City of
Richmond School Board members Mamie Taylor (5th-District) and Tichi
Pinkney-Epps (9th-District) have gone too far this time. Their cockamamie antics are usually just
sadly amusing, hurting only themselves and those associated with them. But their latest reckless conduct is
unconscionable, hurting a dedicated public servant of a caliber Taylor and Epps are incapable of comprehending.
Less than two
weeks before the start of the new school year, they publicly attacked the
character and professionalism of David Hudson, one of the few Allstars of
Richmond Public Schools. Mr. Hudson has
been an educator for 31 years and the much beloved principal at Holton Elementary
School for the past 12 years.
Why have they
attacked Hudson -- and why now?
It’s simple, really. And sad.
This whole sorry mess is part of an ongoing campaign launched by Taylor
and Epps to get even with their fellow school board members and Superintendent
Bedden, whom they blame for unflattering stories about themselves in the
media. (Never mind that Taylor and Epps
are clearly responsible for their own actions and have only themselves to blame
for any negative attention. Click on the links in the sidebar to read some of
the publicity they have generated during their tenures on the Richmond School
Board.)
But
threatening to "whup the ass" of another school board member, leaking
confidential student files to third-party vendors, spending thousands of tax
dollars on junkets to fly to unnecessary conferences and stay in five-star
hotels, testifying under oath in direct contradiction of the observations of
eyewitness Richmond police officers, and wasting judicial resources by absurdly
seeking a permanent protective order against a school board member, was all
just a warm-up for trying to assassinate the character of David Hudson. Reaching a new low, even for local public
officials, this duo breached rules of confidentiality, disclosing personnel
information and closed session details to conspiracy theorist Kandise Lucas and
convicted felon, disbarred attorney and former City Councilman Sa’ad El-Amin. El-Amin, whose several crimes resulted in his
being banned from ever appearing in court on behalf of a client, is supposedly
filing a complaint with the EEOC on behalf of former Assistant Principal
Fernando Lightfoot—a complaint containing unfounded allegations of sexual
harassment that Lightfoot somehow forgot to bring up in the 9-page,
single-spaced defense he submitted to Dr. Bedden when threatened with
termination for alleged incompetence.
An independent
investigation conducted by an outside law firm completely exonerated Hudson and
found not a shred of evidence to support Lightfoot’s allegations of harassment. But facts -- or a lack of them -- are no
impediment for Taylor, Epps, El-Amin and Lucas.
For them, the absence of factual support was apparently an invitation to
spread Lightfoot’s
baseless allegations as widely as possible and to accuse Bedden and Board
members Jeff Bourne, Kim B. Gray and Glen Sturtevant, all of whom have had
children at Holton, of engaging in a massive “cover-up.”
At a time when
all citizens and all school board members ought to be focused on doing their
utmost to raise the academic achievement of Richmond’s public school students, how can
Taylor and Epps fail to see that their antics embarrass not only themselves,
but the board, the schools they have been elected to oversee and the children
in those schools?
As expressed
by one parent new to the system, who, fearful of mean-spirited retaliation,
asked for anonymity: “It is
heartbreaking to me as an RPS parent to see this type of revenge politics. The
people seeking to vilify Hudson have done so with complete disregard for the
families at Holton. Orchestrating a media circus just days before school starts
speaks volumes about their priorities: ‘We the People’ are clearly not one of them.”
Rashida
Mitchell, a parent, former PTA President of three years, and PTA board member
for 7 years, wasn’t
afraid to speak out:
“I have
witnessed in Mr. Hudson nothing but professionalism, transparency, dedication,
honesty, accessibility, concern, support, stability, positivity, community
involvement, an unyielding willingness to promote Holton and its students, and
unwavering support of every parent and child who walks through the Holton
doors. Mr. Hudson IS Holton.
“As PTA
President, I was very fortunate to have had Mr. Hudson by my side. Our membership continued to grow every year,
not simply by our push for members but because parents support Holton and
everything it stands for. The first
person to pay for their PTA membership, every school year, is Mr. Hudson. He leads by example and encourages parents
and staff to join the PTA with him. And,
not only did Mr. Hudson attend every board and general PTA membership meeting,
but he attended and helped to support every school event, no matter the time or
energy needed. Dedication is Mr.
Hudson's middle name - and that is what makes him so special to the Holton
family.”
