Vote on Rebel mascot draws suit

Fort Smith School Board accused of open- records law lapse

FORT SMITH — A lawsuit filed Thursday accuses the Fort Smith School Board of violating the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act when it met last month and voted in committee to get rid of the Southside High School “Rebel” mascot and fight song “Dixie.”

Fort Smith attorney Joey McCutchen filed the lawsuit in Sebastian County Circuit Court on behalf of Curtis Sorrells, whom McCutchen described in the lawsuit as a taxpayer supporting the Fort Smith School District.

The eight- page lawsuit accuses School Board members of holding an illegal meeting June 23, when they voted as a committee of the whole to discontinue the use of “Dixie” as the Southside fight song in the 2015- 16 school year and to phase out the use of the Rebel as the school’s mascot in the 2016- 17 school year.

The lawsuit named as defendants the school district, the School Board and five of its seven members: board President Deanie Mehl, Susan McFerran, Jeannie Cole, Yvonne Keaton- Martin and Wyman Wade Jr.

The committee’s vote came less than a week after the shootings at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S. C., in which nine black people were killed during a Bible study session. A white man, Dylann Roof, has been charged in a 33- count federal indictment in their deaths.

On Thursday, McCutchen called the School Board’s vote a knee- jerk reaction to the public outcry against the Confederate flag that resulted from the shooting. Photographs surfaced of Roof brandishing the flag.

School district spokesman Zena Featherston said the five named in the suit voted on the mascot issue. She said School Board member David Hunton arrived at the meeting later and also cast a vote to make the change. The seventh board member, Rusty Owen, did not attend the meeting.

McCutchen asks in the lawsuit that a judge hold a

hearing on his claims within seven days and to invalidate the board’s action of June 23.

Featherston said the board’s vote June 23 was a recommendation. The board is scheduled to vote on the mascot change when it meets at 5: 30 p. m. Monday in Building B of the School Service Center complex at 3205 Jenny Lind Road.

Before the members vote on the issue, the board “plans to allow as much public comment that is not redundant,” Featherston said.

She referred all other questions about the lawsuit Thursday to the district’s attorney, Mitch Llewellyn of Fort Smith.

Llewellyn said Thursday that he had not read through the lawsuit, and the district would not have any comment at this point.

But, “I’m not aware of any violation of the Freedom of Information Act by the School Board, so we’ll have to see what Joey has to say,” he said.

Minutes of the June 23 meeting were not available Thursday. Featherston said the district does not release minutes before they are approved by the board.

The board is scheduled to vote on accepting the minutes of that meeting Monday, she said.

McCutchen said in the suit that the June 23 special meeting violated the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act and school district’s policies in three ways:

The business the board took up at the meeting was not mentioned in the notice for the special meeting. The two notices about the meeting sent out to board members and news organizations said only that it was for the annual evaluation of Superintendent Benny Gooden.

There was no notice that

the board was going to take up the matter of the Southside mascot and fight song.

The public was led to believe that the meeting to evaluate Gooden was to be private, “which was designed to tell the public and media to not attend the meeting.”

The lawsuit said “based on information and belief” that before the June 22 regular board meeting, members met informally and discussed abolishing the Rebel mascot and “Dixie” fight song.

“I think it’s unfortunate on such a divisive issue the public has been excluded from the process, because the public has a lot of questions,” McCutchen said Thursday.

McCutchen said in the lawsuit that the board has not said how much it will cost to change the school’s mascot. He said Southside Principal Wayne Haver has estimated the cost at between $ 200,000 and $ 500,000.

“The board has not informed the public as to where the money will come from, but it is presumed that the change of the Southside mascot in the school year 20162017 will be paid for by the millage increase, if it is passed by voters in September 2016,” the lawsuit said.

Featherston said the School Board has discussed a property tax increase for 2016 but has not made a decision whether to put it before the voters. The current school tax rate is 36.5 mills.

McCutchen has voiced opposition to changing the mascot and has organized a “Rally for the Rebels” scheduled for 6: 30- 8: 30 p. m. today at the Southside High School stadium.

He said the rally is being held to demonstrate support for keeping the Rebel as the mascot and “Dixie” as the fight song. He said he expects people who attend to share their memories of Southside High School and express their opinions about the proposed change of mascot and fight song.