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School board member admits replacing superintendent portrait; board moves him off committees and holds closed meeting
Summary
Board members discussed and investigated an incident in which a member replaced the superintendent's portrait with an altered image, moved to a closed session under Va. Code §2.2-3711(A)(8), and the member apologized and offered to resign; the chair removed him from discipline and finance committees immediately.
Members of the Lynchburg City Schools board addressed an incident in which board member Mister DePaul removed and altered a portrait of the district's thirteenth superintendent and replaced it with an image from a movie, then restored the original picture after staff reported it.
Board Chair Doctor Day said the board convened a closed session under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act citing Va. Code §2.2-3711(A)(8) to consult with counsel about the investigation. "On January 21, at the end of a discipline committee hearing in this room, Mister DePaul removed the portrait of Dr. Edwards from the wall and covered the frame ... and replaced it on the wall," Day said. He added that staff observed the changed photograph during a training session on Jan. 27, reported it to Superintendent Dr. Copeland, who restored the original image.
Mister DePaul acknowledged he was responsible. "What I thought was going to be a joke, it obviously turned out to be nothing close to that," he said, offering an apology to the board and to Dr. Copeland. "My apology is given with no equivocations. It's sincere." He told the board he would meet with city council and would resign if the council wanted him to do so.
After the closed session, the chair announced immediate administrative actions: Mister DePaul was removed from the discipline committee and from the finance committee, with Doctor Day or other members to replace him. The board then certified the closed session by roll call; the clerk called roll and the certification motion passed.
Board members compared the incident to disciplinary standards applied to students. Doctor Day said the district must hold itself to the same standards it applies to students who commit pranks or vandalism: "We have kids coming here week after week, putting post-its in restrooms ... They are suspended for 364 days. So the same standards should apply for us in terms of accountability."
Ending: The board chair ordered the clerk to notify committee members of the membership changes. Mister DePaul's offer to resign was recorded publicly; the chair and several members said the action would not be tolerated and that standards of conduct apply to both staff and board members.
