I’m proud of our enrichment and career-ready programs, charter schools, SPLOST projects and Georgia’s BEST,” she said.
Davis said her objectives are focused on “doing what’s best for kids,” including more curriculum and student support, and in particular improvements in literacy programs.
She also favors more mental health support and resources for students, improving communications between students and their families and the district and the district being more transparent with the public in general.
Davis was critical of the board’s policy last year to ban airing of public comments at board meetings, which she says has hurt dialogue and citizen engagement she thinks is necessary.
She also thinks high school students should be able to speak at board meetings without a parent present (Davis occasionally holds a “Youth Roundtable” with high school students to discuss a variety of issues in the schools.)
“How do we find the right balance between our resources and our needs?” as a district, Davis asked, if the larger public doesn’t know what community members are expressing.
She admits that some of the things she advocates for at times up short on board votes when there’s a distinct partisan difference.
“That is a challenge,” Davis said. “It’s hard to gauge the progress when it moves by inches. There are many things we agree on. But we agree more than we disagree.”
While to some members of the public “it looks the same, there’s ongoing work” that suggests otherwise. “When put to a vote, it still takes a board majority.”
School safety concerns have loomed larger during Davis’ term in office.
That includes a rapid and sometimes secretive expansion of safety programs within the Cobb school district. Last year the district announced it was accepting a state school security grant to hire a cyberintelligence company, Servius, to conduct risk assessments at schools and identify students who may pose threats.
The district also has approved funding for dogs trained with “vapor wake” technology to detect weapons in high schools.
The board has been briefed in executive session about some of these programs, but Davis said that “we need more updates in helping to identify threats quicker.”
But she said that an important measure for the public is to improve gun safety advocacy in the community.
Davis said that regardless of how the partisan dynamics may be on the board—and it could become non-partisan in 2028—this current board is making significant strides.
After some fractious debates prior to her arrival in 2023, Davis said, “we’re starting to find some middle ground. It’s about moving forward with solutions that work” in what would be her second term.
“I love to reframe my thoughts about what a win looks like,” she said. “People know where I’m coming from.”
Davis said the question she constantly asks herself, regardless of the issue before her, is “what is best for students?”
That’s because “I’m a solutions-oriented person . . . it’s the educator in me. That’s why I want to continue serving.”
Related:
- Cobb school board candidate profile: Jennifer Susko, Post 6
- Cobb school board candidate profile: Susan McCartney, Post 4
- Cobb school board candidate profile: Micheal Garza, Post 4
- Cobb Commission candidate profile: JoAnn Birrell, District 3
- Cobb Commission candidate profile: Chris Wasserman, District 3
- Seven East Cobb precinct locations to change for 2026 elections
- East Cobb Early Voting Guide for the 2026 primary election
- East Cobb News explainer: How we cover politics and elections
- MORE: Visit the East Cobb News Politics & Elections Page
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