A Tennessee county school board voted unanimously Wednesday to censure a member who told a student, “God, you’re hot,” during a public board meeting last week.
Subscribe to read this story without ads
Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.
The Washington County Board of Education approved the censures in an emergency meeting following public calls for the firing of School Board Member Keith Irvin and District Superintendent Jerry Boyd.
At the April 2 board meeting, which was livestreamed, Irvin told a high school girl next to him, “Oh my god, you’re hot. You know that? Shit. What school do you go to?”
The girl, a student member of the board, had just finished asking questions about CTE education when Irvin put his arm around her, hugged her from the side, and made the comment.
The other board members at the table laughed lightly and the meeting continued.
A school board censure formally condemns a board member’s actions, but does not remove the person from office.
At Wednesday’s meeting, several local residents expressed their anger and disappointment and called for Irvin’s resignation and the board to be held accountable.
Irvin read a prepared speech, saying he had never meant to hurt anyone and that his “heated” comments had been misinterpreted.
“Of course I saw the footage. Look, I get it. If you’re just watching this, I can understand why people are reacting the way they are,” he said. “But this is not the entire conversation, nor even close to it. At last week’s board meeting, I wanted to congratulate the students who did a great job of sharing their thoughts with everyone in the room.”
“When I said she was sexy, I meant she was on a roll. It had nothing to do with her looks,” he continued. “As a lifelong supporter of David Crockett High School, I was especially surprised to hear that she attended school there.
He went on to say that the video in which his comments went viral was just a few seconds of the two-hour meeting, and that the full video of the meeting provides context.
“There was no disrespect meant, and I apologize to her and her family for making comments that were a public reaction to the great job she did as a student council member,” he said.
When he finished speaking, a man in the audience shouted, “Look, you’re a liar!” See the full video of the meeting.
“Before you jump to conclusions, please watch it. The video speaks for itself,” Irvin said, concluding his speech.
“That’s true!” exclaimed a woman in the room.
Boyd attended Wednesday’s meeting, sitting among school board members but did not speak.
Board members shared short statements.
Member Whitney Riddle called for Irvin’s resignation, citing “inappropriate and unacceptable” comments, to thunderous applause from the audience.
Board member Eric Burns said, “Mr. Irvin, I cannot judge your intentions or what’s in your heart. But I was here and I saw those actions. They were inappropriate. We all understand that. This is clearly bringing a lot of unwanted attention to this school system. It’s harmful to the school system, and I think it’s the right thing to do for you to resign.”
Other members believe Irvin misspoken without malicious intent, citing his long tenure in an elected board seat.
In the end, there was a motion to censure Irvin, and all board members voted in favor, with Irvin abstaining.
Mr. Irvin and the board did not immediately respond to requests for further comment from NBC News.
Video of the April 2 meeting has sparked local outrage, and a petition calling for Irvin and Boyd’s removal has gathered thousands of signatures as of Wednesday.
“Jerry Boyd’s passive acceptance of Keith Irvin’s comments reveals an alarming lack of leadership and judgment,” the petition reads. “It is imperative that we take action now to hold these officials accountable.”
The board previously condemned Irvin’s comments as “highly inappropriate.”
“Mr. Irvin explained that he did not mean anything offensive and that we simply misunderstood his intentions,” the board said in a statement to NBC affiliate WSMV (Nashville). “Mr. Irvin knows his intentions, but the rest of us must judge his words and actions. What we saw was shocking. He objectified and belittled a young woman in public. There is no explanation that justifies it.”
During the public comment portion of Wednesday’s meeting, community members expressed outrage.
“Mr. Irvin, you have destroyed the trust and confidence of the community and the ability of the school board to do its job,” one woman said.
“If it had been a schoolboy next to you, you wouldn’t have done that. You wouldn’t have put your arm around her and said, ‘Oh, yeah!'” said another woman. “Gone are the days when men thought it was okay to put their arm around a woman, put her around her waist, hug her, or press her face against hers.”
“Would you want to take your child near that man without a camera? I wouldn’t,” one man asked, to loud applause.
Irvin was elected to represent District 1 on the Washington County Board of Education in 2006. The commission’s website describes him as a self-employed dairy farmer and father of two daughters.
