A school board member in Tennessee who was censured for calling a high school student “hot” during a recent meeting was still listed as one of the district’s members Tuesday. At least one local father said they will work to remove him, along with other members of the board.
Video of the April 2 Washington County School Board meeting captured the incident. Member Keith Ervin was seated next to a high school student from David Crockett High School in Jonesborough, Tenn. After she discussed career programs in the district with another board member, Ervin can be seen leaning into her before saying “God, you're hot, you know that? Where do you go to school at?”
Following the comment, the meeting seemed to carry on as usual for another 45 minutes. By April 6, WCYB reported local parents were demanding action from the district and an emergency meeting was scheduled for April 8.
Ervin also released a statement on April 8. In it, he said, that he is “not always good with words.” He also said: “I wanted to congratulate a student who did a great job sharing thoughts with all in the room. The student made all of us proud during that meeting. She was asking good questions, she was engaged, she handled herself well. Especially right before that clip in a conversation with the superintendent on a controversial hot topic. She continually fired off questions that brought out valid points. When I mentioned ‘She was hot.’ I meant she was on a roll. It had nothing to do with her appearance.”
WCYB published the full statement.
More news about the board member also came out on the day of the emergency meeting – WCYB reported that Ervin made a "lewd, juvenile gesture of a sexual nature" in front of students and teachers at Crockett High School in 2009. Concerned community members who attended the meeting did not seem impressed with Ervin’s explanation regarding the April 2 incident.
“I really expected accountability from you,” said one commenter at the April 8 meeting.
“I’m just astounded by this entire thing,” said a father whose comments went viral on social media, according to People magazine.
Though he asked the board whether they thought Ervin’s comments were appropriate, the father was told that they did not have to answer questions from the public.
“We have to worry about our kids getting shot up in schools and all this other stuff, right? But what we don’t need to be worrying about is the comments of a man to a minor. Would you want your kid around that guy without a camera around? I wouldn’t,” he said. Others in attendance clapped in agreement.
He also said that he’s going to work to remove the board if Ervin does not resign from his position. He called out the board member for not having “the backbone” to resign.
“I’m astonished by every single person here, and I’m gonna tell you straight up that if this guy still has a job here soon, I’m going to do whatever I can to raise as much money as I can to get every single one of y’all out of here. No joke,” he said.
While board members voted to censure Ervin for his comments, he was still listed as a board member as of April 14. According to a WCYB report, Washington County School Board members cannot be recalled, but they can resign. The outlet noted that Ervin is up for reelection this year.
Based on his biography on the Washington County School District website, Ervin was elected in 2006. It also said he is a 1984 graduate of Crockett and a self-employed dairy farmer who serves on the Board of Directors of the Washington County Farm Bureau and has served as member of the State Advisory Committee. Ervin is the father of two daughters who graduated from Crockett and is a member of Bethesda Methodist Church.
