Former School Board President Testifies in Teacher’s Hearing

The following testimony took place 11:37 a.m.—4:24 p.m. on 6/02/10 and 9:06 a.m.—11:11 a.m. on 6/03/10.

While Ian Watson was president of the Mount Vernon Board of Education he fought the subpoena that ordered him to appear to testify at the hearing for the teacher he had voted to consider firing. All legal avenues to avoid appearing closed once the hearing outlasted his term in office.

Topics covered during Watson’s testimony at Wednesday’s and Thursday’s John Freshwater hearing ranged from his own experience with the Tesla coil to his understanding of what constitutes a religious display.

(Watson in 2008 at a meeting of the school board.)

Tesla coil

The June 20, 2008 resolution by the school board stated that Freshwater “branded” a cross onto the arm of a student. Watson testified that he did some personal investigation into whether the Tesla coil was capable of burning human skin.

Watson, in April of 2008, observed a demonstration by teacher Elle Button of the Tesla coil igniting a small piece of paper. Button held the paper in front of a metal cabinet and allowed the spark from the Tesla coil to pass through the paper.

After the demonstration, Watson asked Button to use the coil on himself. She refused. Watson said that Button also told him that she was going to leave if he was going to apply the spark to himself.

Freshwater’s attorney, R. Kelly Hamilton, asked Watson, “So, after you saw [the paper] burst into flames, you still wanted it applied to you?”

Watson replied, “Doesn’t sound like the brightest thing, but, yes.”

Watson said that about a day later a mark did appear on his arm where he had run the spark across. On a pain scale of “0” to “5,” Watson said the spark felt like a “3.”

The demonstration was in middle school principal Bill White’s office. White, who has an electronic implant, was six feet away from the demonstration. Watson said that Button did tell him about the danger of a person such as White coming in contact with the device.

After the experiment, which Watson said was not scientific, he decided that it had been a wasted effort and would not resolve the allegation one way or the other.

Freshwater denies that anyone was burned in the classroom demonstration.

Conversations with Stephen Dennis

The Dennis family brought most of the complaints against Freshwater that resulted in the teacher’s suspension without pay.

Watson said that he met Stephen Dennis a few years ago in connection with some work at First Knox National Bank. Watson, now retired from the bank, said that the bank would sometimes do business with Dennis’ brokerage.

In March of 2008, Dennis came to the bank to talk about some concerns that he had with the school, Watson said.

Those concerns, Watson said, included “his son being burned,” religious information in the classroom, Freshwater’s role with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, questions that Dennis said his son was asked by Freshwater in school, and an extra credit assignment that Dennis said Freshwater gave his son.

Watson said that the first time Dennis contacted him, he told Dennis to talk with superintendent Steve Short. Dennis ended up having over six conversations with Watson. Watson said that he did not know why Dennis kept coming back.

Watson said that it seemed that within a week or two of talking with Dennis, there was talk of a lawsuit by Dennis. Dennis did inform him that he had hired an attorney, Watson said.

Religious display

Watson defined a religious display as being a “grouping of religiously based articles such that when you perceive it you have an opinion that religion is being represented.”

There is no black or white line as to what constitute a religious display but the more religious items there are the closer it comes to being a problem, Watson said. It is possible, he said, for just one item to be an issue.

Watson said that in the written school policy on religion in the curriculum a Bible in and of itself is not an issue. His personal view is that allowing a teacher to have a Bible on his work desk is bad policy.

The school board was OK with a Bible sitting on someone’s desk, Watson said.

The “George Bush/Colin Powell” poster, which Freshwater had posted in the classroom, would not be an issue in and of itself, Watson said.

Freshwater also had posted in his classroom, for security reasons, several book covers over an interior window. These covers, which Freshwater said he obtained from the school offices, included a copy of the Ten Commandments and a quote about good thinking.

(An expert witness, Michael Molnar, previously testified that the book covers are not inherently religious because there are other quotes on the covers in addition to the Ten Commandments.)

Hamilton asked Watson if the school offices keep items that are legal or illegal. Watson replied that “generally we would keep legal items” in the offices.

Freshwater removed the book covers when requested, in writing, to do so by school administration.

Hamilton showed Watson a photo of another teacher’s classroom that included a poster of how to memorize the Ten Commandments, a poem, lyrics from a Christian song and verses from the Psalms. Watson said that he would question those items and that they could be a problem.

Additional statements by Watson:

• Isn’t able to remember the details to answer all of the questions because these events took place two years ago.

• Doesn’t recall saying what a news story attributes to him of a family requesting that Freshwater’s Bible be removed. The family that made the complaint about the religious display was the Dennis family but they never specifically said they had a problem with the Bible on the desk. At the time he was hopeful that the parents and Freshwater could “find common ground.”

• Never talked with Dr. Lynda Weston about the complaints she says she received about Freshwater. (Weston is the former Director of Teaching and Learning for the Mount Vernon City Schools.)

• Serves on the board of the First Congregational United Church of Christ. Same church that Weston attends.

• Was in contact with the ACLU sometime in April of 2008. Contacted them because he “was intrigued on what their position would be.” The ACLU told him that it was OK for students to have Bibles on their desks at school as long as it wasn’t during an educational time but that a teacher having a Bible sitting on his desk was an extremely gray area and it would be better to keep the teacher’s Bible out of sight. His opinion would have been the same even if he had not contacted the ACLU.

• Did see Jim Beroth at SIPS coffee shop and is aware that Beroth’s daughter says she saw someone talking with him. Although he does not remember the conversation happening the day he saw Beroth, he did talk with someone about bringing in Patricia Princehouse as an expert witness.

• The school’s written policy of how complaints are to be handled was not completely followed through regarding the complaints against Freshwater.

• Did tell Jeff Cline at a school board meeting that if he had a complaint about a book that he should follow the policy and file a written complaint. The board polices should be followed.

• Someone is showing insubordination when he is in direct opposition to what his supervisors have directed to be done. In response to Hamilton asking a hypothetical question about a supervisor telling an employee to jump out a window: “There are clearly some qualifiers involved.”

• Does not know of any past teachers in the school district that have been suspended without pay.

• The H.R. On Call report was satisfactory to the school board. Considers the report to be fair. To his knowledge the report is accurate.

• Did not participate in any of the HROC interviews during the investigation. Did not receive a draft copy of the report before it was released.

• As to why one of the HROC investigators referred to him by his first name, Ian, during their interview with Freshwater, which Watson was not at: “Many people call me by my first name.”

• Did not keep a “black binder” about Freshwater at the bank.

• Does not recall when he learned that Freshwater was not a member of the union.

• Suspects that it is Short who ultimately has the responsibility to insure that the contract is followed.

• Teachers are allowed to use materials from the library.

The school board’s attorney, David Millstone, did not ask Watson any questions.

Student Was Not Burned, According To Medical Expert

The following testimony took place between 10:34 a.m.—11:21 a.m. on 6/02/10.

The parents of Zachary Dennis were concerned enough to take pictures of their son’s arm but not concerned enough to take him to the doctor. In the experience of Dr Patrick Johnston, parents who react in that way are looking to sue someone.

It wasn’t until months after the situation occurred, in which Stephen and Jennifer Dennis say their son was burned in science class, that they made a big deal out of the matter. The Dennises followed up with a lawsuit but no doctor ever saw the alleged burn.

Johnston, a family practice physician, was brought as an expert witness for the defense of eighth grade science teacher John Freshwater during Wednesday’s hearing. (The hearing is regarding whether Freshwater will be retained as a teacher and is separate from the lawsuit filed by the Dennises against Freshwater.)

(The John Freshwater hearing is taking place at the Mount Vernon Board of Education offices.)

Second-degree burn

Dr. David Levy, an expert witness brought by the school board’s attorney, previously testified that the photos of Zachary Dennis showed a “superficial second-degree burn.”

Johnston did not find it credible that Dennis had a second-degree burn. A second-degree burn caused by electricity would cause excruciating pain, Johnston said.

A student, Corbin Douglas Heck, previously testified that Dennis laughed when the spark from the Tesla coil was run across Dennis’ arm during the classroom demonstration.

Unless Dennis is a Navy Seal trained in torture techniques, there is no way he would have been able to withstand the “burning” without pulling away, Johnston said.

The fact that no other students reported being burned—Freshwater had done the demonstration throughout the years on hundreds of students as had other teachers—rules out that the mark shown in the photos was a burn, Johnston said.

An electrical burn that happened quickly would not create the skatttered spots that are depicted in the photo in addition to the lines, Johnston said.

Johnston said that Dennis probably had a skin condition.

Medical history

Knowing the medical history of the child is crucial to making a diagnosis, Johnston said. He could not make a proper determination of the cause of the marks by just looking at the photos. Johnston said that there could be a hundred explanations.

Johnston explained that some people get a reaction from friction on their skin—the marks could have even been created by a rash from running a tongue suppressor across the arm.

Johnston said that he would suspect the parents of negligence if the child had a second degree burn but they did not take the child to see a doctor.

Radio interview with Freshwater

Johnston also testified as a fact witness in addition to testifying as an expert witness.

On April 25, 2009, Johnston had interviewed Freshwater on the radio program Right Remedy that at the time Johnston hosted. School board attorney David Millstone previously played a recording of that interview in the hearing and asked Freshwater several questions about it.

Johnston testified that the “LEGO demonstration,” which was discussed in the interview, was something that he learned about before talking with Freshwater. In the research Johnston had done, he thought that Freshwater had used the LEGO bricks in class as a rebuttal to evolution.

Johnston said he found out during the interview that it was a student and not Freshwater who did the demonstration with the LEGO bricks.

Dumping LEGO bricks out on a table, Johnston said, could be evidence for or against a “starship” forming by chance. He said that it might depend on how many billions of times the LEGO bricks were dumped out onto the table.

For more information, see the affidavit of Johnston ( 531.87 KB PDF).

Religious Display Depends On Context and Purpose

The following testimony took place between 9:11 a.m.—10:34 a.m. on 6/02/10.

The items in the classroom of John Freshwater were not part of a religious display, according to expert witness Michael Molnar.

Molnar’s conclusion was based on photos and information Freshwater’s attorney, R. Kelly Hamilton, provided to Molnar about Freshwater’s classroom. Molnar, an elementary principal for the last eight years, testified at Wednesday’s hearing.

(The John Freshwater hearing is taking place at the Mount Vernon Board of Education offices.)

Religious display

Molnar said that a thorough investigation is important in determining whether something is a religious display. If someone complained to him about items posted in a classroom, he would ask the teacher why the items were there and where the items came from.

The “George Bush/Colin Powell” poster that Freshwater had posted in the classroom could serve a patriotic purpose, Molnar said. The teacher would have no reason to think there was a problem with the poster unless notified that there was an issue with it, Molnar said.

A Bible, Koran or Torah is not a religious display in and of itself, Molnar said.

Molnar said that the book covers placed by Freshwater, for security reasons, over a window are not inherently religious because there are other quotes on the covers in addition to the Ten Commandments.

If a teacher’s room is used for the meeting place of a student organization, such as Fellowship of Christian Athletes, then it is permissible for the students to store their club items in the room, Molnar said. The areas that a student organization could post things would be determined by the school or the club’s advisor, Molnar said.

Molnar defined a religious display as one that is being used to try to proselytize.

Prompt investigation

Policies and procedures established by a school district for the investigation of complaints insure that all are treated fairly, Molnar said. Promptness is also important, Molnar said, especially when students are involved.

If an allegation is made against a teacher then the students involved should, when possible, be interviewed the same day, Molnar said.

Molnar’s response to an allegation of a student being burned—such as what the Dennis family says happened in Freshwater’s class—would be to talk with the child in question. He would find out what other witnesses were present, talk with the teacher, and determine whether the students were in any danger.

Molnar said that he would want statements obtained from witnesses and put into writing promptly in order to insure the integrity of the investigation.

Schools are required to report injuries to Children’s Services, Molnar said.

School administration

The administration should follow conversation about a directive with something in writing, Molnar said. He also said that it is the administration’s responsibility to follow guidelines, procedures and the master contract—to insure the integrity of any investigations and fairness to all staff members.



For more information, see the affidavit of Molnar ( 696.81 KB PDF).

Religion in the Public Schools

One of the stipulations in the partial settlement reached between the Dennis family and the Mount Vernon Board of Education was that the school system was to provide training to teachers on state and church issues.

Back in August of 2009, two attorneys—David Millstone and William Steele—gave a presentation to the teachers titled “Religion in the Public Schools.” (At some point there is to be a second presentation on the issue by Melissa Rogers, director of the Center for Religion and Public Affairs at Wake Forest University Divinity School.)

(The presentation given to Mount Vernon City Schools’ teaching staff last year.)

Although the August 2009 presentation was previously reported on by the Mount Vernon News, for those interested in more details about the presentation and the viewpoints of the school district’s attorneys, the following is a copy of the computer slides used for the presentation:

“Religion in the Public Schools” (1331.2 KB PDF).

(In response to a request from AccountabilityInTheMedia.com, Millstone provided clarification on a couple points—see copy of email (80.68 KB PDF). )

On the topic of religion in the public schools, a federal judge earlier this year handed down a strongly worded decision:

“Ironically, while teachers in the Poway Unified School District encourage students to celebrate diversity and value thinking for one’s self, Defendants apparently fear their students are incapable of dealing with diverse viewpoints that include God’s place in American history and culture.

“But to assert that because [Bradley] Johnson was a teacher, he had no First Amendment protections in his classroom for his own speech would ignore a half-century of other Supreme Court precedent.”

The decision is worth reading in its entirety:

Bradley Johnson vs. Poway Unified School District, et al. (105.13 KB PDF)

Freshwater Controversy in Episode of Law & Order

The season finale of the police and legal drama Law & Order deals with teachers who have had their careers harmed by “nuisance complaints” from students.

One of the teachers included in the episode “Rubber Room” shares something in common with suspended Mount Vernon Middle School teacher John Freshwater—he was accused of branding a cross onto a student with a Tesla coil.

During the course of the episode, the police interview several teachers who might be able to provide a lead on a suspect. All of the teachers tell stories about being wronged by the system. The first teacher the police talk with is science teacher Ron Kozlowski:

Teacher: “It’s absurd, I didn’t brand anybody. You know what a Tesla coil is?”

Investigator: “Yes. [pointing] That.”

Teacher: “Correct. I assume you know what it does?”

Investigator: “It generates an electrical current.”

(A teacher on  Law & Order, “Rubber Room,” describes using the Tesla coil on students.)

Teacher: “Good job. Last year, as I’ve done hundreds of times before, I did a little demonstration by passing the current over the arms of my students, left a little redness on the skin. Next thing I know there is a complaint filed that I ‘branded crosses.’ I was suspended pending an arbitration.”

Investigator: “One of your students wrote about you on his blog. He said you were a church freak.”

Teacher: “I’m a religious person, I don’t make any bones about that.”

Investigator: “We’re trying to identify the student who wrote this about you on his blog.”

Second investigator: “He probably gets A’s in English, drives a silver Honda.”

Teacher: “No. Doesn’t ring a bell.”

Investigator: “What about the student who filed the complaint, you have his name?”

Teacher: “There was more than one student. The Department of Education wouldn’t tell me their names. Sorry you had to drive all the way out here.”

Investigator: “Sorry you ended up out here.”

Teacher: “After four months of suspension I quit New York and took a job here. Half the salary, twice the commute, but at least I’m teaching.”

A person with the username "seabiscuit" on mvohio.net pointed out the connection between the Law & Order episode and the local controversy. "How about that!" seabiscuit wrote. "This situation has now been woven into a television show!"

Student Testimony—John Freshwater Addresses School Board

John Freshwater told the Mount Vernon Board of Education that he believed the board was not being updated on the testimony from his hearing.

During Monday’s board meeting, Freshwater summarized the recent testimony of ten students.

The ten students were from the same class as Zachary Dennis, Freshwater said.

Freshwater supplied the board with copies of the affidavits from the witnesses.

Board members did not respond to Freshwater’s comments but did allow him additional time beyond the standard three minutes for public participation.




UPDATE—related documents:

Student affidavits (3.45 MB PDF).

The PDF contains the affidavits of most of the student witnesses that testified at the Freshwater hearing April 29-30, 2010.

UPDATE—related media coverage:

The following are two articles from the Mount Vernon News about the student testimony at the Freshwater hearing April 29-30, 2010:

“Freshwater: Source remains mystery”

“Students testify in Freshwater hearing”

Motion to Close John Freshwater Hearing—Jury May Be Influenced By Media Coverage

John Freshwater’s attorney is requesting that the administrative hearing be closed to the public and the media. In the motioned submitted Tuesday, attorney R. Kelly Hamilton expresses concern that the eventual jurors for the upcoming federal trial may be influenced by media coverage of the hearing:

“Upon each hearing date multiple media sources have attended the hearing and made report in various news outlets. The change in circumstances is presented in that potential jury members could be exposed to media reports that may unduly influence, create or lead to bias, detected or undetected through voir dire. The cognitive influences of primacy and recency potentially created by media reports could jeopardize John Freshwater’s position in the federal trial as eventual jurors may be influenced or biased as a result of the media reports emanating from the remaining hearing testimony to be taken in this matter. An example of such influence against John Freshwater is included as Exhibit A wherein John Freshwater received an unsolicited letter of opinion from a person not familiar to John Freshwater. Media attention in this matter has been constant and at this juncture the teacher, John Freshwater, may be further unduly harmed by uninformed recipients of journalism that is designed to sell news rather than accurately present a fair and balanced report.” (Emphasis added.)

In addition to concern about media influence on jurors, Hamilton stated that other reasons for closing the hearing are: “Articulated witness apprehension.” “The prospect of revealing the anonymous source identity.”

(Click here to read the motion.)

The hearing is set to resume on April 29, according to the Mount Vernon News. The hearing will be taking place at the Mount Vernon City Schools Central Office at 300 Newark Road.

UPDATE 4-28-10 at 4:20 p.m.:


The hearing scheduled to resume on Thursday will be open to the public. Referee R. Lee Shepherd issued his decision Wednesday on the request to close the hearing.

“There being no statutory rights to close (make private) a contract termination hearing once a public hearing has been requested, the teacher’s motion is denied,” Shepherd stated.

(Click here to view a copy of the decision.)

Christian Family Objects to Bible in Classroom

Self-described as Christian, the Dennis family is suing their son’s former teacher for—among other things—having a Bible in the classroom.

Bible on the desk

Up until five months ago, the Dennises attempted to distance themselves from the controversy surrounding the school’s order for John Freshwater to remove his Bible. The Dennis’ lawsuit in 2008 did not make mention of Freshwater’s personal Bible, instead it stated that the teacher “kept several Bibles in his classroom which were not for his personal use.”

April 6, 2010, federal judge Gregory Frost granted the Dennis’ November 16, 2009, request to include Freshwater’s personal Bible in the suit.

The Dennis’ attorney Douglas Mansfield maintains that the family is not opposed to religion. “As I think you know, the Dennises are a religious family,” Mansfield told AccountabilityInTheMedia.com, “but they believe—as our Constitution provides—that it's not appropriate for a teacher in a public school classroom to impose his or her own religious beliefs onto the students.”

Freshwater’s attorneys challenged Mansfield’s initial attempt to insert Freshwater’s personal Bible into the suit. In explaining why the Bible should be permitted in the suit, Mansfield stated, in a document filed with the court on January 14, 2010:

“Freshwater remains liable for the other Bible on display in his classroom throughout the 2007-2008 school year. […] the Dennises are not foreclosed from raising claims against Freshwater merely because they did not present them in a complaint to the school district. […] Therefore, the Dennises have not waived arguments pertaining to the Bible on Freshwater’s desk, and it remains viable evidence in proving Freshwater’s violations of the Establishment Clause.”

Freshwater testified in an ongoing administrative hearing that he prayed with his family and made what he believes is a constitutional decision to leave the Bible on the desk. Freshwater testified that he did not teach religious beliefs in his classroom.

The Dennises requested summary judgment, but Frost left the matter to a jury to decide.

Box of FCA Bibles

The Dennises also objected to a box of Bibles stored in the back of the classroom. Frost described, in a court document, the circumstances surrounding these Bibles:

“[There was] a box of Bibles in the back corner of the classroom that was stored there for the student group the Fellowship of Christian Athletes […] Freshwater was the faculty advisor of the FCA for approximately 17 years. The box of Bibles were utilized during the FCA meetings.”

Mansfield argued, January 14, that just because Zachary Dennis was a member of FCA that did not mean his parents are prohibited from objecting to the box of Bibles:

“Further, Zach’s participation in FCA does not defeat the Establishment Clause cause of action because Freshwater inappropriately displayed and maintained those Bibles in his classroom outside the times that Zach participated in FCA. Such exposure contradicts Zach’s parents’ constitutional right to provide their child religious teaching.”

Frost wasn’t convinced enough to issue a summary judgment on the matter, “[T]he Court is not sure that a box of Bible’s in the corner of a room with many other boxes of stored items constitutes a ‘display.’”

The matter will be left to a jury to decide.

Ten Commandments

The third Establishment Clause item that the Dennises requested summary judgment on was the Ten Commandments posters that were in Freshwater’s classroom.

Freshwater removed the posters when requested, in writing, to do so by school administration.

Freshwater’s attorneys argued that the poster on the bulletin board was placed there by members of FCA and that the members had school permission to post club related materials. The other posters were book covers used to cover-up an interior window. According to his attorneys, the book covers were provided by school administration for that purpose. The covers also contained inspirational quotes from famous individuals.

Frost left the matter to a jury to decide.

Standing—the right to file a lawsuit

In order to sue, the individuals must have “standing,” that is, they must be personally affected by the matter over which they are suing. West's Encyclopedia of American Law defines “standing” as the following:

“Standing, sometimes referred to as standing to sue, is the name of the federal law doctrine that focuses on whether a prospective plaintiff can show that some personal legal interest has been invaded by the defendant. It is not enough that a person is merely interested as a member of the general public in the resolution of the dispute. The person must have a personal stake in the outcome of the controversy.”

The Dennises state in their lawsuit that they are Christians. The Bibles and Ten Commandments, if seen as religious articles, are from their own religion. In order to have standing, the Dennis’ legal interests have to have been invaded by the presence of these items.

In granting the Dennises standing, Frost stated, “Plaintiffs correctly explain that they possess standing based upon the uncontroverted fact that ZD was exposed to Freshwater’s Bible, the box of Bibles, and the Ten Commandments postings, something he could not avoid, and Plaintiffs claim offense at such exposure.”

The word “offense” or “offended” was not used by the Dennis family in describing their reaction to the above mentioned items. In response to an inquiry from AccountabilityInTheMedia.com, Mansfield explained, “As I read the Court's opinion, the use of the term ‘offense’ simply relates to the Dennises’ claim that the religious materials in Mr. Freshwater's classroom violated their constitutional rights.”

(Click here to read Mansfield’s full response to questions from AccountabilityInTheMedia.com.)

Frost did not address the issue of whether it is possible for Christians to have their constitutional rights violated by the presence of objects from their own religion.

In Washegesic Pub. Sch. (6th Cir. 1994), a case involving the display of a portrait of Jesus Christ in a public school, the court ruled that the portrait had to be removed, stating:

“Christ is central only to Christianity, and his portrait has a proselytizing, affirming effect that some non-believers find deeply offensive. […] It is the rights of these few that the Establishment Clause protects in this case.” (Emphasis added).

Tesla coil and defamation

Other requests for summary judgment went beyond the Establishment Clause issues.

Frost left it to a jury to decide if Zachary was capable of consenting to the Tesla coil experiment. Frost decided that Freshwater gave full disclosure to Zachary regarding Freshwater’s knowledge of any effects of the demonstration and, thus, any consent was not negated by mistake or misrepresentation:

“Freshwater correctly argues, he testified that he had no knowledge that the experiment would cause ZD, or any other student, burning and pain. Further, the evidence before the Court indicates that the Tesla coil experiment was conducted on hundreds of students with no injury. Plaintiffs have failed to bring forth any evidence that would tend to show that Freshwater knew that the Tesla coil experiment could cause the burning and pain to which Plaintiffs refer.”

Freshwater denies that anyone was burned in the classroom demonstration. (See the article, "Tesla Coil Matter Was Officially Resolved January 2008." )

Frost ruled in the Dennis’ favor on Freshwater’s counter claims of defamation:

“Plaintiffs argue that they are entitled to summary judgment on each of these allegedly defamatory statements because (1) many of the statements were not made by Plaintiffs, (2) some of the statements are entitled to an absolute privilege, (3) some of the statements are entitled to a qualified privilege, and (4) Freshwater has introduced no evidence that the remaining statements were made with actual malice, which is required because he is a limited purpose public figure. This Court agrees.”

Related documents

The National Center for Science Education maintains an up-to-date archive of court documents for the case Doe v. Mount Vernon Board of Education et al.

Photographs of Missing Evidence — John Freshwater Addresses School Board

John Freshwater used his three minutes of public participation time to update the Mount Vernon Board of Education on recent developments related to his employment hearing.

“I thought the hearing was about to end sometime last month but the proceeding changed again because somebody sent an anonymous letter containing some photographs of some items from my classroom,” Freshwater said. “Last week another anonymous delivery was made that contained approximately 300 photographs of items that were in my room.”

“On January 14, 2009 my attorney subpoenaed from the board, Mr. Short and the board’s attorney, all the materials from my classroom,” Freshwater said. “The board’s attorney indicated to my attorney that the board did not have anything from my classroom.”

Also speaking during public participation was Vicky Fitzgerald. She asked questions regarding the school district’s finances and board member Steve Thompson’s involvement with The Community Council For Free Expression.

The financial challenge facing the district was the forefront issue leading up to the last election. The 2008-2009 budget projected that the district was going to have approximately three million more in expenditures than income. For more information, see previous coverage of the three forums held with the candidates:

“Meet the Candidates Night — Local 470 and MVEA”
“Meet the Candidates Night — Knox County Ohio 912 Project”
“Mount Vernon Schools Going Forward – School Board Candidate Forum”


Superintendent Steve Short and the board members did not respond to any comments made by community members.

The board approved putting a renewal levy on the ballot.







UPDATE 2-9-10 at 3:30 P.M.:

An article published today by the Mount Vernon News provides some additional information regarding the missing evidence. The article cites board attorney David Millstone as saying that Freshwater and his attorney have been provided access to all the materials from Freshwater’s classroom that the board has in its possession.

“Anonymous source leads to ‘black bag’ find,” by Samantha Scoles.


UPDATE—related documents:


Anonymous tipster—first letter (dated 1-11-2010, received 1-14-2010).

The PDF file includes several photographs included with the letter. The letter is as follows:

John:

There is so much more you need to know. For now keep these pictures and copies of things you might remember and this note sent to Steve Short. This is not how this situation was supposed to go and there’s alot of regret.

January 11, 2010

Steve Short:

I once trusted you and thought you would be a real good leader. You allowed yourself to become part of some dirty, dirty, dirty, people. I know some of what’s been done. Understand it will be revealed what I know if you do not stop this framing of John Freshwater as a bad man. I cannot stand the lies and deceit that have been done and now is the time to stand up for what’s right. There is proof where these pictures and copies were taken. These pictures are reduced for now but if necessary these pictures and all the others can show the world the full view which will display the location of these books and papers and the other things taken from Freshwater’s classroom. You and this dirty group of people tried to take down one man and ended up hurting the careers of more than just Freshwater. It is wrong what had been done and beware that I don’t tell all to. Remember the do unto others as you would want done unto you may just be done if you let this keep up. You cannot be trusted alone with these pictures so I am sending this letter and thes pictures to others to.

Motion to close hearing to the public (dated 1-19-2010).

The following is from the request, by Kelly Hamilton, to close the hearing:

Presently, it is my desire to close the hearing to the public and by this letter request to do the same. Currently there is someone or more than one person who has information that they anonymously want to inject. As discussed during our conference on January 15, 2010, the anonymous person is looking for a reaction and has likely received a measure of information from the news media or other sources from within the hearing. Strategically it has been decided the anonymous source will more likely appear if they do not know the results of their submission. The greatest likelihood for identifying the anonymous source is to isolate the boundaries or variables by limiting their access to further information.

Anonymous tipster—second letter (found 2-2-2010).

The PDF file contains a copy of the letter. The letter is as follows:

John,

Hope the other stuff helped. There are at least two of us that know about how your stuff was kept at the MS and Central Office. Only recently was your stuff moved. An attorney said this black bag should be returned so here it is with about 300 pictures from two boxes. A blown-whistle law would give protection but need more time. Able to help again more soon and gurantee help before trial. Please understand. Keep your faith. They don’t want the truth.

Police report about the “black bag” find (dated 2-4-2010).

Pastor Don Matolyak said that the written information he provided to the police for this report was his “journaling and was not originally designed to be a police report.”


John Freshwater’s letter to MVBOE (given to board 2-8-2010).

Freshwater’s letter is a written version of the comments he made to the board during its meeting. Included in the letter is the last portion of his comments that he was unable to give due to the three minute time limit.


The Mount Vernon News article—linked to in previous update—includes a response from the board’s attorney regarding the “black bag” find.

Problematic Poster?

There used to be a poster hanging in the Mount Vernon Middle School library that stated “HE’S GOT the WHOLE WORLD in HIS HANDS.” (See previous article “He’s got a Poster at the School.” )

During the recent school board meeting on January 11—the board meetings are held in the middle school library—I noticed the poster was gone. Did someone at the school have a problem with the poster?

Perhaps someone realized that if this poster was going to be allowed at the school then maybe the poster that was in John Freshwater’s classroom was OK. (Freshwater had a poster that showed George W. Bush and his cabinet with their heads bowed.)

(The photo to the left shows a vacant spot on a middle school library wall where the poster used to be. The photo at the right was taken September 2009.)

MVBOE New Members Sworn In

New Mount Vernon Board of Education members Paula Barone and Steve Thompson took the oath of office at the board’s Monday organizational meeting. Prior vice-president Dr. Margie Bennett was nominated by Jody Goetzman, seconded by Thompson, to be the new president. Thompson nominated Goetzman, seconded by Barone, to be the new vice-president.

The organizational meeting was followed by the first regular meeting of the year.

There was no public participation.

Dates and times for upcoming board meetings will be posted on the board’s website: http://www.mt-vernon.k12.oh.us/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=34.

Missing Evidence in John Freshwater Hearing

The following testimony took place 10:03 A.M.—3:54 P.M. on 12/29/09 and 9:06 A.M.—4:36 P.M. on 12/30/09.

School board attorney David Millstone presented new evidence during the cross-examination of John Freshwater—documents possibly from Freshwater’s classroom. What didn’t turn up was evidence that Freshwater would like to see—his lesson plans and teacher edition textbooks with his handwritten notes.

Freshwater stated that these documents, which he thinks are in the possession of the Mount Vernon City Schools, would provide exculpatory and exonerating evidence.

The cross-examination of Freshwater began on Tuesday morning. Prior to Freshwater taking the stand, a previously unavailable witness gave a brief testimony regarding what the witness said was alterations on one of the board’s exhibits. (See previous article “Email Was Altered, According to Witness in John Freshwater Hearing.” )

(The Freshwater hearing is taking place in the Knox County Service Center.)

Student surveys/data sheets

The new evidence brought by Millstone included two documents that supposedly contain data collected about student Zachary Dennis at the beginning of the school year. Freshwater stated that he did not use this form.

Another document was a “multiple intelligence” survey. Freshwater stated that he also did not use that survey.

When The Columbus Dispatch published an article about Freshwater’s testimony, the article included misleading information. The article by Dean Narciso was titled “Mount Vernon science teacher's survey addressed faith.”

The title should have included an attribution for the assertion being made in it. Example: “Dispatch headline writer says Mount Vernon science teacher used survey that addressed faith.”

The caption provided by the Dispatch for a photo of Freshwater, included in the article, also contained misleading information: “Teacher John Freshwater at first denied in a hearing yesterday that he had surveyed students.” This incorrectly implies that Freshwater later changed his testimony. Freshwater never acknowledged using the survey.

Both the headline for the Dispatch article and the description with the photo were probably not written by the reporter, Narciso.

Several of the other “new” pieces of evidence were actually quite old. One was a letter dated 1994 that had at the top “to John Freshwater.” Another document was from 1988. Freshwater said that he had not seen these documents before.

The new documents were shown to Freshwater, however, the board has not made a motion to enter the documents as exhibits. Freshwater’s attorney, Kelly Hamilton, stated the following day that he will be objecting to the documents’ admission unless the board brings someone to authenticate them.

Answers in Genesis

Millstone questioned Freshwater about his prior testimony regarding Answers in Genesis. There wasn’t anything new to cover on this subject due to the thoroughness of attorney Hamilton during direct examination.

When Dispatch reporter Narciso wrote about the cross-examination, he expressed his opinion that Freshwater changed his testimony: “Asked if he referred students to Answers in Genesis, a religious Web site, Freshwater said no. Later, he reversed that statement, admitting that he had. ‘I'm not sure that you're taking it out of context,’ he said.”

Freshwater did not reverse his statement—what he did was try to clarify for Millstone what he meant by his testimony. The core of Freshwater’s testimony did not change. At issue was whether or not the word “referred” was the best description of what Freshwater did in regards to AIG.

Freshwater testified that the website answersingenesis.org showed up on a list of internet search results that was on the screen in class—a student later asked for permission to use the computer lab to look up the website. Freshwater allowed the student to do so. The second situation in which Freshwater “referred” students to AIG was when Freshwater took a van load of students and adults to the AIG museum.

Praying with students

One of the affidavits that Freshwater prepared—with the intent of providing it to the H.R. On Call investigators—deals with the subject of praying with students. Freshwater said that HROC should have asked some additional questions on the subject but since they didn’t he was providing some clarification in his written response.

In the transcript Freshwater made of the HROC interview, he says that he does pray with Fellowship of Christian Athlete students because he is praying all of the time. He also says that his praying could be oral or not.

In the portions of the affidavit that Freshwater referred to while testifying, he clarified that the prayers when he was around students were silent “Nehemiah arrow prayers.”

Tesla coil

Freshwater testified that he was surprised with how much the Tesla coil was discussed during the HROC interview—because the matter had already been resolved in January of that year. (See previous article “Tesla Coil Matter Was Officially Resolved January 2008.” )

Before touching volunteers with the spark from the Tesla coil, Freshwater said that he would first demonstrate the device on his own arm. He said that he would hold his arm up and apply the spark to a single area briefly.

Most students also only had the spark touched to their arm briefly before pulling away, Freshwater said. Of those that didn’t pull away, he would make the motion or movement of an “x” with the device but was not trying to make an “x” mark on their arm.

Freshwater said that he has not branded or burned any student—there is no evidence that he has harmed any student during the years that he used the device.

LEGO bricks

Millstone asked Freshwater if he ever used LEGO bricks in his class. Freshwater replied that if he has used them it has been a long time—he could not recall if he put LEGO bricks out on the table and asked students if the bricks could put themselves together.

Following these questions, Millstone played a recording of an interview from April 25, 2009— Right Remedy hosted by Dr. Patrick Johnston—in which Freshwater was also asked about the LEGO bricks:

Johnston: “And tell us about the LEGOs, I thought that was fascinating.”

Freshwater: “Students showed me, many years ago, and I used it up to 2003, these LEGOs, he actually did it for his senior paper, he did it and showed it to me, it is a very simple demonstration, gathering up a bunch of LEGOs, and he made a demonstration. He made an airplane or a car out of the LEGOs. And he had a bunch of other ones, same pieces, and he scattered them all on the floor, put them in a box and threw them on the floor. And he asked the kids to watch them there. And we watched them for a while and he said, if we watch them for a day will they form into this car or airplane? The kids said no. If we watched them for five to ten years, would they turn into this airplane—no. Or anything like this airplane—no. So he strung it out to ten thousand years, to millions of years, what is the chance of this becoming this airplane or this automobile? The kids all agreed it won’t happen, and then he, he, we, [sic] compare it to the eyeball, what is the complexity of the eyeball compared to the very simplicity of LEGOs coming together and forming a car like structure. And we all know that just a simple cell or groups of cells forming an eyeball is so complex with these DNA molecules, that the chance of that happening is slim to none.”

When the recording was done playing, Freshwater said that it was the student who did the demonstration with the LEGO bricks.

During redirect from his attorney, Freshwater explained that when Millstone asked him about the LEGO bricks he did not recall anything at all about the project—when the audio was played that refreshed his memory.

Freshwater said the interview itself was preceded by an off air discussion with the host about the student’s LEGO project—which helped him remember when he went on the air.

Expelled movie

Freshwater offered his 2007-2008 class an extra credit project that involved watching the movie Expelled: “Watch and exam [sic] the film ‘Expelled-Ben Stein’ and explain why it is important to examine this film objectively and not let bias affect your observations.”



Freshwater said that prior to giving the assignment he had not seen the film but did understand it to be a good science movie. The movie, he said, provided evidence of evolution and evidence for other ideas. Ultimately, he believed the movie to be about examining data objectively and not letting bias affect observations. Only two students did this extra credit project, Freshwater said.

(When student Zachary Dennis testified he said that he and a friend went and watched the movie the weekend that it came out. Dennis said that he was accompanied by his parents.)

Bible on the desk

Freshwater never removed the Bible from his desk—even when the school year ended. Freshwater said it wasn’t until late July or early August of 2008 that Superintendent Steve Short ended up giving the Bible directly to him.

The directions from school administration concerning the Bible were confusing, Freshwater said. He did admit that on two occasions—April 7, 2008 and April 16, 2008—he understood that he was supposed to remove the Bible from his desk.

Freshwater said that he prayed with his family and made what he believes is a constitutional decision to leave the Bible on the desk.

After April 16, 2008, Principal Bill White did not tell him that he had a continuing duty to remove the Bible—no one told him after that date that he still had to remove the Bible, Freshwater said.

He was never informed by White, Short or any other administrator that he could file a grievance, Freshwater said.

As evidence of his legal right to have the Bible on his desk, Freshwater pointed out that in a recording of Short, the superintendent acknowledged that another teacher, Lori Miller, could keep her Bible on her desk.

Additional statements by Freshwater

• At the time of his deposition for a federal case he understood the Tesla coil to have been disposed of in a landfill. He learned from his attorney, after making that statement, that his attorney hadn’t thrown it out but instead had given it to the board’s attorney.

• There is a difference between trying to find the truth and trying to prove a point. The board is trying to prove a point—they are trying to say that he is a Christian fanatic and that he was not teaching his students properly.

• The master contract states—“Article 4: Teaching Conditions: Individual Rights”—“The Board fully recognizes all personal rights and freedoms granted to teachers by the Constitution and the laws of the State of Ohio and the United States, and will abide by all laws that pertain to the teachers it employs. Further, the Board recognizes that teachers have the right to engage in a variety of personal activities and the Board will not take disciplinary action against a teacher unless a teacher’s personal activities interfere with the teacher’s performance of his/her contractual duties.”

• His beliefs did not interfere with his performance of his duties. He did his job, a very good job—look at his students’ OAT scores.

• He believes he had a right to engage in the activities on the town square. (See First Amendment to the United States Constitution: “Congress shall make no law […] abridging […] the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for redress of grievances.”)

• After April 16, 2008 he did not get much help from the union. The union attempted to get him to sign papers that said they were not responsible for helping him—he did not sign the papers.

• The statement he read from on the square was written by Coach Dave Daubenmire. He only read portions of the statement.

• His son attended a Catholic school for a year—he would not have sent his son there if he thought ill of Catholics.

• HROC investigators were “trying to prove a point.” The “school board based their resolution almost strictly off that poor, poor report.”

• It is the administration’s responsibility to see to it that the contract was followed regarding the investigation.

• He received a phone call in June 2008 telling him he might want to look at the newspaper—the investigative report was released. That was how he found out HROC had concluded their investigation.

• The contract states that he “will” be given an opportunity to submit a comprehensive written response.

• There have been times during his testifying that he was “guarded”—he was not trying to be evasive although it may look that way. (For one reporter’s perspective on this topic, see Pamela Schehl’s article “Referee intervenes in hearing” published in the Mount Vernon News.)

• He would like to see Dispatch reporter Narciso go through forty hours, like himself, of sitting in the witness chair.

• Regarding the 15 affidavits he prepared in May 2008 that incorrectly list Franklin county as the place they were sworn: There is nothing in the contract that says his written response has to be a sworn statement. The location that they were signed does not make them defective under the contract.

• The two and a half hour interview with HROC did not cover everything that he was ultimately accused of.

• The Will Graham poster was placed there by FCA students—he understood that to be appropriate based on prior administrator Jeff Kuntz from 18 years ago.

• He did not talk about the Will Graham Celebration in the classroom.

• Prior to the HROC interview he did not know that he had rights under the collective bargaining agreement.

• He has assigned a project to students that involved having them describe an object in order to see how careful their observation abilities are. He did not recall if he ever used a trilobite as the object.

• He has taught about trilobites using the textbook—that they were extinct 400 million years ago. He never told students that the trilobites have been found with footprints or sandal prints.

• When asked if he has an opinion about whether the Bible provides that homosexuality is a sin, he responded that he did not have an opinion. (Note: The question was also worded one or two other ways, but I didn’t catch what the wording was.)

• The reason he went on the radio last week was to extend his hand out to the present board in order to try to resolve this issue. He wanted them to be aware that they had broken the master contract and that they had been missing information. He also said that he tried to track down all five members of the board and personally give them copies of all fifteen of his affidavits.

Legal expenses

Freshwater is currently suspended without pay. For those that would like to help with his legal expenses, checks can be made out to The Community Council For Free Expression (C.C.F.F.E.) and sent to

Trinity Assembly of God

1051 Beech St.

Mount Vernon OH 43050

For those that would like to help with the legal expenses of the school board—just pay your taxes.