Board says it cannot discuss an outside investigation as families keep pressing for answers

What happened

For several months, residents have come to Wise County School Board meetings asking about how the division handled a reported harm to a child. The board's answer each time has been that Virginia law does not let it talk about staff members, students, or investigations that police and the Department of Social Services are still working on. On March 9, 2026 the board's lawyer, Scott Mullins, gave a public presentation on those rules, and board member Stephanie Kern read a statement saying the board condemns mistreatment of children, that its silence follows legal advice, and that a tenured employee's family had been paid for months while the employee did not come to work. A Union High School teacher was terminated on February 9, 2026, and on May 26, 2026 the board voted 6-1 against an employee who filed a grievance.

Why it matters to families

This is the biggest open question in front of the school board right now, and it touches how the division protects students and how quickly it can remove an adult it no longer trusts. Because Virginia gives tenured teachers strong job protections, the board says it cannot fire someone on public opinion alone, so families may not learn what happened until the outside investigations finish.

The evidence

The approved March 9, 2026 minutes record the board attorney's presentation on FOIA, FERPA, due process and the duty to defer to law enforcement and Social Services, and print board member Stephanie Kern's statement in full. The approved February 9, 2026 minutes record a closed session on the performance and potential termination of a specific teacher and list a Union High School teacher terminated that day. The approved May 26, 2026 minutes record the 6-1 vote against the grievant.

The source