All photos by Rebecca Gaunt
By Rebecca Gaunt
Thursday night, Cobb parents Jenny Peterson and Melissa Marten were in the same place they were three years ago: in line for public comment at the Cobb County Board of Education meeting.
It looks a little different now. Public commenters are required to wait outside, regardless of the elements, for the chance to pass through the Evolv weapons detector and sign up for one of 15 first come, first serve speaking spots. Three years ago, the line formed inside the lobby of the central district office, outside the boardroom where Superintendent Chris Ragsdale and the seven board members meet monthly.
The meeting in September 2023 was shaping up to be a heated one, in the wake of the district firing teacher Katie Rinderle for reading and conducting a lesson with the gender-themed book “My Shadow is Purple” in her fifth grade class. A “Replace Ragsdale” rally was scheduled for the parking lot. Many of the participants wore red shirts with “Replace Ragsdale” printed on the front. It also drew counter protestors in support of the superintendent. Those afternoon activities remained peaceful.
It was when the line for the evening session’s public comment was abruptly moved, just as sign up was to open, that the atmosphere changed. A staff member grabbed the signup laptop and ran outside to a different table. People who had been waiting in line for hours scrambled for their spots. Marten and Peterson lost theirs to people who were there to speak in support of the superintendent.
Immediately following the incident, the district put out statements that it was done for safety reasons.
An open records request later showed a coordinated effort by central district staff who were monitoring the rally and aware that the line was filled with critics of the superintendent.
In March, the U.S. District Court denied the school district’s motion to dismiss. After the defendants appealed that ruling to the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, the Southern Poverty Law Center joined the case to represent the plaintiffs, Peterson and Marten.
The SPLC put out a press release this week in support of Marten and Peterson.
“Healthy leadership can handle criticism. This district leadership, including the majority of the school board, has continued to take measures to curtail feedback from all community members since the September 2023 incident. Now they don’t even broadcast public comments, so they are no longer part of the meeting record. We look forward to a resolution of this lawsuit that includes reestablishing the rights of everyone to speak the truth to these people in power to benefit our community and over 100,000 students,” Peterson said.
The lawsuit names Superintendent Chris Ragsdale, Chief of Strategy and Accountability John Floresta, and communications staff members Julian Coca, Amanda Chambers, Nan Kiel, Daniel Vehar, and Zachary Alderson.
The open records request by the Cobb Community Care Coalition revealed Microsoft Teams messages between the named staff members that discussed the plan to move the public comment sign up line at the last minute.
“Are they all bad guys?” Coca wrote in a message to Chambers, after she sent a message telling him that there were already more than 15 people in line.
In another message, Coca wrote, “Daniel Vehar and Zachary Alderson when you get back see Amanda…there’s going to be fireworks.”
The Courier has covered the story extensively. Read previous coverage here:
Chaos and tension at Cobb school board meeting – Cobb Courier
Cobb schools staff acted to silence critics, Teams messages show – Cobb Courier
‘Blatant misconduct’: Parents want accountability for Cobb schools staff – Cobb Courier
“We continue to seek accountability from a school district that repeatedly works to suppress student, parent, and educator voices. We all have a right to be heard, no matter the viewpoint. Our kids are taught to stand up for what is right, and that is what we will continue to model as parents and community members,” Marten said.
Attorneys representing the staff members argued that they are entitled to qualified immunity and that the plaintiffs failed to plausibly allege First Amendment violations or establish a basis for CCSD liability.
Attorneys for Marten and Peterson responded that district officials are not entitled to qualified immunity because the alleged conduct violates the longstanding and clearly established prohibition against viewpoint discrimination.
“This is bigger than who gets to speak at one school board meeting. What happened to Peterson and Marten reflects an ongoing and troubling pattern of silencing critics as the Cobb County School District has become more politically and racially diverse over the past decade,” said Mike Tafelski, interim co-chief legal officer and deputy legal director, SPLC. “Our children cannot learn the value of democracy in a school district that operates from an authoritarian playbook.”
The district enacted a policy to not respond to questions from the Courier in 2021.
Read the brief in full here: Peterson v. Cobb County School District – Appellees’ Brief in Response
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.