Wayne County Public Schools board moves into closed session citing personnel, student matters and pending litigation

The Wayne County Public Schools board moved into closed session on Feb. 9, 2026, after an unnamed board member made a motion to discuss confidential personnel matters, confidential student matters and to consult with the board attorney about pending litigation.

Unidentified Speaker 1, a board member, moved “Motion to go into closed session to discuss confidential personnel matters as provided in North Carolina General Statutes” and added that the session would address student matters and allow consultation with the board’s attorney to preserve attorney-client privilege in a pending litigation the mover described as involving “social media adolescent addiction / personnel entry products liability litigation.” The motion included statute citations as read on the record; the transcript records the citations verbatim as recited.

Unidentified Speaker 2 asked for a second; the motion was seconded and identified on the record as by "Mister Latham." After a call for those in favor to raise their hands, Unidentified Speaker 2 announced, “We're now in closed session.” The transcript records no numerical vote tally or roll-call count.

The board did not disclose any further details in the public record about the personnel matters, student matters or the litigation cited; those topics were placed under the statutory exceptions the mover cited. The case number referenced during the motion was recited in the record in garbled form; it is reported here as stated on the record and not independently verified.

The meeting’s public portion concluded with the board entering closed session under the legal authorities recited on the record. No additional public actions or votes were recorded in the available transcript.