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Jonathan Young announces resignation from Richmond School Board

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Posted at 5:44 PM, Apr 12, 2024
and last updated 2024-04-12 19:35:36-04

RICHMOND, Va. -- Richmond School Board member Jonathan Young announced Friday that he would step down from the board.

The announcement comes following an investigation into Young's behavior toward a 15-year-old girl while on a school field trip in December 2023.

The investigation found that Young did not violate the school board's harassment policy, but that his actions were perceived as "weird," "odd," and "awkward."

Young told CBS 6's Tyler Layne that he did not think he did anything wrong and believed his actions were appropriate for a school board member.

Young released the following statement regarding his resignation:

"Few experiences have been as rewarding as for eight years fighting for Richmond's teachers and students and though I can brag on some success; it's no secret that at Richmond Public Schools we are coming up short. What our stakeholders need to know is why and whom to blame. In three words, the School Board. To be clear, not everyone on the School Board shares equally in the blame. SOME more than others have constituted an impediment to progress and still SOME others a barrier to objectivity and common sense. The same SOME have told me privately that though absolved of any wrongdoing they intend to vigorously pursue crass political attacks and the worst kind of tit-for-tat brinkmanship. I will not oblige. Accordingly, I relinquish my service on the School Board."

Board member Kenya Gibson released a statement following Young's announcement, saying the following:

"My heart goes out to this student and their family. Coming forward with a complaint against a board member is not easy. I hope this resignation provides some closure."

This is a developing story, so anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.

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