USD 383 Board votes to request vice president resignation; she refuses

Editor's note:
This article provides comprehensive coverage of the USD 383 Board of Education meeting. The meeting was livestreamed on YouTube with a runtime of 3 hours, 26 minutes, 17 seconds. Except for background information not officially stated in the meeting, the following article was taken from the meeting with every effort made to quote directly. The complete meeting is available online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5t4fDcoRbo&t=3793s.
Thank you for reading.
Respectfully,
Teri L. Hansen

The Manhattan-Ogden USD 383 Board of Education discussed school board member conduct at its regular meeting Sept. 17. The discussion took center stage and opened the meeting after the administrative portion.

The Meeting

"I'm going to set the stage a little bit for how tonight's going to work. Tonight, we need to discuss a board member conduct issue involving a comment made by one of our members on social media last week regarding a topic that was not directly related to her role on the board of education," Board President Kristen Brighton said. "The board has since had hundreds of emails, texts and phone calls demanding this board member step down from her seat."

The board allowed public input for the session, but each speaker was required to fill out a form beforehand and was given only three minutes. Each school board member was allowed to speak as well. The floor was first opened to Dr. Katie Allen, whose conduct was the subject of discussion.

The board cannot fire or remove an elected official, though Brighton clarified what could be done.

"The options are as follows. One, if the person in question is an officer of the board and the member in question is, we can remove them from that office. Two, we can also prohibit them from holding any future board office. Three, we can choose to remove them from any committee assignments they are on. Four, we can formally pass a resolution asking them to resign, but we can't make them resign. And the irony is that they get a vote as to whether or not they support the board making this request of themselves. And five, we can choose to take no formal action," Brighton said.

Allen was until recently a research analyst at the Kansas Department of Education and served as vice president of the USD 383 School Board. She was fired from her state position after posting "Well deserved" in response to a Facebook post about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

The post led to discussion about her position on the USD 383 School Board. Though she refused to resign from this position, she stepped down from being vice president.

"One stupid mistake does not define anyone, nor eliminate the possibility of doing good work moving forward. My passion has always been helping young people find opportunities to learn and succeed, and that drive I have to serve the next generation will never diminish," Allen said while addressing the issue. "I will not resign from the board, but I will step down from the leadership role of vice president. A mentor of mine once told me that you learn the most in the times that you fail. But he also told me to never give up."

Death of Charlie Kirk

Charlie Kirk was fatally shot while addressing an audience Sept. 10 on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. The outdoor event was the first stop of the season for his American Comeback Tour, a speaking and debate series planned by Turning Point USA, a conservative organization he co-founded. Kirk was a right-wing political activist who gained notoriety as a political commentator and activist who focused heavily on engaging with young people and college students.

While engaging with an audience member about mass shootings in the United States, Kirk was shot in the neck by alleged gunman Tyler Robinson, 22, who was positioned on a building rooftop approximately 142 yards away. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital after undergoing emergency surgery.

Robinson faces charges of aggravated murder, two counts of obstruction of justice and felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, two counts of witness tampering and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child. Prosecutors announced they will seek the death penalty.

Prosecutors say that after the shooting, Robinson's roommate received a text message from him: "drop what you are doing, look under my keyboard." The roommate found a note that said, "I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I'm going to take it."

Robinson appeared to admit responsibility in an online Discord chat with friends shortly before surrendering to authorities, according to screenshots reviewed by The Washington Post. Messages show Robinson joking about the killing the day after Kirk's death, with him telling friends his "doppelganger" was trying to get him in trouble when FBI images were released. Text messages revealed that Robinson said he killed Charlie Kirk because he "spreads too much hate," according to prosecutors.

After his father recognized him from photographs distributed by authorities, a series of events led to the 22-year-old Robinson being taken into custody. His father told Robinson to turn himself in, with Robinson initially saying no but later on changing his mind.

Robinson appeared virtually for his first court hearing, and his next hearing is set for Sept. 29. A lawyer must be appointed to represent him.

The assassination occurred during what was supposed to be an interactive speaking event where Kirk was engaging with students and answering questions about current political topics.

Kirk was known for his strong conservative positions. One notable quote referenced in the coverage was from 2023 where Kirk said: "I think it's worth it to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the second amendment to protect our other God-given rights. That is a prudent deal. It is rational."

Dr. Katie Allen

Allen, who holds a doctorate in education, made the comment in response to a Facebook post by Courtney Jane Hochman, a candidate for the USD 383 Board, who had shared a photo of Kirk and paraphrased the 2023 quote from him about gun rights. Allen quickly deleted the comment and issued an apology, stating it was made "in an emotional moment" while scrolling Facebook and that she "didn't intend the meaning the two words I wrote had." She said the comment didn't reflect who she is or what she believes.

"I take full responsibility for the words and actions that have led to this conversation," Allen continued during the meeting. "My words have hurt a lot of people, and I am deeply sorry for that. In reflecting on everything that has happened this past week, I have thought a lot and read a lot about what it means to be a leader. What came up most often were these qualities: honesty, effective communication, decisiveness, compassion and self-awareness. Perfection wasn't on any of these lists."

Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson called Allen's statement "absolutely reprehensible" and urged her to resign from both her state position and the school board, saying "Charlie Kirk was murdered for sharing his faith and expressing his political views." Allen also noted she was receiving "hate messages" and would be documenting them to share with law enforcement.

"There have been a lot of lessons learned this past week. But I especially want to point out that social media and the internet are one of the biggest challenges we have to civil discourse," Allen said at the meeting. "And I am guilty of that as well. So much of everyday life requires us to be online. We've been accustomed to quickly clicking and sharing thoughts, and it's often an instinctual response. Because that is what social media is. It is designed to get people to respond in times of emotion. There is no way to control what other people put about you online. But moving forward, I hope that when we are all online, that we can all engage in the core practices of civil discourse that we expect when we are in person. Some of those are focusing on issues and not people, discussing the facts and making sure that you understand instead of attacking people personally. Listen to others, ask for clarifying questions and make sure that you confirm your own understanding. If you have positions, defend those positions with evidence that comes from a verified information source and engage with diverse viewpoints to find common ground — and mostly, let's all be kind."

Clarification has been needed regarding Allen's profession versus her position at USD 383. Her employment with the state was terminated; however, that was a position in which she was hired and paid for her services. Her position on the school board in Manhattan is one in which she was elected. She therefore cannot be terminated, though the majority of school board members did request that she tender her resignation.

"I am committed to moving forward with a focus on what is most important: working together to ensure all students have opportunities to learn and develop into critical thinkers who will contribute in a meaningful way to a more just society," Allen said in the meeting.

Board Response

Board member Jayme Morris-Hardeman showed her support of Allen and said this is a freedom of speech issue.

"I appreciate that you brought up the issue of it being Constitution Day, Kristen. I think that's important because my thoughts about this is a free speech issue. Katie, Dr. Allen, has the right to her opinions. She has the right to speak her voice, and I will support her decision to step down as board vice president," she said. "I don't know at what point we'd like to take nominations for that position if you want to wait for that until later, but I think that when we think about what it is to be American, our first Bill of Rights, the First Amendment to the Constitution says that we have the right to free speech. And I think that's all I want to say today."

Board member Greg Hoyt said that while people are welcome to their opinions and to voice them, it is their constituents' voices that should be heard at the moment.

"As a member of the USD 383 board of education, I want to express my gratitude to our constituents who take the time to share their perspectives, ideas and concerns. Your engagement strengthens our decision-making and keeps us grounded in the needs of the students and the families that we serve. At the same time, I believe it is important to recognize our responsibilities to the residents of the Manhattan Ogden School District. While we and I personally welcome the support and dialogue from across Kansas and even out of the state of Kansas," he said. "I believe it is our duty to uphold the trust, the dignity and the integrity of this body and service to our students, to our staff and to our community. Recent events, including a two-word comment posted on social media by one of our colleagues, has caused significant concern and distraction from our mission. While I recognize that mistakes can happen, I also believe accountability is essential to preserving public confidence. And with respect for both the individual and this institution, I respectfully call for my colleague's voluntary resignation from the board."

Board member Curt Herrman acknowledged that Allen has done much good work for the district and thanked her for her hard work. He said the situation has shaken the public's confidence in the board.

"I cannot overlook the recent comment and philosophy it represents. While I respect that everyone is entitled to their own views, this particular matter is significant and will continue to resurface, placing additional strain on the board and the district. Private actions connected to this situation have already compromised the confidence in our leadership and have begun to interfere with the board's ability to operate effectively," he said. "I know this is not easy to hear and it's not something I bring up lightly, but with the district's long-term best interest in mind, I believe it would be wise to consider stepping down from your position. Doing so will allow the focus to return fully to the students, staff and families that we serve while also recognizing the good work you have done during your time here. This is a difficult moment, but it is also an opportunity for closure, healing and moving forward in a way that preserves both your contributions and the integrity of the board."

Though each of these member comments was met with applause, board member Karla Hagemeister opened by stating that she wasn't confident her remarks would be met with the same enthusiasm and also asked that if there was any applause or negative reactions to wait until the end. She said her comments were not prepared beforehand.

"I've had conversations with people that I value and respect and I personally do not think that this is an easy, straightforward decision and I respect that there are people who will disagree with me," she said. "When I look at our core beliefs and I walk through them. Katie violated those core beliefs and there's no denying that. I choose not to categorize what she did with any one particular word because I don't know that that is valuable at this point."

Hagemeister discussed accountability. When she asked "who decides how much accountability is the right amount of accountability," a person from the crowd was heard yelling "the people." At that point she said she would stop as her request for no interruptions wasn't followed. After a short explanation to the crowd of the procedure, she continued.

"That is true. Accountability does come from the people and accountability comes from the people who elected us and accountability comes through the election process. Accountability can also come through a recall process should that be something that the community is interested in deciding... I will not deny that Katie has broken the trust of our community at this point. And to some extent, she has broken the trust that we have in her as a fellow board member."

Though she looked at Allen and said "You've broken our trust," she did not call for her resignation.

"So, I appreciate my fellow board members who have called for her to resign," she said. "I still don't know where I am on that right this minute."

Board member Christine Weixelman offered forgiveness in her statement as well as stating that her words are not as impactful as the two words of Allen that started the situation.

"As a Christian, Katie, I forgive you because I refuse to put politics above principle and I refuse to let the disdain, hatred and celebration of the murder of someone I share beliefs with infect my soul," she said. "And I forgive you that your actions interrupted valuable time with my family this past weekend, and no doubt the other board members as well."

Though she was forgiving, she did not forget and said there are consequences for actions and that board members have a responsibility to be aware of what they say and post.

"Parents and students look to and listen to us. We are servants," she said. "This is not a platform to elevate ourselves or our opinions above others. It isn't a platform to draw attention to our jobs, our causes or our personal thoughts and opinions. It isn't the platform to scold constituents when they post and make comments about things they are concerned about or upset over and then turn around and defend our own posts of disdain. We are to be about the business of education."

She also spoke about the First Amendment, bringing up the case of Schenck v. The United States, which was a 1919 Supreme Court case that established the "clear and present danger test," holding that the First Amendment's free speech protections are not absolute and can be restricted if they pose a clear and imminent danger to public safety or national security.

"Look at our audience. Your two words thankfully have not incited lawless action, but they could certainly be categorized as fighting words which provoked an immediate breach of the peace or personal conflict by their very utterance or in this case posting," she said. "I absolutely believe in free speech. I believe our students have the right to speak their mind and beliefs in classrooms. When a national figure is murdered for doing just that and a sitting board of education member celebrates that, what are we telling those students? Before they were just concerned about being put down or made fun of for expressing their opposing views. Now they fear they may meet the same fate as Charlie Kirk and their school board thinks that is OK. It is not OK."

In closing, she too asked for Allen to resign.

Last of the school board to speak was the president. She also highlighted Allen's good deeds. Among these, she was the first of the board to request a limit of students' time on screens and has served on the Blue Ribbon Task Force on that same topic for the state Department of Education. She has served as vice president and a member of the board. She also pointed out that several messages received by the district regarding Allen were "vile and hateful."

"But words matter. All of us have probably had a time when we've acted before we thought, driven by some emotion or another. We've all made bad decisions we later regret. I know I have, and I'm sure most of you would agree. We have all done things we wish we could take back," she said. "But sometimes we can't. Dr. Allen has paid a very high price for those two inappropriately posted words, and I know I for one hope to never be in her shoes. That said, Dr. Allen's actions tainted the public's opinion of our district. They put Manhattan, the state of Kansas, the Kansas State Department of Education and even Kansas State University in a bad light. Her words worked against our efforts to create a culture and environment that promotes positive conditions for learning, teaching and working. So in these ways, her actions went against our district's approved strategic framework."

She condemned political violence and said this time in the country will be forever burned into her memory and sent her condolences to Kirk and his supporters. She did not call for Allen's resignation but said she appreciated democracy.

"Ultimately, democracy will not work unless good people want to serve in various levels of government. If the climate continues to make it so that people are afraid to run for office, then democracy is over. We won't be able to get honest, hardworking people to serve anymore, and it's already terribly hard to get people to do so. Think about how many times people run for office unopposed," she said. "In closing, I'd like to thank Dr. Allen and everyone here for participating in democracy tonight. No matter what happens, and I know everybody will not be satisfied with whatever the final outcome is of this discussion this evening, I hope we can agree that words matter and we've all learned from this experience."

Public Input

Former director of the Riley County Police Department in Manhattan spoke to the board and those in attendance.

"We're here because of two words 'well-deserved.' Words have both meaning and consequence. A public official must be circumspect in one's comments. This includes Facebook posts. Miss Allen, you've been released by DOE — Well-deserved," he said. "For anyone who's offended, I deeply apologize. Those words should be familiar to everyone, and they sounded as hollow then as they do now.

"Please understand, I bear you no personal ill will. Forgive my use of your words to make a rhetorical point. That point is this. Regardless of individual politics, your words cause great rancor and distrust. More importantly, they serve to dehumanize those with whom you disagree. And when one dehumanizes others, it becomes easier for fringe elements to commit atrocities."

He called for her resignation, though he said he doesn't believe she will. He also asked for a resolution of the board requesting her resignation.

"Parents of the district have higher expectations of a leader. Everyone here should be appalled by your comments. This time it was someone you disagreed with over words and ideas. Words and ideas. Let that sink in. Next time it could be somebody with whom you agree. Your words open that door. Don't cite your deep worry about violence in your apology when your words also incite it," he said. "Miss Allen broke public trust and should be held accountable. Interestingly, Ms. Allen says she owns her mistakes and USD 383 says it believes in accountability. Great. I suggest a meeting of the two, ownership and accountability."

In response to Allen's documentation of the messages she received, the former director offered her a copy of his speech to the board.

"They were reposting your words, Ms. Allen. Were your words hateful and violent? CNN quoted text messages from the assassin, 'I've had enough of this hatred. Some hate can't be negotiated out.' Do you also now see the danger in accusations of hate? You completed that thought with, 'I understand your frustration. I'll keep documentation to share with law enforcement,'" he said. "To contend that it's acceptable to kill someone for his speech and then notify the police when others hold you accountable for your speech is nonsensical, cynical and hypocritical. In the meantime, let me save you some time concerning my comments. I got a copy for you. Feel free to share it with law enforcement when you send them to my house. I'm pretty sure they know where to find me."

Several other people followed and shared similar sentiments. Parents of a child who feared for their child's safety for their involvement in Turning Point USA said her words may have incited violence against their child. Another parent said they had already removed one of their children from the district and plans to do so with her other child.

While many spoke asking for Allen's resignation, there were supporters of Allen who also spoke.

Philip Nel, a resident of the "Little Apple" for 25 years, spoke in favor of forgiveness and acceptance of one another.

"First, as I think we can all agree, all political violence is bad. The murder this summer of the speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives, Melissa Hortman, is bad. The murder last week of conservative activist Charlie Kirk is bad. All political violence is bad," he said. "I think we have to learn to forgive each other. We make mistakes. We have second thoughts. We delete the comment to err is human."

He spoke about Kirk's comments on people who have now extended their condolences and sadness over his death. He cited Kirk's words on journalist Joy Reid, former first lady Michelle Obama and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Kirk was quoted as inferring that they did not have the intelligence to achieve what they did without affirmative action.

"I for one am inspired by the forgiveness that people have extended to the late Mr. Kirk," he said. "He called the Democrats maggots, vermin and swine. If we can forgive him those words, then I'm sure that we can also forgive a member of this school board and of our community who posted two words, deleted those two words and then apologized."

In closing, he asked that everyone listen and forgive one another.

"We have to lower the temperature. So just look around the room here. Look around the room at people you know, at people you don't know. These are parents. These are children, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles. We are a community," he said. "We may not always agree with each other. We may not always like each other. You may not like me right now. And that is OK. But we have to listen to each other. We have to work together for the common good. And to do that, sometimes we need to forgive each other. So let's keep listening. Let's seek forgiveness and let's rebuild the bonds of this wonderful community."

What Now?

After a more than three-hour board meeting, the board voted 5-1 to pass a resolution formally requesting the resignation of Allen, citing the comment's impact on trust and governance as the basis for seeking her resignation. Board member Morris-Hardeman was the sole "no" vote. As the vote was in regards to Allen, her vote was not cast. Allen stuck to her position and did not resign, though she did resign her vice presidency.

The board then elected Hoyt to fill those shoes until the organizational meeting in January. The motion passed 7-0, with the understanding that president and vice president elections will be held again when the new board is seated next year.

In order for Allen to be recalled, the district could potentially spend $80,000 and would need a petition with signatures from 40% of the number of voters in the previous school board election to begin the process.

Though Allen is not on the election ballot for the Nov. 4 elections, three seats on the USD 383 Manhattan/Ogden Board of Education will be up. Five candidates filed for election including Tim Drummond, Lew Faust, Courtney Jane Hochman, Leah McKeeman and already serving member Jayme Morris-Hardeman.

Allen acknowledged Constitution Day in her words during the meeting and also utilized a quote to reiterate her feelings.

"It's not lost on me that today, as we are here this evening to address the consequences of free speech, it's also Constitution Day. I recently came across a quote about what is happening right now — not just here but across the nation — at the intersection of a national tragedy and the official day to acknowledge in our schools the importance of words in the document that gives us all our individual rights. I'm going to share a quote with you from Allen Chaney from South Carolina ACLU. He said this just the other day:

"'It is in the hard times, not the easy ones, when our commitment to American values is tested. In the face of politicized and sometimes manufactured outrage, we call on school districts and university presidents to model the tolerance for upsetting speech that is demanded by the First Amendment so that they might instill that firmly-rooted American value in the next generation.'"