Brian T. Newsome

Age: Editor’s note: If Oviedo Community News could not confirm the age for each candidate in a race, we omit the ages for all candidate in the race out of fairness.

Where they live: Heathrow

Where they work: Vantage Specialty Chemicals

Prior work experience: Other major chemical manufacturers such as BASF and Engelhard Corporation.

Prior political experience: No prior political experience

Platform: Newsome describes himself as a “principled leader, who will set high standards, and will ensure that Seminole County students have a safe and secure environment in which every student can thrive, including the physically and mentally disabled.”

Why they are running, in three sentences or less: “I have been blessed to have received a strong educational background that has allowed me to conduct business within many of the major countries of Asia and Europe, as well as in most of the US. I am an ordained minister and former Army Military Intelligence Officer. The United States has afforded me many opportunities, and it is time for me to give back to the citizens of the greatest country to have ever existed.

Endorsements: None so far

Summary of their campaign finance report: $7,368.10

Candidate website

Fun fact about the candidate: I hold a First Degree Black Belt in the Korean Martial Arts.

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Candidate Q&A: The questions below are based on voter questions and expressed priorities. Each of the candidates within a race were asked the same questions and given the same amount of time to respond. The candidates’ answers were fact checked, checked for spelling and grammar but otherwise unedited.

If elected, what are the three most pressing problems you want to address, and what do you suggest to solve them?

1. Florida ranks near the bottom of the nation in teacher pay. This year, 187 Seminole County teachers received non-renewal notices while the district ran a career fair to replace them. My solutions include fighting for experience-based compensation that rewards mastery, not just hire date; seeking administrative workload relief that allows teachers to focus more on teaching and less on admin; and working to create a school culture where educators feel genuinely valued every day and are treated as the experts they are, not managed as a replaceable resource. As the son of a career teacher, this is personal for me.
2. A $16.7 million deficit. 300+ eliminated positions. 2,000 more students projected to leave next year. I would first suggest cuts at the administrative level, not the classrooms. Every administrative position should justify its direct impact on student outcomes before one teacher is touched. Furthermore, leadership should lead by example with reductions in their own salaries. Simultaneously, I will pursue an aggressive enrollment recovery based on eliminating concerns that hinder academic excellence. The best financial strategy is being focused on the school’s core mission of educating students, thereby mitigating the desire of families to leave Seminole Schools.
3. Parents waited nine days to learn their child was at risk at Sabal Point Elementary. The Florida Commissioner of Education publicly rebuked the district. My recommendation is a mandatory parent notification within an agreed upon short timeframe of any credible safety threat. No exceptions. Second, I would recommend clear written protocols developed with the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office. Last, I will advocate for an annual public transparency report measuring the district’s communication performance against specific, published standards — so families always have an honest accounting of how their schools are serving them.

How should the district handle teacher shortages?

Teachers are leaving because Florida underpays them, overloads them and undervalues them. I will fight for experience-based pay, workload relief and a culture of genuine professional respect. I will also expand teacher pipelines by investing in teacher aides who already want to become certified educators.

Florida ranked last in the nation for academic growth in reading. How would you improve that?

Last in the nation is unacceptable. I will advocate for universal literacy screening at kindergarten entry so we identify struggling readers early on. I will support mandatory evidence-based reading intervention for every student below grade level. Also, I would suggest ongoing professional development in the science of reading for every K-3 teacher. Additionally, I would pursue high-dosage, small-group tutoring for students who are behind. And stronger school library programs would be considered to promote a culture that values books.

What changes, if any, would you make to school safety policies?

Parental notification within an agreed upon and short timeframe of any credible threat. Clear written safety protocols developed with law enforcement and published publicly so every parent knows exactly what to expect. And a mental health early warning system that identifies students in crisis before behavior becomes a safety incident.

How should book challenges and library removals be handled?

Parents have the right to guide their own child’s reading. What I cannot support is a process so paralyzed by volume and politics that books sit in review limbo for years while students lose access to materials that genuinely serve their education. The standard must be clear criteria based on age-appropriateness, qualified reviewers, fast timelines, and meaningful parental involvement. Our libraries should be places of learning and intellectual growth, not casualties of culture wars.

What outside organizations or endorsements are supporting your campaign?

The only endorsement to date is from the Seminole County Republican Executive Committee

If elected, what policy would you try to pass in your first year?

A mandatory parental safety notification protocol along with a public annual compliance report. I choose this first because everything else I want to accomplish depends on a foundation of trust. Right now that trust is fractured. Fix the trust. Everything else follows.

Public school enrollment has been declining in Seminole County for the last several years. How will you handle the declining funding for public education in Seminole County while retaining quality education for students?

Make Seminole County schools so excellent that families stop leaving, as the best enrollment strategy is an excellence strategy. Protect classrooms from cuts by starting every budget reduction at the administrative level. And aggressively pursue every available grant, partnership and alternative revenue source.

Most school funding is controlled by state lawmakers, but local school boards can tack on additional property taxes with voter approval. Do you support additional optional property taxes for schools? Explain your answer.

No.

What role should AI play for students in the classroom? What role should it play for educators?

Every student should understand how AI works, how to use it responsibly and how to think critically about it. Educators should use AI to relieve their administrative burden, which will free them up to further educate our students.

There have been multiple calls for Seminole County Public Schools Superintendent Serita Beamon to resign. Do you support Beamon as superintendent?

I will hold Superintendent Beamon to clear, measurable, public performance standards. If the evidence shows leadership is not serving our students, I will not support Superintendent Beamon. If otherwise, I will support her. The interests of the children are my primary concern.

More than $100 million in public money has gone to private scholarships in Seminole County alone. Philosophically, do you think public money should go to private schools for education? Explain your answer.

Every family deserves the right to choose the education that best serves their child. The most powerful response to families choosing alternatives to SCPS is making our public schools so excellent they stop leaving.

How do you think conflicts between parents and educators should be settled?

First, there should exist accessible communication channels so parents always know how to raise a concern. Second, there must be a culture of mutual respect that says parents and educators are partners. Third, when conflict resolution fails, there should be clear escalation paths with firm timelines. And transparency must exist throughout the process. When people are heard, resolution can follow, but when people are dismissed, conflict escalates. I will advocate for a system where families and educators are heard.