Columbus principal's confrontation with officer did not violate policy, district says
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Columbus City Schools completed its investigation into a confrontation between administrators at Ridgeview Middle School and a Columbus police officer, with a recommendation of no further administrative action.
In a letter to families, Chief Transformation and Leadership Officer Dr. Corey D. Grubbs said the March 17 incident was reviewed by the Columbus City Schools Labor Management and Employee Relations team, which determined that no district policy was violated.
'The review determined that the actions of Principal Natalie James, Secretary Jackie Nash, and Safety and Security Specialist Larry Howell during the interaction with the Columbus Division of Police did not violate District policy and expectations, and no further administration action was recommended,' Grubbs wrote.
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Grubbs said the video circulating on social media of the interaction does not capture the full context of the interaction.
'It is important to emphasize that Columbus City Schools and the Columbus Division of Police are committed to respectful, safe, and professional interactions at all times,' Grubbs wrote. 'Our school staff and CPD officers receive training in de-escalation and are expected to treat all individuals with dignity and fairness.'
The officer involved in the interaction, Keith Conner, confronted the school board at Tuesday's meeting, indicating that this was not the first time officers have had issues at the school.
'In that video, you may see my frustration,' Conner said during public comment period of a Columbus City School Board meeting Tuesday, adding that it's been a culmination of years dealing with the school. 'My frustration still continues to this day.'
Police officers were called to Ridgeview Middle School to investigate a threat, which was deemed not credible by school officials. Columbus police body camera video shows the officers, once inside the school, being told they can't go any further, sparking a disagreement between the principal and a police officer.
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In the video, the school's secretary can be heard saying, 'Those guests you are expecting have arrived,' into a radio.
'You have to wait until they come to get you, sir,' the receptionist said.
'I'm here on official police business,' the officer said.
'I get that, but I just radioed for security, and you have to wait until they come to get you, OK? I'm just saying those are the rules I've been instructed,' she said.
She tells officers they need to wait for the school security team.
'Okay, we have authority over safety and security, do you understand that?' Connor said. 'Columbus police have authority over…'
'You do not have authority over my principal,' the secretary said. 'So she tells me that for you guys to wait, you're not the first one to go through this. And I'm not trying to be combative, but he told me to let you know, let him know when you got here. He's coming to get you.'
The woman and police continue to talk back and forth for about four minutes. Then James enters.
'If we have an emergency at the school, I should not have, I should not have to explain to this woman why I'm here,' Connor said. 'I don't come here for my, for party time. I come here on official police business. This is a game we've been playing for years. This is a game we no longer want to play with you. You should be welcoming us. You called us. But if you don't want me here, and if you want me to beg you, get through that door. Don't call me now.'
The City of Columbus Department of the Inspector General is separately reviewing the officer's actions. That review had not been completed as of Wednesday.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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She pointed to a growing body of research that has found schools can combat absenteeism if they form meaningful relationships with parents and partner with social services agencies that address underlying barriers to attendance, like food insecurity. There's little research to suggest that fines and other forms of punishment improve attendance. Even as some states ramp up truancy rules, others have scaled them back as studies report that punitive measures can backfire. In South Carolina schools, for example, students placed on probation for truancy wound up with even worse school attendance than they had before the courts got involved, according to a 2020 report by the nonprofit Council of State Governments Justice Center. In a report published last year, the Oklahoma State Department of Education highlighted school districts that have made "impressive strides in reducing" chronic absenteeism and that "offer valuable lessons on how schools can re-engage students." 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David Blatt, the director of research and strategic impact at the nonprofit Oklahoma Appleseed, questioned the accuracy of the data and said it could be an undercount. He said he attended a truancy court case in Ada last year where as many as 30 parents and students made appearances before a judge that lasted just 60 to 90 seconds each. In a report last year, Blatt found that truancy laws were enforced inconsistently across the state and urged policymakers to adopt interventions and supports for families to address chronic absenteeism rather than criminalize them. Blatt backs the legislation to remove chronic absenteeism as a school accountability measure, acknowledging that certain attendance barriers are outside of educators' direct control. But he said Johnson's characterization of the problem is "rather harsh and one-sided." Rather than being apathetic toward their children's education, he said many parents struggle with work responsibilities and transportation while children wrestle with in-school factors that can discourage attendance, such as persistent bullying. "There may be cases where being called before a judge will help convince them of the seriousness of things, but for other cases, it's just going to compound their problems," Blatt said. "Adding court appearances and fees and fines doesn't solve their problems. It just adds to them." Yet for Johnson, the issue stems from a lack of repercussions. By enforcing truancy cases, he said schools have "a little bit of a weapon" against parents whose children are missing school and can threaten them with jail time. Most of the time, he said, threats alone improve student attendance and in many cases the charges wind up getting dismissed. In fewer than a dozen instances, he said, his truancy crackdown has led to parents serving time behind bars. "Generally, they'll go in for about four hours," Johnson said. "We'll give them the taste of it." This story was produced by The 74 and reviewed and distributed by Stacker. © Stacker Media, LLC.
