Paper: Reported bias leads to resignation

Jennifer Swindell | 01/20/2014

Gooding High School Principal Chris Comstock apparently lost his job amid allegations that a high school secretary was racially biased and favored some students, the Twin Falls Times-News reported Thursday.

Comstock resigned on Jan. 14. Superintendent Heather Williams resigned on Jan. 16, but she says her resignation was unrelated.

Comstock and the secretary, Angela Jones, sued the district and the School Board last year; quoting court documents, the Times-News said the suit alleges violations of open meeting laws.

Previously, independent investigators looked into allegations of racial bias against Jones; she was cleared, but investigators recommended that she should be transferred. Comstock was reprimanded, according to the Times-News, for lack of leadership and failing to set “appropriate expectations” for Jones.

For this week’s IdahoEdNews.org story on Williams’ resignation, click here.

Disclaimer: Heather Williams is under contract with the Idaho Leads Project. Idaho Education News and the Idaho Leads Project are funded by a grant from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation.

Jennifer Swindell

Managing editor and CEO Jennifer Swindell founded Idaho Education News in 2013. She has led the online news platform as it has grown in readership and engagement every year, reaching over two million pageviews a year. Jennifer has more than 35 years of experience in Idaho journalism. She also has served as a public information officer for Idaho schools and as a communication director at Boise State University. She can be reached at [email protected].