Harrison County BOE votes to renew contract of administrator accused of bullying transgender student

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — An assistant principal in Harrison County, forced to apologize for comments he made to a transgender student in a bathroom at Liberty High School, will see his contract renewed.

Members of the Harrison County Board of Education voted unanimously during a special meeting Monday to reverse an earlier decision that would have ended Liberty High School Assistant Prinicipal Lee Livengood’s time with Harrison County Schools this June.

The board initially declined to renew his contract following allegations in December that Livengood bullied a transgender student, Liberty High School sophomore Michael Critchfield.

The ACLU of West Virginia said they will continue their efforts on behalf of LGBTQ students in Harrison County Schools.

“In light of today’s actions by the Harrison County Board of Education, we want to reaffirm our demand that Mr. Livengood not be allowed any contact with Michael or any children,” the statement reads. “Mr. Livengood has demonstrated he is incapable of conducting himself in a professional manner in any environment with children, and he has shown a troubling lack of remorse for his actions. We will be actively monitoring the situation to ensure Michael and the students of Harrison County are protected moving forward.”

This story will be updated.





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