A Resolution of the Mt.

Healthy City Schools Board Of Education to

Censure Board Members Steve Harness and Emmett Kilgore

WHEREAS, at the start of their terms as School Board members Steve Harness and Emmett
Kilgore each took an oath to “support the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of
the State of Ohio, and [to] perform faithfully the duties of [their] office as a member of the Board of
Education of Mt. Healthy City Schools”; and
WHEREAS, implicit in that oath is the obligation to conduct oneself in a manner that both fosters
and demonstrates respect for this School Board and its members, the district administration, and
district employees, the judgment of administrators and employees, and the reputation of the district;
and
WHEREAS, the Mt. Healthy City Schools Board of Education is deeply committed to upholding
policies providing for open, honest, and respectful communication, adherence to state law and
policies governing the Board’s actions and behaviors, and to acting in a concerted fashion to set an
example of positive leadership for the district; and
WHEREAS, the Mt. Healthy City Schools Board of Education has established and approved a Code
of Ethics and Code of Conduct for the Board; and
WHEREAS, a formal complaint was filed by a District employee against Board Members Steve
Harness and Emmett Kilgore; and
WHEREAS, an independent investigation of misconduct conducted by Strategic HR, Inc.
concluded that Mr. Harness has violated the following Mt. Healthy Board of Education bylaws:
Ethics Code F (delegate authority for the administration of the schools to the Superintendent and
staff); Conduct Code B (act as an advocate for the Schools and for children); Conduct Code E
(strive sincerely to build better relationships with one another and the Superintendent); Code of
Conduct G (support the Superintendent and help him/her to be as effective as possible); Conduct
Code M (refuse to become involved with micromanagement); Conduct Code N (emphasize
planning, policymaking, and public relations rather than becoming involved in management of the
schools); and District policies; and
WHEREAS, the same investigation concluded that Mr. Kilgore has violated the State of Ohio’s
Sunshine Law and District policies; and
WHEREAS, the investigation found that Mr. Harness’s visits to schools did “not follow the proper
procedures of signing in / out or even exhibiting common courtesy by notifying the Principal of the
visit” and that he held a special meeting on April 11, 2018 to which only select people were invited,
and that “If resolution to the matters was the intent, there does not appear to be good faith in trying
to resolve the issues but rather creating a divide between teachers and administration,” and that “Mr.
Harness also had little interest in even attempting to have the entire board present for the meeting”;
and
WHEREAS, the investigation found that Mr. Kilgore’s April 25, 2018, visit to South Elementary did
“not follow the proper procedures of signing in / out or even exhibiting common courtesy by
notifying the Principal of the visit” and that his behavior in front of students and staff was
inappropriate; and
WHEREAS, the investigation found that “There does not appear to be a good faith effort to resolve
issues with administration but rather work around them,” and “Overall, the conduct being exhibited
does not appear to be in line with the Mt. Healthy City School Board Code of Conduct and should
be addressed.” These behaviors include: Entering buildings without the courtesy of speaking with
the principal (Mr. Harness and Mr. Kilgore); not actively engaging in solving the problems by
speaking with the principal or the superintendent but rather inciting complaints (Mr. Harness);
micromanaging due to a lack of trust with the superintendent and becoming involved in the
management of the schools (Mr. Harness); lack of professionalism in addressing concerns at the
schools (Mr. Harness); lack of civility / bullying behavior to fellow School Board Members and
Administration (Mr. Harness); and publically criticizing employees (Mr. Kilgore)”; and
WHEREAS, the investigation report concluded that the Board should take disciplinary action
against Mr. Harness and Mr. Kilgore for violations of the Board’s Code of Ethics and Code of
Conduct;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED: That the Mt. Healthy City Schools Board of Education
does hereby censure Board Member Emmett Kilgore for violations of the State of Ohio’s Sunshine
Law and District policies;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the Mt. Healthy City Schools Board of Education does
hereby censure Board Member Steve Harness for repeated violations of the adopted Code of Ethics
and Code of Conduct, and the negative impact his actions have brought upon the District;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the Mt. Healthy City Schools Board of Education does
hereby expect that Board Member Steve Harness will abide by the Board’s adopted Code of Ethics
and Code of Conduct;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: That the Mt. Healthy City Schools Board of Education does
hereby expect that Board Member Steve Harness will cease all actions negatively impacting the
Superintendent, staff, teachers, families, and children of the Mt. Healthy City Schools District.