Moore schools boss: Christian questionnaire NOT MEANT to go public

The superintendent of Moore County Public Schools has spoken up in response to reports from Lady Liberty and THIS site about an apparent Christian-hunt within the school system.  (Here are the documents that sparked the controversy.)

Here’s Dr. Bob Grimesey responding to a query from a Moore County resident about Lady Liberty’s post:

Thanks for coming right to the source.  The blog post is partially correct.  At my request, Board Attorney Neal Ramee did prepare a legal memorandum in March 2015 addressing the extent to which school employees may participate in prayer and other religious activities at school. The memo was sent to me and I directed that it be distributed to school principals and other staff soon thereafter.

The interview questions referenced in the blog post were drafted much later and were circulated to school administrators earlier this month after a particular concern was raised.  The questions are intended to gather information so that I could confer with legal counsel to ensure that the school district was adhering to all applicable legal rules.

As noted in the memo, the First Amendment (and school board policy) allows students and staff to engage in such activities as private prayer and Bible study to the same extent that they may engage in comparable non-religious activities.  However, it also prohibits staff members from actively praying with students while acting in their official capacities as school employees.

Moore County Schools takes all of these constitutional rights and limitations very seriously and in no way discriminates against religion.  The purpose of both the legal memo and the interview questions is simply to ensure that the school system is in compliance with constitutional requirements.  I hope this helps.  Let me know if you want more details.  I’ll be happy to give you a call.  – Bob

 

Robert P. Grimesey, Jr., Ed.D.

Superintendent

Moore County Schools

P.O. Box 1180, 5277 Hwy 15-501 S

Carthage, NC  28327

Office: (910) 947-2976

And here’s Grimesey responding to an inquiry from another resident regarding Lady Liberty’s post and the subsequent one in The Haymaker:

[…] I appreciated the opportunity to chat with you on the phone earlier today.  As we discussed, I am providing you with a copy of the email (see below) I sent to [redacted]  on Monday.  The reply to [redacted] clarifies the general intent of the legal memorandum and the interview questions.  It does not, however, clarify the fact that the questionnaire was never intended to be distributed to all coaches.  Instead it was supposed to be used by principals and athletic directors to conduct confidential interviews with coaches for the purpose of assessing our compliance with federal law and school board policy.  Unfortunately, our implementation was not up to our standard.  I acknowledge that the resulting confusion contributed to unnecessary concern on the part of some of our coaches and some members of the public.  I accept responsibility for that confusion.  Steps have been taken today to recall all questionnaires so that the interview process may proceed as it was intended originally.  Again, the only reason these questions are being asked is to ensure that the school district is following the law as described in the legal memorandum.

Finally, as we discussed, there was never any intention to direct any questions to any students or to any staff members other than principals, athletic directors and coaches.  I hope this is helpful.  Let me know if I can be of any further assistance.  – Bob

 

Robert P. Grimesey, Jr., Ed.D.

Superintendent

Moore County Schools

P.O. Box 1180, 5277 Hwy 15-501 S

Carthage, NC  28327

Office: (910) 947-2976