(a) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this Code section, no member of the board or full-time employee thereof, during his or her service upon or under the board, shall engage in any other business or profession or hold any other public office which business, profession, or office conflicts with his or her official duties as a member of the board or as an employee thereof; nor shall he or she serve as a representative of any political party or any executive committee or other governing body thereof, or as an executive officer or employee of any political committee, organization, or association; nor shall he or she be engaged on the behalf of any candidate for public office in the solicitation of votes or otherwise become a candidate for public office, without resigning from the board or from employment by the board.

(b) Except as provided by subsection (c) of this Code section, an employee of the board shall not be required to resign from employment by the board if he or she becomes a candidate for a public office of a county, school district, or municipality which does not require full-time service or accepts appointment to such an office.

(c) An employee of the board shall be required to resign from employment by the board if he or she becomes a candidate for the General Assembly or becomes a candidate for or accepts appointment to a public office which requires full-time service.