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Community speakers urge board to end ‘chapter’ by terminating superintendent amid ongoing EEOC charge
Summary
Multiple public commenters at the Middletown City School District meeting urged the board to terminate the superintendent’s contract amid prior lawsuits and an active EEOC charge. Speakers described improved school climate during the superintendent’s leave and called for a transparent national search.
Several community members used the board’s public-comment period to press Middletown City School District trustees to move toward terminating the superintendent’s contract, citing past litigation and an active federal charge.
Terry Randolph, a taxpayer and business owner, told the board it should “terminate the superintendent, terminate the superintendent’s employment effective immediately with a contractually required severance payout and a one time final resolution” and begin a transparent national search for new leadership. Randolph cited prior legal matters, saying administrators sued the district in 2022 and that a new EEOC charge was filed against the superintendent on Aug. 5, 2025, which he described as still active.
Judy Ray, an alderman and longtime district parent, raised separate but related concerns about policy and tone, arguing the district should avoid rules that send negative messages to students. On a proposed ban of sealed steel water bottles, Ray said the board’s response to an incident elsewhere risks sending a racialized message to students — “you are telling these kids that because of the sheer fact that these kids are of a certain ethnic mix, that they are definitely more likely to be violent.”
Other speakers offered differing perspectives. A parent said the high school appears calmer while the superintendent is on leave and urged trustees to “continue the peace.” Former trustee Nicole Hewson criticized board procedures and governance, urging fiscal restraint and better meeting practice.
Multiple commenters asked the board to act to stop ongoing fiscal exposure and staff loss they tied to leadership disputes. Several speakers urged a transparent process for any employment action and for a national search that produces diverse, qualified candidates.
The board did not take an immediate public vote to terminate the superintendent at this meeting. Earlier in the sequence of recent meetings, trustees voted against reinstating the superintendent; public speakers referenced those prior votes and ongoing community concern. The meeting record shows the public-comment period included requests both to terminate and to preserve the current interim leadership arrangement, reflecting divided public views.
What happens next: speakers asked the board to place a termination motion on a future agenda and to commence a national search if the board moves forward; no timetable was announced on the record at this meeting.
