Student Slams School Board for Response to Member's Remark

A Tennessee school board's handling of a member's remark that a student was "hot" is still sparking backlash—this time from the teen herself, NBC News reports. Hannah Campbell, a student representative on the Washington County school board, used Thursday's meeting to denounce members as "cowards" for censuring but not removing longtime board member Keith Ervin over his comments and side hug at an April 2 meeting. She called his conduct "sexist and derogatory" and said the board's inaction "has hurt me just as much" as Ervin's behavior. She ended by thanking the board, WVLT reports, "for showing this community what you think it means to protect our children." The New York Post reports Ervin sat slouched with his arms folded across his chest, and his eyes sometimes closed, as Campbell spoke for four minutes.

Video of the April exchange shows Ervin saying, after Campbell delivered remarks at the meeting, "God, you're hot. Do you know that? Damn. Where do you go to school at?" as he puts an arm around Campbell, while some members chuckle and the meeting proceeds. Ervin has denied wrongdoing, saying his words were taken out of context and that "hot" referred to her being "on a roll," not her looks. A Change.org petition demanding his ouster has drawn more than 6,800 signatures. Ervin has not responded to new requests for comment.