HURON — Where is the misconduct report?
Huron school officials and the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) can’t — or won’t — say what became of a 2022 misconduct report involving former McCormick Middle School principal Chad Carter.
They won’t say what the complaint was about, who filed it, or which agency investigated it. They won’t say what was determined after the complaint was “thoroughly reviewed.” They won’t say why Carter was reassigned to district operations director just two months after the report was filed.
“The report we received indicated that Chad Carter may have engaged in conduct unbecoming to the teaching profession,” a June 2022 ODE letter states. “After a thorough review of the facts in this case, the State Board of Education determined that no disciplinary action will be pursued and the matter involving Mr. Carter is closed.”
ODE instructed the district to retain a copy of the report, but district officials now say they don’t have it.
“The District is not in possession of any misconduct report against Mr. Carter,” school board treasurer Mike Limberios said.
An attorney for ODE, Jason Wagner, gave the same answer: “The State Board of Education does not have any public records responsive to your request.”
On Tuesday, the district was formally notified that the Ohio Court of Claims will be asked to rule whether the report must be released. Before a case can be filed, the court requires the public body to be given one last chance to provide the record.
When asked whether the loss or destruction of the report might itself be a crime, Limberios, superintendent James Tatman, and Wagner did not respond. Wagner said only: “I can’t give you legal advice,” suggesting instead that a review the state Attorney General’s Sunshine Manual on the Ohio Public Records Act could be helpful.
The state law, ORC 149.43, requires agencies to grant access to public records. And ODE’s own 2022 letter directed the district to keep the misconduct report in a “public file.”
Wagner has also claimed such reports might be confidential or destroyed under retention rules, but disciplinary records for public employees are generally permanent.
Meanwhile, Carter’s reassignment coincided with the settlement of two federal lawsuits alleging sexual harassment, assault, and misconduct at McCormick Middle School. The lawsuits claimed staff failed to protect students, and the district paid $625,000 in settlements in August 2022.
Carter’s personnel file provides no records that explain why he was reassigned or how the allegations in the lawsuits were addressed.
Girls matter?
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