Three candidates are in the running for Liberty County’s School Board District 3 seat in the August 18 primary — Erica Nobles Smith, Thornton Davis and Tommy Duggar Jr.
About Erica Nobles Smith:
Smith worked as a Liberty County school teacher for 10 years and served in the district’s office as a special education staffing specialist. She recently earned her Masters in Communication Science and Disorders from Florida State University.
“I feel like I bring a perspective that is different,” she told the Rural News Service, noting her 17 years of experience as a bonus should she be elected to the school board.
Smith said one of the biggest challenges in District 3 is the number of children leaving public schooling for home-schooling.
“[Homeschooling] is definitely a very big problem as far as funding and trying to keep our schools open,” she says.
Similar trends can be seen across several North Florida counties as schools grapple with increased competition from private, charter and home school options brought about due to the state’s expanded school voucher program, which offers parents state dollars to use on schools of their choice.
Another challenge District 3 is facing is teacher retention and recruitment. Smith says that she wants Florida to be a place where teachers want to come and start their careers.
“There’s such a shortage, especially in these small districts,” she said. Getting people to come out and teach in our area, that’s a huge problem we’re facing right now. I feel like talking with our state representatives [to] creat[e] better pay for teachers all across the State of Florida.”
In recent years, the state has funded pay increases for some teachers but overall, Florida still ranks near the bottom of states for overall teacher salaries.
Smith said that her biggest first-year priority would be listening to teachers, staff, administrators, parents and community members to gain a deeper understanding of what’s currently working in the school system and what can be improved.
“I’m a firm believer that our decisions are gonna come from us taking the time to listen first and then trying to take action from there.”
About Thornton Davis:
Davis is a Liberty County native, and said he brings a perspective of appreciation for what the district already has to the school board.
“I’m not necessarily running on any type of campaign or slogan of change,” he told the Rural News Service. “I want to maintain what we have. Liberty County’s got one of the finest school districts in the state. There are things we need to try to improve on, but if you look at the test scores and the achievements and accomplishments of our schools, our students and our staff, we’re ranked right up at the top.”
In the most recent school grades released by the state, the Liberty County School District received an “A” rating.
Davis works as an account manager with Nextran Truck Centers, an assistant coach for the Liberty County High School softball team, and volunteers as a groundkeeper for local schools. His mother worked in Liberty County schools as a teacher, librarian and administrator for nearly 40 years, and his brother has worked as a teacher in the county for almost 20 years.
He too is concerned about the teacher pay issue. According to the Florida Department of Education’s 2025-26 analysis, Liberty teachers make, on average, $49,304.35 compared to a state average of $57,900.17.
“We’re in a very low income tax bracket,” he said.. “We’re one of the largest landmass counties in the state and probably the smallest, if not the second smallest per capita in population. It’s very challenging. We don’t have the funding, and we can’t afford to lose any more. Liberty County has always done a very good job of finding ways to make more with less, and that’s always a challenge.”
Davis said if elected, his biggest first-year priority would be looking into how to improve benefits and affordability of insurance for school employees.
“One of the biggest concerns I’ve been hearing from teachers and faculty members is health benefits and health insurance premiums. We’ve really got to do something to make it a little more affordable and competitive with other businesses in the public and private sector.”
About Tommy Duggar, Jr.
Duggar Jr. has worked as a beekeeper in Liberty County for 25 years. He has also worked with the Recreation Department for two years and helped create the Liberty County Rec Booster Club. Duggar’s mother was a coach with Liberty County schools for over 30 years, and his father was a school board member for more than 20 years.
“Our family has devoted their lives to the Liberty County School System,” he said during a candidate forum on Friday evening. “Liberty County is my heart, is my soul.”
Duggar Jr. says in order to retain qualified teachers, accountability needs to be put back in the classroom.
“Kids right now are telling teachers what they want to do, how they want to do it, what they’re gonna do. If you put accountability back, teachers can manage their classrooms without a bunch of disruptions. Kids nowadays don’t respect the teachers the way they should, and teachers do not want to work in a classroom where they cannot handle the kids.”
The Rural News Service interviewed Smith and Davis via phone, but was unable to speak with Duggar Jr. All statements from Duggar Jr. were made at the Liberty County candidate forum on Friday, July 31 hosted by the Liberty County Chamber of Commerce.
On the Issues
The Rural News Service asked the candidates the same questions on several issues. Here are some of their other responses:
When asked how the district should respond to the expansion of vouchers and school choice:
Smith: “We’ve got to listen to why our parents are choosing these options. It’s also important that we, as educators, as school board members, take these things to our state representatives, the Department of Education. Really show them and explain to them and plead with them for the assistance we need to strengthen our schools and bring opportunities for the kids to want to stay in school, rather than leaving to go to homeschooling options.”
Davis: “I don’t feel like the sky is falling. The last study that I saw from our superintendent’s office, less than two percent of our students are participating in the voucher and homeschooling program. I don’t see it as a huge problem, but it could easily become a huge problem. Who’s holding who accountable to make sure that these [homeschooled] children are getting a true education? And then what’s to say the parents can’t do that for three, four, five years… then put them back in the school system, and they come in as 7th graders or 8th graders and they’re not writing or reading or performing up to the standard and they’re dropping the school grades?”
Duggar Jr.: “Kids wanting to leave is because of the distractions in the class. We have to focus on making things better for the teachers. If the kids are not wanting to stay, people are withdrawing their kids because they’re not happy. We have to figure it out. This has to be a collective group thing between the school board, administration, teachers and the principals. Make kids want to stay, make kids want to be here. Make it fun. But make it fair and make it where they’re responsible for their actions.”
On a question regarding how schools should handle concerns about library books:
Smith: “I believe school libraries should offer books that are age-appropriate and support student learning. If concerns are raised about a book, they should be addressed through a fair, transparent review process that follows district policy and includes parent input. Parents should have a voice and know what materials are available to their children.”
Davis: “I’m a true die-hard conservative. I am not for books being in our public school system that would involve writings of homosexuality, sexuality, sexual content and transgenderism, and things of that nature. That’s something that should be left at home. I don’t want it in our school.”
While Florida school board elections are nonpartisan, Nobles Smith is a Democrat and Davis and Duggar Jr. are registered Republicans. Liberty County School Board primary elections will take place on August 18th, with early voting beginning August 8th.
This story was produced in partnership with nonpartisan news organizations and universities across the state working to provide information about the 2026 elections. Learn more about the Florida Elections Reporting Partnership at floridaelections.org.