John Collick, who previously told the Times he would not run for reelection, says he’s reconsidered and will seek a second term representing the Carrsville area on Isle of Wight County’s School Board.

“I have been asked by at least two dozen parents of students in Isle of Wight schools to reconsider my decision not to seek reelection,” Collick told the Times. “I have also been contacted by several other citizens asking me to run again.”

Collick said when he initially decided to step down, he knew of “two fine women who share my values and could easily step in and help move our school division forward.”

“Unfortunately, it seems neither of them is able to run, after all,” he said.

Collick, a retired Marine, was elected in 2021 to represent District 5, which spans from the southern tip of the county up through its border with Southampton and Surry counties.

“As a firm believer in term limits, making a decision to run for reelection has been very difficult. … Because I strongly believe in term limits, if the good people of Isle of Wight County, District 5, see fit to reelect me, it will be my final term on the School Board,” Collick said.

Just under a month remains for county residents looking to run for a seat on the School Board or Board of Supervisors to submit their paperwork to get their names on the November ballot. Candidates have until June 17 to file their declaration of candidacy and petition of qualified voters.

Per state law, declarations of candidacy must be accompanied by a petition bearing the signatures of at least 125 registered voters who reside in the voting district for the office sought. The deadline overlaps with the scheduled date for Democratic and Republican primary elections to decide each party’s nominee for the House of Delegates, lieutenant governor and attorney general.

Collick said he kicked off his signature-gathering campaign on May 17 by hosting a petition-signing event at his home.

According to Isle of Wight Registrar Lisa Betterton, only Don Rosie, who represents District 5 on the Board of Supervisors, and Rudolph Jefferson, who represents the District 3 supervisor seat, had filed their candidacy paperwork as of May 19.

Collick campaigned with the endorsement of the county’s Republican Party chapter in 2021 on opposition to equity initiatives he said were aligned with tenets of Critical Race Theory, which argues American laws and institutions have perpetuated inequalities among minorities. His win that year over Jackie Carr, a former Carrsville Elementary principal and Isle of Wight County Schools administrator, ushered in the board’s current conservative majority, with Board Chairman Jason Maresh and Vice Chairman Mark Wooster each winning their respective seats in 2022 on campaign promises to eliminate what they called “divisive” content from Isle of Wight County Schools’ curriculum.

The majority voted 3-2 in 2023 to enact a policy barring teachers from teaching lessons on “systemic racism,” incorporating language from an executive order by Gov. Glenn Youngkin mandating an end to “inherently divisive concepts, including Critical Race Theory.” The policy governing the teaching of controversial issues now explicitly asserts there to be “no systemic racism or bigotry perpetuated by the United States or any governmental entity.” Brandi Perkins, who made Youngkin’s “parental rights” campaign her own during the 2023 election cycle, cemented the board’s conservative majority with her win that year.

The District 5 seat is one of two on the School Board up for election this year. The other is the District 3 seat, which is currently held by Michael Cunningham. 

Cunningham, a former substitute teacher and Army veteran who was elected to his first term in 2021, previously told the Times he would not seek another term.

In addition to the District 3 and District 5 supervisor and School Board races, Carrollton-area voters will also cast ballots in a special election for the remainder of the late William McCarty’s term in the District 2 supervisor seat.

McCarty, 48, who’d served on the board since 2016, died of double pneumonia on Jan. 25, just over a year into his third four-year term in office. On March 6, the four remaining supervisors voted to appoint Thomas Distefano, formerly of the county’s Planning Commission, to temporarily fill the vacated seat through election day. Distefano has not announced whether he will run for the two-year remainder term.