Hartland schools investigating after school board members' comments spark concern

HARTLAND — Hartland Consolidated Schools administrators are investigating whether student privacy rights were violated following uproar from parents over comments made by a school board member on a podcast.

School board member Glenn Gogoleski appeared as a guest on the podcast, "This Is My Brain," on Feb. 19. School board member Greg Keller and former school board candidate Robert Merwin were also guests.

During the podcast, Gogoleski talked about planning to enter every school in the district unannounced and wanting to spend time in the school offices "to see the kids that are the problems."

He said his wife works in one of the school offices and talked about how the school handles students who "meltdown" in class. Jeannine Gogoleski is a secretary at Hartland Farms Intermediate.

Glenn Gogoleski also made a comment that condoned "grabbing" students "by the scruff of the neck" as a form of discipline.

Some parents called for district Superintendent Chuck Hughes to investigate whether Jeannine Gogoleski had been sharing federally protected information about students to her husband and whether it constituted a violation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

Hughes said Wednesday in the district's newsletter a possible FERPA violation is being investigated and responded to some concerns from parents.

Glenn Gogoleski said Wednesday he and his wife are declining comment due to the investigation.

Comments in question

Much of the three-hour podcast, which was hosted by Jeremy Scott Gibbs, focused on theories about "indoctrination" of students and criticisms of school curriculums and administration. Speakers also criticized how schools handle LGBTQ issues and the teaching of race issues.

"What I want to do is spend a little bit of time just sitting in the offices," Gogoleski said during the podcast, continuing, "I will tell you, because my wife works in one of the school offices, there is so much that goes on that doesn't get reported, doesn’t get watched. I want to see that. I want to see the kids that are the problems. I want to see the kids that come into the office and swear and throw things. Right now, when a kid has a meltdown in the class, you know what they do? They evacuate the rest of the class..."

Gibbs then interjected, "And allow the (derogatory term) to sit in class."

Gogoleski continued, "So, the child can be talked down from his little meltdown."

Merwin commented on how teachers and administrators "can't lay a hand on him," and started to mention something he said happened at Hartland Farms Intermediate.

"They need three administrators to be there to secure the child, to bring him down to the office," Gogoleski said, continuing, "And when I say secure, I’m not talking about grabbing him by the scruff of the neck. I’m talking about talking to him, getting and coaxing him down to the office, things like that. It’s sickening. This is why I could never, ever, ever be a teacher, because if I was, I would be a news highlight reel. I really would."

Possible FERPA violation under investigation

In the district's newsletter, Hughes addresses several concerns raised by parents, including, "Concern that Mr. Gogoleski shared that his wife works in one of our front offices and he would prioritize his time in the offices to note all the bad behaviors of students not being reported, to which the host stated that this is good for them."

"The community reached out to me and other Board members in large numbers stipulating a concern that personal information protected under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) has been provided to Mr. Gogoleski by a school employee," Hughes said in the newsletter, continuing, "Parents are concerned that people who have no right to know details about their children are now in possession of this information. I have committed to a complete and thorough investigation into this concern."

Hughes did not release any information about possible disciplinary actions.

Amber Frye, a parent with a child in fifth grade at Hartland Farms Intermediate, said she is concerned about her own son's privacy rights.

"My child is on the spectrum and is one who needs to leave the classroom to re-regulate daily," Frye said. "They call the office to tell them they are going down to the resource room ... Glenn alluded to going in and sitting in the offices because that is where you see it. He wants to know who the families are (with children) who are throwing things.

"My concern is them having to call down to the office. Jeannine would have been handling the phone calls," she said.

She said parents of children with Individualized Education Programs due to disabilities or other special educational needs are especially concerned.

She was also offended that no one on the podcast objected to Gibbs saying the derogatory term in regard to students with behavioral issues.

"Glenn was never trying to calm the host down. Maybe you shouldn't call this kid (that term). He never said that," she said.

She said parents are planning to meet with Hughes Thursday to discuss their concerns.

A local group Livingston Integrity had planned a rally outside Hughes's office for Thursday, but it was cancelled due to safety concerns, according to the group's Facebook page.

Livingston Integrity members also launched an online petition on Change.org calling for the district to require background checks for school board members in response to the podcast.

The group plans to present the petition to the school board at its March 13 meeting.

District parent Cori Charboneau said she posted the petition for the Livingston Integrity group.

"Gogoleski was talking about clear privacy issues that he shouldn’t talk about," Charboneau said. "Then we thought, the Hartland School board members are not background checked. ... It's like, who are these people? They are talking about grabbing people from the scruff of the neck. This is something an unstable person would say about children."

She also said Livingston Integrity plans to form a political action committee.

"We're trying to get this extremism out of our county," she said.

Superintendent statement responds to more concerns

In Wednesday's newsletter, Hughes responded to other concerns raised by parents.

One concern was Gogoleski's comments that he would enter schools unannounced.

"I responded to this safety concern by sitting down with Mr. Gogoleski to explain that parents were fearful for their children, especially considering that he stated that he would grab students by the scruff of the neck if they were misbehaving.

"Mr. Gogoleski assured me that he understands the protocol for visiting schools and would follow these protocols now and in the future. District protocol requires Board of Education members to arrange visits through the superintendent's office," Hughes said in the statement.

Hughes also said Gogoleski assured him if he was to enter the schools he would not touch children.

He also said he talked to both Gogoleski and Keller about Gibbs calling students "by terrible names" and expressed his "disappointment in their lack of action."

Hartland Board of Education President Chris Costa weighed in via an email Wednesday.

"I can say that I feel that comments made in the podcast were absolutely inappropriate and irresponsible. The board members in the podcast clearly did not think through the possible negative consequences or impact this would have for our educational community," Costa said in the email.

Contact Livingston Daily reporter Jennifer Eberbach at jeberbach@livingstondaily.com.

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Podcast with Hartland school board members sparks investigation