District 1
District 1 school board member Dr. Kelly Coker decided not to run for reelection, leaving two candidates vying for the seat.
Dr. Nadine Ebri
Dr. Ebri Nadine obtained a bachelor's degree in elementary education from UNF in 2013 and returned to achieve a master's in educational leadership in 2018. She received her Doctor of Education degree in 2023.
After finishing her undergraduate studies, she began teaching in Duval County, where she taught grade levels from kindergarten to eighth grade.
Dr. Ebri was named a finalist for the 2021 Duval County Teacher of the Year Award. That same year, she accepted a position with Duval County Public Schools as a district specialist to manage the Minecraft Lab. She is currently employed by Microsoft as the Global Education Community Manager for Minecraft Education.
Tony Ricardo
Mr. Ricardo has been a resident of District 1 since 1960 and is a former teacher at Andrew Jackson High School, as well as New Covenant Christian Academy.
He has been a member of First Coast Christian Center for 27 years and served as a board member, deacon, teacher, and choir member. He has also funded and served on several mission trips to help Christians in other countries.
He is a former soccer, tennis, and baseball coach for the local athletic league and in the schools where he worked.
He is married, with three children and eight grandchildren, and is the owner/operator of Ricardo Designs.
District 3
Incumbent board member Cindy Pearson faces one challenger in the election.
Rebecca ‘Becky’ Nathanson
Ms. Nathanson grew up in the Miramar neighborhood and settled in Lakewood. She was born and raised in School Board District 3 and attended Hendricks Avenue Elementary, Pine Forest Fifth and Sixth Grade Center, Landon Junior High, and graduated from Wolfson High School.
Her career has spanned a variety of HR specialties, from staffing and recruiting, workforce and professional development, employee relations, leadership development, and instructional design and curriculum development.
She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from William Peace University. She has served as senior coordinator for the Children’s Education Department at Southpoint Community Church.
Cindy Pearson
Board member Pearson is a Jacksonville native who attended Duval County Public
Schools K-12. She and her husband Scott have three students in DCPS schools. For the past 8 years, she has been a parent volunteer at the elementary, middle, and high school levels.
Ms. Pearson holds a BA in English from Florida State University and an MS in Recreation Studies from the University of Florida. She has worked for a city government and for a faith-based not-for-profit organization.
District 5
Board member Warren Jones is term limited and there are three candidates looking to take his place on the board.
Reginald ‘Reggie’ Blount
Mr. Blount is a lifelong resident of Jacksonville and former city council candidate, He attended Duval County Public Schools and earned his bachelor’s in business management, master’s degree in public policy, and a special graduate certificate in security, stability, and development in complex operations from the Naval Post-Graduate School.
He is currently the assessment coordinator in partnership with the Florida
Department of Children and Families and has also worked for adult continuing education at Florida State College Jacksonville. He has served as a high school track and field coach, both stateside and abroad, and is the male mentorship program curriculum writer at Biscayne High School.
Reginald and Amy Blount have raised six children, three of whom served in the military, and have six grandchildren.
Hank Rodgers
Mr. Rodgers completed his undergraduate studies at the University of North Florida earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. He then pursued further education at Troy University, where he obtained a master’s degree in public administration. He currently holds the position of Chief Operating Officer for I’m A Star Foundation, Inc.
He serves on several boards, including the Northeast Florida Community Action Agency, the Sales Surtax Oversight Committee, Jacksonville Housing Authority, and the Jacksonville Branch NAACP. He is also a member of the First Baptist Church of Oakland and Alpha Phi Alpha, Fraternity, Inc.
He was born and raised in Miami, Florida, and attended local public schools.
Dr. Nahshon Nicks
Dr. Nicks is a father of school-age children in public school and has worked with disadvantaged youth throughout Jacksonville.
He is the former CEO of First Coast Leadership Foundation and is the founder of Team NITRO MMA. Over the past decade, his martial arts program has reached thousands of youth throughout the city.
Dr. Nicks earned his BA in Education from Edward Waters University, a double master's from Strayer University, and a doctoral degree in Christian Education from New York Theological Seminary.
District 7
Board member Dr. Lori Hershey is also term limited and there are two candidates seeking to serve on the board for District 7.
Sarah Ann Mannion
Sarah Mannion is a Jacksonville native and local attorney. As a wife and mom of three, she served on DCPS PTAs and School Advisory Councils.
Ms. Mannion is a graduate of Duval County Public Schools. She attended Greenland Pines Elementary, Mandarin Middle School, Twin Lakes Middle School, and Wolfson High School.
She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of North Florida and her law degree from Florida Coastal School of Law. She is a past president of the Jacksonville Women Lawyer Association, and board member and past chair of the Women’s Center of Jacksonville.
Melody Ann Buldoc
Ms. Buldoc attended Beauclerc Elementary School, and then her parents took advantage of school choice and sent her to St. Joseph’s Catholic School in Mandarin. She graduated high school with honors from Bishop Kenny and earned the Florida Merit Scholarship.
She graduated summa cum laude from the University of North Florida in 2000. She took her first teaching job at Wolfson High School and continued to work within the public school system until 2014. She is in the process of publishing her first children’s book and is completing the last requirements for her doctorate.
Ms. Buldoc is the founder of Keys Educational Resource Center, and a member and children’s minister at Freedom House. She is also a member of Moms for Liberty, American Heritage Girls Family, and Civil Air Patrol Family, and is an Academic Dean at Kingdom Leadership Institute.
