WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Christia Li Roberts defeated Cherie White for the Martin County School Board’s District 1 seat in the Nov. 3 election.
With 60.14% of the vote, Roberts came out victorious against White, who came away with 39.86% of the vote.
District 1 includes Hutchinson Island, Jensen Beach, North River Shores, Ocean Breeze Park, Rio and Sewall’s Point. The district includes Jensen Beach High, Jensen Beach Elementary, Felix A. Williams Elementary, Stuart Middle and the Environmental Studies Center.
The contest was nonpartisan and pitted a 12-year incumbent against a challenger with local-government and classroom experience. Roberts finished first in the August primary with 49.69% of the vote, just short of the majority needed to win outright. White received 26.98%, and Charles Winn received 23.33%.
Roberts, who lives in Stuart, has served on the School Board since 2014. She is also a registered investment adviser and financial consultant and has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Loyola University in Baltimore. In June, Roberts was named chair of the Florida School Labor Relations Service, a statewide organization that supports school districts in labor relations and collective bargaining.
Roberts made her record on academic performance, safety, facilities and fiscal management central to her reelection campaign. She pointed to the district’s A rating, campus improvements, capital planning and referendum work that she says has produced additional operating revenue for schools.
Her top priorities include improving student achievement through early intervention and personalized instruction; preparing to reauthorize the district’s operating referendum in 2028; and expanding STEM, career and technical education, arts and enrichment programs. Roberts says the referendum revenue supports teacher recruitment and retention, school safety, mental-health services and academic initiatives.
On curriculum and library-material challenges, Roberts says the district should follow Florida law and School Board policy while maintaining transparent review procedures, public comment and parental opt-out options. She says individual parent concerns should be addressed without imposing unnecessary restrictions on other students.
White, a Jensen Beach resident, brought a background in municipal government and education. She previously served as city clerk in Stuart, the first village clerk in Indiantown and town clerk in Sewall’s Point. She currently works for Martin County government and as a substitute teacher in Martin County schools. She has an elementary-education degree and a master municipal clerk credential.
White said her experience as a parent of three, former local-government clerk and educator give her a practical understanding of how policy decisions affect students, families, school employees and budgets.
Her campaign was centered on academic achievement, character development and stronger relationships among students, parents and teachers. White says the district should use targeted support to improve student outcomes, build more community engagement and provide families with clearer information about school decisions.
White identified employee retention as an early priority. She said the district should provide fair pay, supportive work environments and a stronger recruitment process. She also has called for more decision-making at the campus level and for additional support for disadvantaged students, including mental-health resources, early-childhood interventions, family-engagement programs and school safety efforts.
On school funding, White said she wants to protect well-funded neighborhood public schools as charter schools and private-school vouchers expand. She supports a legal, consistent process for curriculum and book challenges that respects diverse family values while preserving high-quality public education.
White also proposed a “plain-language” budget with simpler explanations, charts and visual data so residents can better understand district spending. She says special-education reductions should not exceed the overall enrollment decline and that the district should seek state, federal and private grants to support students with disabilities.