Cole BehrensColumbus Dispatch
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Columbus City school board has censured board member Brandon Simmons through the end of this year over a leaked document proposing school closure strategy, and also said he was improperly withholding public records.
The leaked school closure strategy document, “Taking Control of the Task Force Narrative," is connected toSimmons and has led to calls for his resignation from the district's teachers union. The board initially met in an over three-hour private executive session to consider "the investigation of charges or complaints against a public official."
Board President Christina Vera and other members have maintained that Simmons was the sole author of the document, but he says it was a collaborative process including Vera, other board members and district administration.
Here's everything we know about the leaked document scandal:
'Angst, distrust:' Why did the board censure Brandon Simmons?
Columbus City school board voted unanimously Wednesday night — Simmons joined them — to censure Simmons. A censure is an expression of severe disapproval from a governing body, but it does not remove Simmons or affect his ability to sit on the full board and vote on matters. However, Vera did remove Simmons from his two board committee assignments as chair of theCommunity Engagement & Advocacy Committee and as a member of the Equitable & Transparent Resource Management Committee.
During Wednesday's special meeting, other board members expressed disappointment in Simmons and distanced themselves from the document, reiterating that Simmons was the sole author of the document.
Board Member Michael Cole said Wednesday that since Simmons assumed his role on the board at the beginning of the year, Simmons has “displayed disruptive, dismissive behavior that has done nothing but create angst, distrust.”
“He has been abusive of staff; he’s been dismissive of things we asked him to do. It’s just time now that consequences be rendered,” Cole said.
What does Simmons say?
Simmons has continued to maintain that he did not act alone, and that other board members and district officials collaborated to create the strategy document.
During the Wednesday meeting, he issued a statement saying that Vera, Vice President Tina Pierce, member Jennifer Adair and Superintendent Angela Chapman had all contributed to the document and provided three descriptions of meetings he attended with them. He did not provide material evidence to support those claims.
All have denied involvement in the creation of the document.
What is in the leaked document?
The document in questionis a draft of a proposed strategy for handling opposition to the district's plan to close school buildings and was first released publicly May 21 by the Columbus Education Association, the union representing the district's more than 4,500 teachers and other educational professionals, after aschool board member shared it.
Read the leak: What to know about the document at the center of a Columbus schools scandal
Some proposals in the document suggest to:
- "Drive a wedge" between the district's two unions by holding a hearing on the "disrespect of classified employees by 'other employees,'" and to not ignore "racial dynamics."
- “Reward good media outlets” with “priority seating or camera location” and “priority interviews."
- "Bring in loud mechanical equipment if (the unions) hold a press conference on our land”
- "Change the (meeting) location last minute" on public meetings about the closures to keep opponents out.
In its release, the CEA said the document was racially divisive, and called for a pause to the closure process. The union also called for Simmons to resign.
How was the document leaked?
Board member Sarah Ingles said earlier this month that she was the one who had shared the document with the CEA, The Dispatch previously reported.
"After serious consideration of what was best for the district and our students," Ingles said she decided to share the document.
"I was appalled and offended when I read it," Ingles stated in a prepared release. "Our work in the district is too important for these kinds of divisive and absurd tactics."
What do public records requests show?
The Dispatch has filed a number of public records requests with the district seeking to verify claims made by the board and Simmons, and has not received responses.
On Wednesday, board member Jennifer Adair said the district was unable to fulfill numerous records requests because Simmons was refusing to comply with them. On Wednesday, the board passed a resolution instructing the district's legal counsel to compel Simmons to release the requested documents.
Simmons said that he was retaining his own legal counsel and that he would begin the process of acknowledging public records requests after he has obtained an attorney.
Who is Brandon Simmons?
Simmons, 23, of Columbus' Hilltop area, is a first-term member elected to the Columbus City Schools Board of Education last November.
He previously enjoyed the endorsem*nt of both district unions as a candidate at the expense of incumbent board member Carol Beckerle, who was not endorsed by the unions or the local Democratic party. Last year, Franklin County Democratic Party chairman Mike Sexton told The Dispatch that Beckerle had not received the party endorsem*nt because she did not have union or community support that other candidates, including Simmons, had.
Simmons, a 2020 graduate of Columbus Alternative High School, began his political advocacy in 2019 when he was a high school student and publicly complained about the conditions at the school, The Dispatch previously reported. Earlier this month, Simmons and Vera led a media tour of Columbus Alternative to point out problems they said made the district a candidate for closure as the district consolidates from more than 110 schools.
Will the document controversy impact school closures?
Following the initial wake of the document's publication, some stakeholders expressed concern that the closure process could be in jeopardy, The Dispatch previously reported.
More: Will the leak scandal derail Columbus City Schools' bid to close as many as 20 schools?
The scandal comes at a perilous time for the district’s school closing process, where the board is assessing proposals from the Superintendent's Community Facilities Task Force to close as many as 20 of the district's schools.
Vera said Wednesday that the school closure discussions will continue unimpeded.
“The important work of the task force will continue under the superintendent’s direction,” Vera said.
Editor's note: a previous version of a photo caption of board member Jennifer Adair in this story contained an incorrect description.
Cbehrens@dispatch.com
