The overview
The decision is coming more than a year after a Title IX complaint was filed against Kite by an unnamed district official.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, Title IX investigations can involve a wide range of gender-based allegations, including sex discrimination and sexual harassment.
Board members also voted to release the findings of the Title IX investigation to the public. During the meeting, trustees said the investigation has cost the district more than $500,000 to mediate.
While Community Impact has submitted a request to review the documents pertaining to the Title IX investigation, it remains unclear when the district when will release the documents to the public.
A closer look
The investigation into Kite nearly forced a vote on the removal of Superintendent Elizabeth Fagen during the April 9 meeting.
An agenda item listed below the item to accept Kite’s retirement called for “possible action regarding employment and duties of superintendent." However, no vote was held and no action was taken regarding Fagen’s employment with the district.
District officials said Kite and Fagen were married in 2023 after disclosing their relationship to the board in March 2022.
During the meeting, trustee Martina Lemond-Dixon said she was shocked to see the item calling for Fagen’s potential removal.
“When I saw that on the agenda on Saturday, it literally just took my breath away,” Lemond-Dixon said. “We have never ever discussed anything regarding the superintendent's employment, ever, so I find it despicable and completely unacceptable that that was an agenda item.”
Lemond-Dixon said she received notice of the agenda five minutes before it was posted, which she said didn’t give her or her colleagues time to raise issue with the item.
“We talk about doing the right thing,” she said. “This is truly unacceptable.”
Board President Robert Scarfo said the delay in forwarding the agenda to trustees before it posted was due to an information request from the district’s legal team.
“The outside counsel had asked to delay because they were awaiting information on appeal, which happened very late Friday evening, and they had language they wanted to have added to the agenda,” Scarfo said.
It remains unclear why Fagen’s potential removal was included in the agenda. No board members offered any details into its inclusion or commented on the item during the meeting.
