NEW HANOVER COUNTY — The New Hanover County Board of Education voted to retain its current legal contract for another fiscal year, despite some members wanting to explore other firms in the wake of a social media controversy involving a former board attorney. The board also voted against a proclamation acknowledging Black History Month after a lengthy debate.
The board voted 4-3 to extend its contract with Crossley McIntosh Collier Hanley & Edes, P.L.L.C. through June 30, 2027. Board members Tim Merrick, Judy Justice and Josie Barnhart dissented.
READ MORE: New Hanover County school board ‘cuts ties’ with attorney over ICE meme
The conversation started with board member Tim Merrick pushing for the board to solicit proposals from other law firms. Though the board unanimously approved the firm’s contract extension in October to be good through June 30, Merrick requested they revisit the issue after a derogatory comment by one of the board’s attorneys, Brian Kromke, circulated online.
Late last month, Kromke responded to a social media post from former Democratic governor and current Senatorial candidate Roy Cooper. Cooper wrote that the recent ICE shootings — referring to Renee Good on Jan. 7 and Alex Pretti on Jan. 24 — were “targeted” and “horrific.” In response, Kromke posted a meme: “Marked Safe From Being shot by ice because I’m not f*****g retarded.”
The incident overall drew a lot of conversation from the public, online and in dozens of emails to the board.
Though Kromke apologized and removed the post, the board announced on Jan. 27 Norwood Blanchard would be its sole legal representation from Crossley McIntosh Collier Hanley & Edes, P.L.L.C. moving forward.
Following that meeting, board member David Perry said Port City Daily’s coverage was inaccurate, noting he thought Kromke’s removal was impermanent (though PCD never claimed the opposite). Perry made similar comments on the social media of other news outlets that reported on the matter; he went on the record with WECT that he wanted clarification, claiming the handling of the situation was poorly mismanaged and communicated, and thought the board should have voted.
The decision to part ways with Kromke was made after Chair Pete Wildeboer obtained approval from each board member in one-on-one conversations.
“My colleague, two to the left of here, made some statements during the meeting, saying that we had made some big decision; well, I don’t remember voting on such a decision … this was just an arrangement that we kind of all sort of went along with for the good of the school district right now,” Perry iterated at Monday’s meeting.
Merrick questioned if the move needed an official vote from the board.
Blanchard said, in his opinion, it did not, as any client has the discretion to issue directions to their attorney at any time. The attorney also apologized again for Kromke’s comments.
“I don’t share his political views,” Blanchard said. “As one of the board members pointed out, what he said was inappropriate. It was thoughtless and it was stupid, and I’ve shared those sentiments with him, and I do know that he regrets forwarding that.”
Board member Pat Bradford said she didn’t believe someone should be “canceled” for “one mistake.”
“Mr. Kromke has true remorse, and he has said those things and I believe him,” she said. “I got an email from somebody who said it was insincere. I can’t judge that … his apology was sufficient for me.”
Barnhart agreed, noting if the board was going to terminate the firm’s contract — though no one had motioned to do so — she would only be in favor if the board also vetted all board, staff and vendor statements online for profanity and “insensitive” posts.
“That also includes post remarks about the assassination of Charlie Kirk, things and comments that were said that it’s better off that those kids don’t have a dad than a dad like him, comments that say Erika Kirk should be next,” Barnhart said.
Her comments were cut off by a point of order, though Wildeboer ruled she could continue. When she went on, she added another example about a board member calling a Black man a “disgrace to the human race.”
Port City Daily asked Barnhart to share the posts she was referring to and identify the people who made them; she responded she “cannot speak about staff” and wouldn’t state whether the comments were made by teachers, administrators or vendors.
Merrick shared a “personal rule” he follows in evaluating firms, allowing them three strikes and Kromke’s comment was the final one, he said, prompting the need for revaluation. The other two strikes came from the firm’s lack of educational law experience, which Blanchard and Kromke were open about when being reviewed by the board the spring of 2024. Another was two of the firm’s partners, Clay Allen Collie and Andrew John Hanley, pleading guilty to willfully failing to file state income taxes in 2017.
“As a board, we are responsible to the people of New Hanover County,” Merrick said. “We are more responsible to the children, students of New Hanover County, but we are responsible to the voters, and we are responsible to do the dealings, to do the business of our school district.”
Wildeboer pointed out the board did not solicit proposals from other firms when the contract with Crossley McIntosh Collier Hanley & Edes, P.L.L.C. was coming up on expiration last year. Board member Justice stated they should have.
“You shouldn’t just be automatically, blankly agreeing to the contracts because they’re here and they’re friends and they’re local,” Justice said. “That’s not fair to our kids. We’re not using our money efficiently.”
Ultimately, the board’s Republican majority felt the firm’s positive qualities, one of them being Blanchard’s work, as affirmed even by Merrick, outweighed the cons. Wildeboer said the firm saved the district $90,000 in travel costs due to its attorneys being local, the savings equivalent to several teacher assistant positions, he said. Several other board members also pointed to the money the attorneys have won through litigation.
Port City Daily asked NHCS for how much Crossley McIntosh Collier Hanley & Edes, P.L.L.C. won in court over the last year and if it was more than previous firms had won; no response was given by press.
It was Perry who put forth an alternative motion to extend the current firm’s contract, to Merrick’s chagrin.
“That motion kind of came out of left field, and to me it represents more of a cover up and less of a transparent desire to find out what is right for our district,” he said.
Barnhart told WHQR she dissented on the vote due to the discussion not being on the agenda.
Black History Month
Merrick also put forth a resolution recognizing Black History Month at Monday’s meeting. The board tied itself in knots debating it, despite it being co-authored by Chair Wildeboer.
The resolution states: “The New Hanover County School District acknowledges Black History Month and affirms its commitment to teaching history honestly, fostering respect, supporting culturally responsive instruction, and encouraging all students to contribute positively to their community.”
It goes on to recognize Black history includes both progress and periods of racial injustice that shaped the experiences of many families, as well as African Americans have shaped local history in many sectors. The resolution also states NHCS students should learn an “accurate, age-appropriate, and inclusive account” of history.
“I think it’s very fitting to let 15% of our students know that not just the schools teach it, because that’s history, but that this board sees them, this board honors them, and this board believes that they are an important part of who we are — that’s the cultural change that I want to see happen in our schools,” Merrick said.
Both Merrick and Justice supported passing the resolution, with Perry also indicating his support and reading two passages written by Martin Luther King Jr.
The first sign of trouble for the proclamation was the chair’s comments during his report earlier in the meeting. Despite having helped shape the resolution’s language, Wildeboer prefaced the meeting discussion by saying he questioned how the resolution would change students’ learning and said he didn’t want to slight other communities or identities by passing the resolution.
“I think to be fair we should do resolutions for all,” he said, referring to Hispanic Heritage Month and Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, but also School Principals Month and Teacher Appreciation Week.
During discussion of the proclamation itself, Barnhart was frank in her nonsupport.
“This proclamation is solely for the purpose of a statement — I mean, we’ve been here for 20 minutes debating the merits of this, but there’s no direction or action or tangible things for our staff to actually do [in the resolution] other than a statement made by the board,” she said.
Barnhart then issued a substitute motion directing staff to have districtwide accessible lessons on Black History Month and local contributions made by African Americans. Superintendent Chris Barnes later confirmed in the meeting resources are already available for this purpose, along with the state’s standard course of study, but Barnhart did not withdraw her motion nor respond to the comment.
Justice said the added push would be “insulting” to teachers, who already teach on Black History Month. Merrick also took issue with the motion superseding his proposed resolution, though he was overruled by the chair.
“It’s like saying, ‘I make a motion that we buy a new fire station’ and then someone says, ‘I have a substitute motion that we all go to the beach tomorrow’ — they have nothing to do with one another,” Merrick said.
Bradford said the board and staff have done a lot to increase and to recognize local Black history when she was interrupted by Merrick, who said: “Like banning a book?”
He was referring to the Republican majority’s vote to ban Ibram X Kendi’s book “Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You” from curricula in 2023. The ban was upheld again in June 2024.
Bradford continued she thought the proclamation indicated the district wasn’t teaching Black history correctly.
“It feels like a political maneuver,” she said.
On top of this opinion, Bradford, who has voted against several resolutions in past meetings, said the board should not be in the resolution business and thus couldn’t support it on that basis either.
Vice Chair Melissa Mason expressed disappointment by the disrespectful comments made during discussion. Ultimately, she said the district’s actions were more important to her than signing a resolution, pointing out the district’s Black History Quiz Bowl as an example.
She, along with Barnhart, Bradford and Wildeboer, voted in favor of Barnhart’s motions to make resources available. The same cohort then voted against Merrick’s second attempt to pass the proclamation in support of Black History Month.
The New Hanover County NAACP issued a response to the board’s vote on Tuesday:
“African American History Month is not merely symbolic; it is a vital opportunity to acknowledge the historical contributions, struggles, resilience, and achievements of African Americans — many of which are deeply rooted in the history of New Hanover County itself. A formal resolution serves as a public affirmation of the Board’s commitment to inclusive education, historical accuracy, and respect for the diverse identities of the students and families you serve.”
The statement urges the board to reconsider its vote on the proclamation.
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