The newest Columbus Municipal School District trustee will serve at least 3 1/2 months on the board while his wife is employed with the district.
James Richardson was seated Thursday for his meeting as a CMSD trustee, after the city council appointed him to a five-year term Feb. 20.
Richardson’s wife, Carolyn, is a teacher at Columbus Middle School.
Mississippi Ethics Commission Executive Director Tom Hood said Friday this poses a clear conflict of interest. What’s more, city officials knew of the conflict before Richardson’s appointment.
Richardson on Friday told The Dispatch he is “all clear” on the guidelines for approaching the conflict. He said Superintendent Stanley Ellis had informed Carolyn he would not recommend her contract be renewed for 2024-2025.
However, with her current contract, Carolyn would remain employed through June 30.
“My wife currently is not going to be reemployed back with the district,” James Richardson said.
Ellis did not respond to requests from The Dispatch for a comment by press time.
Hood said ethical problems could still arise in the meantime.
“One of the brightest lines in the ethics law is that a board member cannot be employed by that board,” he told The Dispatch Friday. “The Supreme Court has addressed that numerous times for about 35 years, and they said the board member and the spouse have to pay back all the money that the employee receives during the period of violation.”
Section 109 of the Mississippi Constitution and MS Code § 25-4-105 prohibit any member of a public board from having interest in a contract funding or authorized by the board. Any contract in violation of these statutes is voided, according to the statute.
If the school board were to reauthorize Carolyn Richardson’s contract in any capacity with James Richardson on the board, he would be obligated to repay those funds regardless of whether he recused himself from the vote.
Hood said there are limited circumstances that would avoid an ethics violation, but even then, it’s possible to unintentionally cause a violation.
“If they’re one of those boards that votes on payroll on a regular basis, then this guy may have already violated the law at his first meeting,” Hood said. “… What I would tell somebody in this situation is, ‘You’re going to violate the law and you’re going to have to pay some money back. It’s possible for a temporary period of time if X, Y and Z, but you don’t need to count on that.’”
Mickens’ regret
The council appointed Richardson to the board on a 4-2 vote, passing over two other applicants – incumbent Frederick Sparks and Beverley Odom.
Ward 1 Councilwoman Ethel Stewart, Vice Mayor and Ward 2 Councilman Joseph Mickens, Ward 4 Councilman Pierre Beard and Ward 5 Councilman Stephen Jones voted in favor of Richardson’s appointment.
Mickens told The Dispatch Friday that the council was made aware of Richardson’s conflict of interest just days before the vote.
Looking back, he said he wishes the council had decided to wait.
“I think we should have just tabled the vote that night until we got some more information,” Mickens said. “That’s what the council should have done. We shouldn’t have been in a rush to bring Mr. Richardson on.
“If we had to do it over, we would have liked to have submitted another applicant,” he added.
Stewart, Beard and Jones did not respond to calls from The Dispatch by press time.
City Attorney Jeff Turnage said he told the council any ethical issues with the appointment would be Richardson’s responsibility.
“I had given them advice that if there’s an ethical issue, that falls on the appointed board member, not the mayor and city council,” he told The Dispatch Friday. “If she continued to draw a salary after his board appointment, I would understand that to be a violation if I understand correctly how the pay is approved by the school board.”
Brown elected board president
Mickens’ problems with the CMSD board didn’t stop with regret over Richardson’s appointment. He’s also not happy with the board changing presidents.
The board unanimously chose Cynthia Brown to serve as the new president during Thursday’s meeting. She replaces board member Telisa Young in that role.
Mickens said he hadn’t expected Young to be replaced and was displeased with the change given that the board hopes to hold a referendum to approve a $30 million bond for facilities as soon as May.
“I had specifically asked to let Mrs. Young stay in that role because she is into so much with the bond issue and everything going on,” he told The Dispatch Friday. “We don’t need to put anybody new up there right now. … They flipped the whole thing last night. I’m not pleased with that at all.”
The school board chooses its own president, though, and Brown said she is excited to take on the role.
“I’m a longtime educator, and it is a passion for me,” she said. “I’m determined to help Columbus city schools be the best. I’m a Columbus Municipal School District product. I graduated from S.D. Lee High (School), and I’m just excited to be able to lead this challenge.”
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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