Sexual harassment, bullying allegations against Myers lead to these MCSD board votes

The allegations of online sexual harassment and bullying against a Muscogee County School Board member two months ago led to two votes Monday night about policies regarding the behavior of the elected representatives.

One was approved, the other failed.

On the agenda were proposals to revise two policies:

The policy revision adds two guidelines to the board’s code of ethics:

▪ “Communicate with the public with language that is professional and not disrespectful, whether it be in person, by electronic means or by social media, in regards to school district issues.”

▪ “When making posts or comments on social media sites, consider carefully how such communication would reflect on the individual making the post, the Board, and the District as a whole and refrain from language that may be offensive.”

The board unanimously approved this policy revision.

Instead of adding another policy, as originally proposed at last month’s meeting, the board also voted on adding this to its Internet acceptable use policy:

“Postings made by individual Board members on social media sites should be considered carefully in light of how such communication would reflect on the individual making the post, the Board, and the District as a whole. Opinions expressed by Board members on a social networking website have the potential to be disseminated far beyond the speaker’s desire or intention and could undermine the public perception of fitness of the individual to serve students’ interest.

“Board members communicating by electronic means with the public shall communicate in a respectful, professional manner. Members of the Board will conform to the same standards of judgment, propriety,and ethics when communicating by social media.

“Board members should be aware that public postings by the Board member that express an opinion about pending items of school business can be considered part of the public record and could be evidence of conduct.

“Board members must consider the Board’s identity as and commitment to functioning as a corporate body, the Board’s commitment to deliberate as a body in public at meetings, and the Board Chair’s status as official spokesperson of the Board. All of these should be considered in weighing any use of social media and communications with the public. The use of social media by Board members can, in certain circumstances, be perceived as undermining any or each of these principles by which the Board has agreed to be guided.

“Electronic communication, including communication via social media, should not be used as a substitute for deliberations at Board meetings.”

Enough board members thought this addition already was covered by the previous addition and was too redundant. So this revision failed 1-8. Board chairwoman Kia Chambers, the county-wide representative, cast the lone yes vote.

Maggie Reese is the former Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce executive who accused District 8 representative Frank Myers of sexual harassing and bullying her, based on what Myers posted on Facebook July 18 about Reese after she had defended chamber executive Amy Bryan in another Facebook post. Bryan lost in the July 24 runoff election against retired U.S. Army Col. John House for the vacant citywide seat on Columbus Council.

Myers took from Reese’s Facebook page a photo of her in a bikini. He cropped the photo to show only her backside and posted it with a comment that says, “You need to lose 30.” He apologized the next day on Facebook as well as in a phone interview with the Ledger-Enquirer and during the Aug. 20 meeting, but he said he won’t resign.

Myers has been the board’s most outspoken critic of superintendent David Lewis and his administration. He failed to win a second four-year term when former board chairman Philip Schley beat him with 65 percent of the vote in the May 24 election. Schley will replace Myers on Jan. 1.

Since this brouhaha erupted, a petition calling for the board to censure Myers and for him to resign has attracted more than 3,450 signatures at Change.org.

Reese, who was the chamber’s community development and growth director before becoming director of buzz at Yalla Public Relations in January, told the board during its standing-room-only Aug. 20 meeting that she is disappointed it hasn’t censured Myers for his behavior.

Asked in July what part of the board’s code she thinks Myers violated, Reese told the Ledger-Enquirer, “Take no private action that will compromise the board or school system administration.”

The code, however, didn’t specifically address internet behavior. Now, with Monday night’s vote, it does.

Mark Rice, 706-576-6272, @MarkRiceLE.

This story was originally published September 17, 2018 at 9:37 PM.