(This story was updated to accurately reflect the most current information.)
Several Alachua County School Board seats are up for election this fall. Candidate qualifying ended at noon June 12.
Here are the candidates:
District 1
Gabriel Lopez
Lopez taught kindergarten at Terwilliger Elementary for the past two years. He says he was wrongfully terminated last month by the district, which laid off more than 88 teachers for certification or performance issues. The school board recently voted to close Foster Elementary School and consolidate Alachua Elementary School and Williams Elementary School into their nearby middle schools by fall 2028. Before becoming a teacher, he worked as an HR and operations manager for Target and other businesses.
He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida. His two children attended Alachua County Public Schools.
Hunter Miller
Miller worked as a pharmacy technician before becoming a math teacher at Howard Bishop Middle School, where he has taught for 3 years and was named Teacher of the Year in 2025.
He was raised in Fort Pierce but has lived in Gainesville for nearly a decade. He’s currently obtaining a master’s degree in educational leadership from the University of Florida.
Janine Plavac
Plavac currently serves District 5. She was appointed to the board by Gov. Ron DeSantis in April 2025 to serve out former board member Kay Abbitt’s term following her resignation in December 2024.
She spent 16 years as the director of Gainesville High School’s Academy of Health Professions before becoming director of the Health Sciences Institute at St. Francis Catholic Academy in Gainesville and was named Alachua County’s Teacher of the Year in 2008.
District 3
Gregory Pelham
Pelham is a longtime advocate for education and social justice. For over 13 years, he has served as case manager for the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office’s Teen Court, a diversion program in which juveniles accused of minor offenses face a jury of their peers rather than going through the traditional juvenile justice system.
He also spent 27 years in the ministry.
Sarah Rockwell (incumbent)
Rockwell, a former special education teacher with over 20 years of experience, currently represents District 3 on the board. She previously chaired the Board of Directors for First United Methodist Church of Gainesville Preschool for six years, led a Girl Scout troop for six years, and helped build Gainesville Babywearers into a statewide nonprofit.
She continues serving the community as chair of Alachua County’s Economic Development Advisory Committee and vice chair of the Value Adjustment Board.
She earned her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in special education from the University of Florida, with a focus on early childhood disabilities, reading disabilities, and autism. Her two children, both with disabilities, attended Alachua County Public Schools before the pandemic.
District 5
Jancie Vinson
Vinson is the only candidate to qualify for District 5 and has secured a seat on the board.
Vinson worked for the Florida Department of Corrections for over 36 years and retired as a probation supervisor.
She continues to serve the Gainesville community as vice president of the Gainesville NAACP, a member of the Alachua County Local Planning Commission, and Alachua Soil and Water Conservation District supervisor.
She was born and raised in southwest Gainesville, attended Alachua County Public Schools, and earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Florida.
Vinson ran for the District 5 seat in 2010 and again in 2014 but lost both races.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Meet the candidates running for Alachua County School Board
Reporting by Chelsea Long, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Chelsea Long, Gainesville Sun | USA TODAY Network
