BARDSTOWN, Ky. — The Nelson County Schools Board of Education did not move to remove the district's superintendent following a special meeting on Wednesday.
In a social media post, District 3 Board member Tracy Bowling said the board is considering to dismiss Nelson County Superintendent Wes Bradley. She said it comes after the board's attorney resigned in December.
Bowling said his decision to leave came after the board's new chair, Amanda Deaton, wanted to call former attorney Eric Farris to discuss dismissing Bradley, who has served in the role since 2018.
"I asked [former school board chair Diane Berry] if they were planning on dismissing [Bradley] and was she saying they had the needed four votes for dismissal," Bowling wrote in a social media post. "She replied, 'Yep.'"
On Tuesday, WHAS11 asked Farris to explain his concerns about the board, but because of attorney-client privilege, he wouldn't speak any further on the matter.
What happened during the meeting?
Board Chair Amanda Deaton recommended the board appoint Jake Thompson, of Crawford & Baxter, P.S.C., as the interim school board attorney. She said he represents several other school districts in Kentucky.
Bowling objected to Thompson's appointment, saying Deaton allegedly contacted Thompson back in April about buying out Bradley’s contract. She said school board law is unique, “it’s not like everyday law.”
“Individual school board members do not have the authority to reach out to an attorney to buy out the superintendent’s contract. I would have hoped that if Mr. Thompson had years of experience as a school board attorney, he would have guided Mrs. Deaton,” she said. “But that didn’t happen.”
Bowling said Thompson reached out to Bradley about the buyout, and Bradley notified Farris, who “quickly responded to Mr. Thompson about the ethical concerns he had with that.”
“If this individual did not find it appropriate and ethical to reach out to our board attorney first, or to guide Mrs. Deaton into bringing the board together to have that conversation, then I can’t say that I can trust him not to let one board member have authority over the board body," she said. “This is not how we conduct business, whoever we do hire should have no prior connection to this board because we are in a unique situation where we don’t have trust among each other, let alone our community trusting us.”
Deaton pushed back against Bowling's claims, saying she "absolutely had the ability to seek counsel from someone."
"Now, I can’t do it on behalf of the board, but I can do it on behalf of myself,” she added, before quickly moving to comments from other board members.
The board ultimately voted 4-1 to appoint Thompson as interim board attorney and issued a request for proposals to find a permanent attorney with the help of the Kentucky School Boards Association.
'Devastating impact'
Bowling, a strong opponent of a controversial plan that would consolidate the district's high schools, confirmed Wednesday that the post warning of Bradley's removal came from her account.
In the post, she said it wasn't uncommon over the last year for her to receive phone calls from Deaton or Berry saying they have the needed votes on an issue.
"While it comes as no shock that three board members have continued to make decisions outside the public eye, it is disappointing with less than 72 hours of board member experience Mrs. Milburn could make such a decision," Bowling said in the post.
Newly-appointed District 5 Board member Nicole Milburn took the vacant seat left by former District 5 representative Damon Jackey in early December. Jackey resigned from the board on Oct. 24 citing similar ethical concerns.
On Wednesday, WHAS11 reached Berry by phone and she denied the board is considering Bradley's removal at the special meeting. The agenda for the meeting did include an executive session "related to the appointment or dismissal of an individual employed by the board."
After a 20-minute executive session, the board reconvened without making a decision on any personnel matters and adjourned for the night.
Former board member Bill Osborne, who left in 2006, said there's very few people the board employs.
"The Superintendent is really your only employee," he said. "And they may fight you in court, but that person who fights you is always your employee. You can always do away with them. You can always take their job. Now, am I happy that it’s come to this? No, it’s embarrassing.“
Osborne's been critical of Bradley's leadership. He blames him for not intervening when students and staff protested a high school merger plan. The former board member supports the merger because he said it would allow higher learning to be offered. He also said there's too many empty seats in the schools as it is now.
WHAS11 reached out to all other board members for comment. At the time of publishing, they have yet to respond.
Despite this, Bowling believes any attempt at removing Bradley would be a continued effort in "silencing those who are advocating for students in Nelson County."
"Since the walkouts in October, the Superintendent has been blamed for the outcry by the community," Bowling wrote on social media. "If you are concerned about the students in Nelson County and know this will have a devastating impact on the amazing work and programs taking place, the time is NOW to voice your concerns because it may not be long before your voice is silenced too."
Jessica Hogue, a mother of a Nelson County Schools student, just wants to move on.
"How are we bettering the education for our kids?" she wondered. "Whether that be facilities, whether that be some other plan that comes up, but we’ve gotta find a way to move forward. And we need to stop the [politics] of this.”
She's chair of NC Forward, a non-profit group that's sued the school district and accused several board members of unethical behavior.
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