A letter on the faux ethics policies of Williamson County Board of Education: why it doesn't work

Date: Nov 10 2021

To: members of the Williamson County Board of Education

From: J Hunter Brown

I provide the attached documents which may be relevant to the discussion of ethics policy.

1/ my ethics complaint emailed and hand delvered to Garrett of July 2021

2/ response by Ausbrooks, General Counsel to WCS 9/16/2021

As you may or may not know the issue was directly raised in a prior working session of the BoE and that session was videotaped and is publicly available. It is morbidly fascinating, not without entertainment value, and linked immediately below.  The relevant exchange starts at the end ~ 2:57:30 and lasts about three minutes. It was not a particularly high water mark for quality of governance:

https://livestream.com/accounts/5076979/events/9795006/videos/224850058

The essence of Ms. Ausbrooks’ formal response is excerpted below:

The items listed in your letter relate to alleged violations of Policy 1.2021 (Code of Ethics for Board Members) and Policy 1.202 (Duties of Board Members). Neither policy provides a mechanism for review by an ethics committee regarding alleged violations of the specific provisions contained in those policies. Thus, I have advised Chair Garrett that your letter does not constitute a credible ethics complaint pursuant to the relevant Board policy.

Put otherwise, the violations cited in my letter to Garrett were dismissed not on the basis of facts or evidence presented, those acts remain unimpeached, but rather because of the absence of a mechanic for review.  Essentially, management of violations of Policy 1.2021 (Code of Ethics for Board Members) and Policy 1.202 (Duties of Board Members) is without control, process, or consequence: “Neither policy provides a mechanism for review...”

I would suggest there is a duty of BoE members to comply with policies which they approved and to which they are pledged. Evidently, Ms. Ausbrook and Garrett do not. That’s a tough argument to make particularly with things called a Code of Ethics and Duties of Board Members, but that’s the position of the Williamson County BoE.

The public would be shocked to learn that as well. The Code of Ethics and Duties of Board Members when examined in this light are toothless and present as deceptive.

J Hunter Brown