By Rebecca Gaunt
[Disclosure: Melissa Marten does part-time ad sales for the Cobb County Courier]
A lawsuit, filed in November 2024 by two Cobb County parents alleging their First Amendment rights were violated at a school board meeting by Cobb County School District staff members, will move forward following U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross’ denial of the district’s motion to dismiss.
The parents are seeking an injunction to “prevent Defendants from again intentionally manipulating sign-in procedures for public comment in order to limit viewpoints critical of [the School Board] and its policies.”
The district’s response stated that, “among other things, they [plaintiffs] have failed to plausibly allege a First Amendment violation” and that individual staff members are protected from personal liability by qualified immunity.
Jenny Peterson and Melissa Marten have spoken critically of Superintendent Chris Ragsdale and district leadership at multiple school board meetings during public comment. On Sep. 14, 2023, both women participated in a Replace Ragsdale rally that was held in the central office parking lot prior to the evening board meeting. Both wore red shirts with “Replace Ragsdale” printed on the front, as did several other participants.
“Citizens’ right to free speech is vital to a functioning democratic society–and a school board meeting should not have exceptions. I am encouraged that this case will move forward,” Peterson said.
While the speakers at the afternoon work session were largely supportive of the superintendent and district leadership, the shirts made it obvious that the line for the second round of public comment would be less favorable.
The lawsuit alleges that this led central office staff to alter the established procedure for public comment sign up in an effort to knock critics out of line. Both women lost their spots and two people who were not in the original line were able to sign up and speak in support of the district.
Coverage of the incident: Chaos and tension at Cobb school board meeting – Cobb Courier
The district denied the accusations, claiming that the lobby had become unsafe and that the signup was moved at the last minute to better serve the public, despite the fact that some speakers had been in line for hours in the regular location.
An open records request by Jennifer Susko, a coordinator of the rally and now a candidate for school board Post 6, included Microsoft Teams messages that showed staff members coordinating the line move after noting the number of “bad guys” waiting to speak.
The individuals named in the lawsuit are Superintendent Chris Ragsdale, Chief Strategy and Accountability Officer John Floresta, Communications Director Julian Coca, Director of Marketing Daniel Vehar, Director of Public Relations Nan Kiel, and two other employees in the communications department, Zach Alderson and Amanda Chambers.
Read more on the open records findings: Cobb schools staff acted to silence critics, Teams messages show – Cobb Courier and Cobb schools staff pressured media, accessed student files inappropriately, documents show – Cobb Courier
“This has always been about our First Amendment rights and that means for everyone who wishes to speak at a meeting, no matter your viewpoint,” Marten said. “I don’t want anyone to experience what we experienced in September 2023.”
The district did not respond to a request for comment.
Rebecca Gaunt earned a degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and a master’s degree in education from Oglethorpe University. After teaching elementary school for several years, she returned to writing. She lives in Marietta with her husband, son, two cats, and a dog. In her spare time, she loves to read, binge Netflix and travel.
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