The details
HISD Board President Chris Parker confirmed the district was investigating the situation during the board’s April 8 meeting, noting she directed the board's legal counsel to ensure the matter was handled according to policy after receiving the initial complaint.
District officials could not confirm what actions might be taken at the conclusion of the investigation.
A closer look
Henry Phipps, HISD chief education support service officer, spoke about the incident during the public comment portion of the April 8 meeting, noting Brown's comments were made during a leadership team meeting with more than 100 staff members in attendance.
"A cabinet-level administrator used a microphone to inform those in attendance that they were so upset after their house lost power during a hurricane that they wanted to lynch the mayor," Phipps said.
Phipps then identified Brown as the individual who made the comments.
Brown addressed the matter after the public comment portion of the April 8 meeting. He said when he made the comments in March, he had shown an old photo of early settlers living without electricity, noting he had been reading a book about the difficult life pioneers endured.
"I then said, ‘Do you remember when Hurricane Beryl hit last summer and how we wanted to lynch CenterPoint and the mayor?'” Brown said. “I turned to this picture and I said, ‘But they never had it.' I then made a comment about how blessed we are."
Brown stressed he never intended for his "exaggerated comment" to be taken literally.
“No one, including myself, was actually wanting to harm CenterPoint or [Houston] Mayor [John] Whitmire or [Humble] Mayor [Norman] Funderburk,” Brown said.
Brown said he was initially surprised when Phipps first approached him to voice his concern and the concerns of several staff members after he'd made the comments in March.
"Later, I called Mr. Phipps. ... I said, ‘Hey, I'm just really sick about this. This is really bothering me, and I want to meet with any of those individuals that reached out to you,’" Brown said. "And that afternoon, I met with Mr. Phipps and six other staff members, and I apologized."
Some context
Brown was appointed to serve as the district’s superintendent in January, following the board’s decision to terminate former Superintendent Elizabeth Fagen’s contract in November.
According to Brown’s contract, he currently makes $335,000 annually with a term running through June 30, 2028.
What’s next
During the April 8 meeting, Parker said the investigation is currently ongoing. District officials could not confirm a timeline for when the matter might be resolved.
