William Jonas Montford III (born August 22, 1947) is an American Democratic politician from

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. He served in the

Florida Senate The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida House of Representatives being the lower house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

from 2010 to 2020, representing parts of the

Florida Panhandle The Florida Panhandle (also West Florida and Northwest Florida) is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida; it is a Salient (geography), salient roughly long and wide, lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia (U. ...

around

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...

. Previously, he served on the Leon County Commission and as Leon County superintendent of schools.

Background

Montford was born in

Marianna, Florida Marianna is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Florida, United States, and it is home to Chipola College. The population was 6,102 at the 2010 census. In 2018 the estimated population was 7,091. The official nickname of Marianna is ...

( Jackson County), raised in

Blountstown, Florida Blountstown is a city in Calhoun County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,514 at the 2010 census, which represented an increase from 2,444 in 2000. It is the county seat of Calhoun County. Name Blountstown is named for John Blount ...

(

Calhoun County Calhoun County is the name of several counties in the United States of America named after U.S. Vice President John C. Calhoun: * Calhoun County, Alabama * Calhoun County, Arkansas * Calhoun County, Florida * Calhoun County, Georgia * Calhoun Cou ...

), is an alumnus of

Chipola College Chipola College is a public college in Marianna, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System. History The school was founded in 1947 as Chipola Junior College; its name was changed in 2003 after the college developed several bachelor's ...

in Marianna, and received both undergraduate and graduate degrees from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

. For the past four decades, Bill Montford has been actively engaged in public education in Leon County and the Big Bend area. Montford began his teaching career as a math teacher at Belle Vue Middle School in Tallahassee, Florida in 1969 and went on to serve as a school administrator for 26 years, including seven years as an assistant principal and 18 years as a high school principal at

Godby High School Amos P. Godby High School is a public high school in Tallahassee, Florida, named for Amos P. Godby, who first served as a teacher and coach at Leon High School, and later became Leon County Superintendent and President and Secretary of the Florida ...

and Lincoln High School. In 1982, Montford successfully ran for Leon County Commission serving two consecutive terms. He ran for Superintendent of

Leon County Schools Leon County Schools (LCS) is a school district headquartered in the LCS Admin Complex in Tallahassee, Florida, Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is the sole school district of Leon County, Florida, Leon County. History Prior to November ...

in 1996. Montford serves as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Florida Association of District School Superintendents (FADSS). In 2016, the Council of Florida College Presidents awarded him the Dr. James L. Wattenbarger Award for "his lifelong service to education". Montford's wife Jane is a first-grade teacher in Leon County. They have two children, Bill IV and Katherine, and five grandchildren.

Senate career

In 2010, Montford was elected to the Florida Senate from the 6th District, and was the Senate Minority Whip for 2010-2012. His district was renumbered the 3rd during redistricting in 2012. In 2016, he was re-elected with 67.4% of the vote over Republican challenger Nancy Miller. Montford stated that his priorities for the coming term would include education, “out-of-control testing," environmental protections, and a wage increase for state employees. Montford serves on local and statewide boards including the Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee, Board of Directors and Chairs the Chamber's Governmental Affair Committee;

The Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science The Mary Brogan Museum of Arts and Science, also known as the Brogan Museum and MOAS was an art and science museum located at 350 South Duval Street, Tallahassee, Florida. History Located in downtown Tallahassee on Kleman Plaza, the museum was ...

;

Challenger Learning Center Challenger Center for Space Science Education is a United States 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, DC. It was founded in 1986 by the families of the astronauts who died in the Space Shuttle ''Challenger'' disaster on ...

, the Florida Center for Performing Arts and Education, and The Village Square. He was appointed by Governor

Charlie Crist Charles Joseph Crist Jr. (; born July 24, 1956) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th governor of Florida from 2007 to 2011 and as the U.S. representative for from 2017 to 2022. Crist has been a member of the Democratic ...

to the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and the Legislative Committee on Intergovernmental Relations.

References

External links

billmontford.com

Official State Senate Website
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Montford, Bill 1947 births Living people People from Marianna, Florida People from Tallahassee, Florida Chipola College alumni Florida State University alumni American school administrators Democratic Party Florida state senators County commissioners in Florida 21st-century American politicians