Trustees vote to post notice proposing termination of teacher after her public denial of misconduct claims

Brownfield Independent School District trustees voted after a closed session to direct the superintendent to post notice proposing termination of probationary contract for teacher Stephanie Moore and to deliver that notice by Oct. 27, 2025.

Moore addressed the board during the public-comment portion before the vote and denied three allegations that she said accused her of harming a child. "I have never injured a child in all of my life and wouldn't start now," she told trustees, saying the complaints followed her Sept. 26 email requesting that a chronically disruptive student not return to her classroom. Moore said she was placed on administrative leave the same day she filed the removal request and asserted there was no video evidence or witnesses to substantiate the allegations.

During the meeting, the board accepted the superintendent's recommendation to propose termination, directing that the notice include procedures for requesting a hearing before an independent hearing examiner and authorizing district counsel to represent the board. The motion—moved on the record by Tim Swearingen and seconded on the record—passed on a voice vote; the record reflects the motion directs that Stephanie Moore's contract be terminated at the end of the 2025–26 school year pursuant to Texas Education Code §21.103 if the action proceeds as proposed.

Board members and staff explained the procedural steps required by state law: the motion directed that a final notice of proposed contract termination be prepared for the board president's signature and delivered within the specified timeline, and that counsel be retained to advise the board and present the case if the matter proceeds to a hearing. The board did not read an extended roll-call voting tally into the record; the chair announced "the ayes have it" after the voice vote.

Moore told trustees she had 21 years of teaching experience and said her request under Chapter 37 of the Texas Education Code—also referenced in her public remarks as a lawful mechanism to protect classroom learning—precipitated the allegations. She asked trustees to consider the timing of the complaints and said there was no corroborating video or witness testimony. The board's action following closed session was procedural: it posts the proposed termination, not a final termination, and includes a hearing process for Moore to contest the recommendation.