Johnston school leader says corruption is occurring. Here’s the district’s response.
Johnston County school leaders are denying a school board member’s allegations of bribery, corruption, lying to the public and covering up complaints of sexual harassment of school employees.
In a video interview posted Monday by the JoCo Report, school board member Ronald Johnson said he will give the State Bureau of Investigation recordings, emails and text messages proving that high-ranking school leaders have engaged in corrupt behavior. The interview comes while school leaders are saying they need an additional $8.8 million from the county to cover a budget shortfall.
“Factual misrepresentation of public funds, bribery, sexual harassment and physical assault,” Johnson said in the interview. “And I believe that a board member has engaged in a conflict of interest and it was reported to me by employees that this happened. I believe that school system employees have lied to cover this up.”
At a press conference Thursday, school board chairman Todd Sutton said he has asked Johnson to provide proof of the harassment allegations. Sutton denied the other allegations, saying it was “untrue” that they’ve lied to the public.
“I don’t have a corrupt bone in my body,” Sutton said on the steps of the Johnston County Courthouse. “I don’t think any board member does.
“We were elected to do a job and that’s to take care of the children of Johnston County and make sure they have a safe educational environment to go to on a daily basis. More importantly, the safety of each staff member that darkens the door of Johnston County Public Schools on a daily basis.”
The Johnston County school system has been mired in controversy for months.
In August, Clayton High School principal Bennett Jones was reassigned following an investigation into how diplomas were issued. Following parental outcry, interim Superintendent James Causby reinstated Jones.
More recently, school leaders have detailed how they’re racing a budget shortfall that’s leading to budget cuts.
Charges of lying about budget situation
In the interview, Johnson said Causby told board members in October that Art Stanley, the district’s chief finance officer, had been directed to lie to school board members and commissioners about the amount of money needed. Johnson said Causby didn’t tell them who had directed Stanley to lie.
“I believe the only transparent thing to do is to inform the public and the county commissioners the finances have been purposely misrepresented,” Johnson said. “I’m unsure if there’s a crime associated with misrepresenting financial documents and the ramifications of signing, mailing and delivering fictitious documents knowing them to be fraudulent “
Johnson, a Smithfield Police detective, has called for a forensic audit of the district’s finances. Sutton said the board would welcome the audit.
In a statement sent to the JoCo Report, Causby denied having made those statements about Stanley. Causby also praised Stanley, saying “everything he has done has been appropriate and legal.”
Sutton echoed Causby on Thursday, saying neither he nor any of the other board members who attended the October meeting recalled the superintendent saying that Stanley had lied about the budget.
“At no time has anything been brought to our attention with respect to misappropriation or cover-up on the part of any employee in the Johnston County Public Schools,” Sutton said.
Charges of covering up harassment complaints
Since June, Johnson said he’s tried to help two female school employees who reported being sexually harassed and inappropriately touched by a male employee that he didn’t name. Johnson said he’s relayed the information numerous times to school staff and school board members.
Johnson said that in August, the male employee and a “high-ranking (school) official” attempted to have him arrested for reporting the harassment.
Johnson said he has proof, including a recording of the male employee loosening his clothes, pulling at the clothes of one of the female employees, and the employee pushing him away and telling him to stop.
Johnson said he didn’t feel comfortable providing the names of the two female employees to school leaders. Causby said he’s been hamstrung in his ability to investigate because Johnson won’t provide any proof.
“I will not have my integrity questioned in this matter and I cannot take action against someone for sexual harassment when there has been no evidence presented,” Causby said in his statement. “Everyone who knows me knows that I will objectively deal with any such allegations.”
Sutton said Johnson didn’t provide any proof, in the form of audio recordings, until they met Wednesday. Sutton said Johnson agreed to provide the evidence to the superintendent so that the district could address the allegations.
“If any of these allegations are true, I’ll stand behind him,” Sutton said. “But I want to see the evidence so we can move forward and start healing as a board.”
Charging conflict of interest, bribery
Other allegations include:
▪ Johnson charges that school board member Tracie Zukowksi engaged in a conflict of interest because she promoted to the district products sold by her employer, Freckle Education. The district purchased at least $60,000 in products from Freckle, Johnson said.
Sutton said Thursday that there’s no conflict of interest because the company had replaced Zukowski as its representative to Johnston County after she was elected.
▪ Johnson charges that a “high-ranking” school official tried to “bribe” Jones, the Clayton High principal, with promises that he could keep his job and get a future promotion. In return, Johnson said, Jones was to publicly blame the school board member as being the “driving force” behind the investigation of the high school.
When Jones refused, Johnson said, he was removed from the school.
Sutton did not specifically address the bribery allegation during his press conference, which he ended after getting heckled by members of the public.
Johnson, who was elected in 2016, is running for re-election this year. But Johnson has denied that he’s making the allegations to help his campaign.
“I want the public to know I’m wanting to do the right thing,” Johnson said in the interview. “Regardless of whether you vote for me or not, that’s really irrelevant. I think that people deserve the truth and I want to tell the truth. I have told the truth.”
But Sutton said that Johnson’s allegations are hurting Johnston County.
“It is time for all the drama to cease and desist as it relates to the well-being of our children in Johnston County so that we can provide a safe and educational learning experience for them in which to exist,” Sutton said.
This story was originally published January 2, 2020 at 3:36 PM with the headline "Johnston school leader says corruption is occurring. Here’s the district’s response.."
