STARKVILLE — There is no official word on what happened in Wednesday”s closed door meeting of the Starkville school board, but Judy Couey was not “on campus” Thursday.
Board president Pickett Wilson confirmed late Thursday afternoon that Couey is still the superintendent of the Starkville School District.
“The board met in executive session,” Wilson said. “It”s a personnel matter, and I won”t comment on it.”
Couey could not be reached on her cell phone Thursday evening when a message was left.
By law, public boards such as the one governing the Starkville School District can operate in closed meetings — known as executive session — to address a limited number of topics, among them personnel matters. Outcomes of these meetings are later revealed to the public when the board approves the minutes of the meeting.
The Starkville school board typically approves the minutes of a month”s board meetings at the first meeting of the following month.
When pressed, Wilson would not disclose what issue prompted the board to meet in closed session.
“The Starkville School District, like any other public entity in Mississippi, we are governed by law and we follow the law, including personnel law, open meetings law and anything that has to do with the board”s operation,” Wilson said.
Nicole Thomas, school district public information officer, confirmed that the board speaks through its minutes and would add little information about what is happening.
Thomas said she was not aware of any meeting of principals or administrators either Wednesday or Thursday.
“If there was a meeting, I am not aware of it,” Thomas said Thursday.
Thomas confirmed that Couey was not “on campus.”
Wilson suggested more information may be available soon, but “right now, the only information the press will be given will come from the school board working through Nicole (Thomas).”
Board members Eddie Myles, Eric Heiselt and Lee Brand, Jr., could not be reached for comments. Keith Coble returned a phone call, but said he couldn”t go into any details because it was a personnel issue. He also said he could not comment on what prompted the meeting to be called.
“We do have a set of administrators in the school district who are handling things,” Coble said. “We have a competent set of principals and administrators who have very clear lines of authority.”
Coble said he did “expect some resolution in the next few days.”
Couey became superintendent of the Starkville School District July 2008. She came to the district as assistant superintendent in June 2006 after serving for seven years as director of curriculum and instruction with the Mississippi Department of Education. Before that, the Greenville native spent 20 years at the Western Line School District in Washington County as a principal and teacher.
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