From police oversight to local schools, we publish news that informs and holds those in power accountable. Subscribe to our free newsletter to get trustworthy local news in your inbox. The new communications director at Akron Public Schools glanced at Gregory Harrison, the last of four school board members to enter an elevator. Hodoh wrote later in a complaint that she felt Harrison was staring at her in an attempt to intimidate her.
Harrison wrote in his own complaint that he stood in the middle of the packed elevator because there was nowhere else to go. The back-and-forth exchange on Dec. Access to the executive-level floors of the APS headquarters is restricted. Harrison, Molenaur and Jackson exited the elevator. Hodoh did not mention any threats by Harrison in her complaint to Autry.
Following their exit from the elevator, Harrison wrote that Hodoh continued shouting after him. Sykes stayed back with Hodoh in an attempt to calm the situation. Her hiring was approved by the board on Nov. Harrison and Molenaur were in attendance. She does not work for the board, nor does she act as its spokesperson. Oftentimes, the board president β currently Carla Jackson β is the public-facing voice of the elected body.
Hodoh refused multiple requests for comments from Signal Akron for this article. Harrison, who said he retained legal counsel, did not speak on the record for this article. Molenaur referred Signal Akron to her incident report. Molenaur, who previously chaired the Legal, Contracts and Board Policy subcommittee, wrote that the post may violate district social media policy.
The board has hired the law firm Brennan Manna and Diamond to conduct an outside investigation into allegations of misconduct among district leadership.
