The vice president of the St. Louis Public Schools board is not seeking reelection.
Matt Davis announced on Facebook just before the Tuesday filing deadline that he is not running for a second term on the school board, which is grappling with the fallout from former Superintendent Keisha Scarlett’s 14-month tenure. The board fired Scarlett in September, contending she misused public funds and violated district hiring policies.
The board has faced criticism for not conducting greater oversight of Scarlett. Davis contends that the board is not responsible for her misdeeds.
Davis wrote Tuesday that he had mixed emotions about the decision to stay off the ballot, but that he “was looking forward to getting back to a sense of normalcy.”
“I am keenly aware that the last four years [have] been a hardship on my family and my job,” he said. “Most times the school board was all-consuming. It is not fair for me to be a semi-absent husband, father and business partner for another four years.”
Davis, a partner at the law firm Davis Olszeski, was elected to the board in April 2021.
Board of Education President Antoinette “Toni” Cousins has filed to run for reelection in April. Two-term board member Natalie Vowell also announced Tuesday that she will not seek another term.
St. Louis Public Radio reported earlier this month that Scarlett and her office charged more than $200,000 to district credit cards. Those charges included $4,452 on DoorDash, $6,876 at Amazon and roughly $2,000 at Walter Knoll Florist.
This story was updated with Natalie Vowell also not running for reelection.
