The Town Square Podcast copertina

The Town Square Podcast

The Town Square Podcast

Di: Trey Bailey Gabriel Stovall
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A proposito di questo titolo

Not just another podcast, but a place to meet in the messy middle and have difficult discussions with transparency and diplomacy where the outcome is unity, not uniformity.

The primary topics will be the local interests of Newton County, Georgia residents and those in the surrounding community.

All rights reserved. Economia Gestione e leadership Management Politica e governo Relazioni Scienza Scienze politiche Scienze sociali Spiritualità Successo personale Sviluppo personale
Episodi
  • Richard Wright

    Richard Wright
    Apr 23 2026

    Wright
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    59 min
  • Alan Fowler: Jobs, Hobbies, and Hope | Candidate Conversations — Episode 83

    Alan Fowler: Jobs, Hobbies, and Hope | Candidate Conversations — Episode 83
    Apr 21 2026
    In Episode 83 of The Town Square Podcast, Trey Bailey and Gabriel Stovall continue their Candidate Conversations series with Alan Fowler, Republican candidate for the Newton County Board of Education District 5 seat. With current board chair Abigail Coggin retiring from the position, Fowler will appear on the November ballot, and this episode gives listeners an opportunity to hear directly from him about his background, philosophy, and vision for public education in Newton County.For many in the community, Alan Fowler is already a familiar face. After all, he spent 26 years at Eastside High School, where he served as band director and helped shape generations of students. But this conversation goes much deeper than résumé lines or campaign language. It offers a look at the heart of a longtime educator, husband, father, music leader, and community member who believes deeply in public schools and the people they serve.The episode begins with Fowler sharing the personal foundation of his life: his family. He describes himself first as the father of two daughters and the husband of his wife, Susan. That opening set the tone for the rest of the discussion. Before Alan Fowler is a candidate, he is a family man whose life in Newton County has been built over decades of service, relationships, and roots.Fowler and his wife moved to Newton County in 1995 after graduate school. He took a job at Salem High School, while Susan began teaching at Livingston Elementary. Not long after, the band director position at Eastside High School opened, and Fowler moved there the following year. That transition would become one of the defining turns in his life and career. What started as a professional opportunity became a long-term commitment not only to one school, but to an entire community.One of the more charming stories from the interview involved the couple’s first introduction to Newton County. While looking for a house, they picked up a copy of The Covington News and read about a July 4th concert by the community band on the Square. Fowler recalled that one of their earliest experiences in the county was attending that celebration, meeting local people, and seeing the community gather around music. Looking back, it feels fitting that his introduction to Newton County came through the arts and public life—two things that would define his years here.Listeners also got a fuller picture of Fowler’s background before Newton County. He was born at South Fulton Hospital, spent part of his childhood in Delaware, graduated from North Clayton High School, and later attended the University of Georgia. Both he and Susan were involved in the Redcoat Marching Band, though they somehow never met until their senior year despite overlapping in the same organization for three years. Their eventual connection, sparked by a key to a storage room and followed by a whirlwind early romance, made for one of the most memorable and warmest parts of the conversation.As the conversation shifted toward education, Fowler offered a thoughtful reflection on what he learned over more than three decades in the classroom. He described three major lessons that shaped him.The first was that leadership is not about the individual—it is about the team. He traced that lesson all the way back to his early days at Eastside, when he was tasked with building a marching band program from the ground up, with students who had never marched before and without much funding. He quickly realized that success would require teamwork from students, staff, helpers, graduates, and the broader community. That mindset clearly still guides him today.The second lesson came through fatherhood. Fowler spoke candidly about how becoming a parent made him a better educator. When his oldest daughter was born, he said he immediately understood with greater clarity that he was teaching other people’s children—their “little babies”—and that realization carried a new weight of responsibility. Later, when his daughter moved through the school system and eventually joined the band program, the work became even more personal. His students were no longer just young people he was helping along their journey; they became part of his own journey too.The third lesson may have been the most philosophical and perhaps the most revealing. Fowler shared how deeply he had been influenced by the statement often heard from Principal Jeff Cher at Eastside High School: “There’s no such thing as an unimportant person or an unimportant day.” Over time, he came to believe that the statement was even more powerful without the limiting phrase “at Eastside High School.” In his view, there is no unimportant person or unimportant day anywhere—not at Eastside, not at Newton, not at Alcovy, and not in any school or community. That belief seemed to capture the heart of his public service philosophy: people matter, every day matters, and every school matters.When asked how those ...
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    57 min
  • Alana Sanders: Ready on Day One | Candidate Conversations — Episode 82

    Alana Sanders: Ready on Day One | Candidate Conversations — Episode 82
    Apr 16 2026
    In Episode 82 of The Town Square Podcast, Trey Bailey and Gabriel Stovall continue their Candidate Conversations series with Georgia House District 113 candidate Hon. Alana Sanders. Representing a district that now covers only Newton County, Sanders joined the show to talk about her story, her preparation for state office, and the issues she believes matter most to local families.As with the best Town Square conversations, this one was not just about policy. It was about purpose, pain, perseverance, and public service. Sanders shared a deeply personal story of loss, a strong vision for Newton County, and a clear message to voters: she believes this role is not a place to learn on the job, but a place to arrive prepared and ready to work.A story shaped by family, education, and lossSanders begins by sharing her roots. Originally from Louisiana, she moved to Georgia in 1999 and to Newton County in 2007. She comes from a family of educators. Her father was a history teacher and band director, and her mother taught economics and social studies. Education, she said, was never optional in her household.That foundation shaped the course of her life, but so did tragedy. Sanders lost both of her parents when she was still very young—her mother around the time of her high school graduation, and her father about a year and a half later. She described a frightening head-on collision the night of graduation, the emotional weight of her mother’s terminal diagnosis, and the painful reality of walking through those seasons while still trying to become an adult.Those experiences, she explained, forced her to grow up quickly. They also deepened her sense of purpose. Rather than becoming defined by grief, Sanders chose to carry forward her parents’ legacy of service, advocacy, and investment in young people.Why Newton County became homeThough she first purchased a home in Henry County, Sanders said a friend introduced her to Newton County in the early 2000s. After visiting and seeing the area for herself, she made the move and has now spent years raising her daughter and serving the community here.That long local connection has shaped the way she sees public service. Over the years, residents have known Sanders in a variety of roles: commissioner, professor, lobbyist, organizer, and community advocate. Throughout the conversation, that wide range of experience came through clearly. She did not speak like someone new to public life. She spoke like someone who has spent years learning how systems work and how decisions affect everyday people.A leader built in many roomsOne of the most interesting parts of the interview was hearing Sanders describe how her different roles have prepared her for higher office. Before serving locally, she worked behind the scenes in political organizing and on campaigns for state representatives. As a lobbyist, she has spent time at the Capitol fighting for issues, navigating legislation, and building relationships. As a professor and trainer, she has taught and presented on policy, technology, and leadership.She said all of those experiences have prepared her for what would be a different level of public service in the Georgia House. Unlike county government, where a commissioner works with a small board, the legislature requires navigating far more personalities, more competing interests, and broader coalitions. Sanders argued that because she has already been in those rooms and already worked on legislation, the transition would not be a dramatic learning curve.That readiness became one of the recurring themes of the episode.People over politicsAgain and again, Sanders returned to a phrase that captures her political philosophy: people over politics.For her, the biggest issues facing families are not truly partisan issues. Housing affordability, mental health, Medicare, education, and property taxes are not just Democratic or Republican talking points, she argued. They are people issues.That framework fit neatly with the spirit of The Town Square Podcast, where Trey and Gabriel often talk about the messy middle—the place where disagreement does not have to destroy relationships and where public conversation can still be civil. Sanders echoed that same posture, saying that elected officials should be able to fight hard for their districts and still sit down together afterward. Politics should not be personal. It should be purposeful.What success would look like in the Georgia HouseWhen asked what the most important responsibilities of the job would be, Sanders focused first on communication and accountability.She said state legislators should host pre-session and post-session town halls so constituents understand what their representatives are supporting, how they are voting, and what actually happened during the legislative session. In her view, representation is not just about casting votes in Atlanta. It is about keeping residents informed, educated, and engaged.She also ...
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    56 min
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