NC school board accepts member’s resignation after doctorate questioned. What happens now
The Orange County school board appeared to reluctantly accept a resignation letter Monday night from one of its members on the eve of a runoff election.
Jennifer Moore, whose first term was set to expire at the end of June, signaled her plan to resign “for health reasons” in an April 16 email to board Chair Anne Purcell on Wednesday.
Moore’s resignation took effect April 17, Purcell said, but district rules require the board to vote to accept a member’s resignation.
Moore will still appear on the ballot for a May 14 runoff election against board member Bonnie Hauser. Early voting starts Thursday.
School board members hesitated Monday, looking at each other awkwardly, before member Carrie Doyle made the motion to accept Moore’s resignation. Moore was not present for the vote.
“I have really enjoyed working with my colleague Dr. Moore these past four years,” Doyle said. “She’s a lady of great character and great intentions to students and staff, and out of respect for her wishes, I move that we accept her resignation.”
Purcell echoed those sentiments, adding “I wish her the best.”
The vote was unanimous.
Did news about Moore’s degree influence her decision?
We don’t know.
Moore’s decision followed an April 16 call from The News & Observer asking about her reported doctorate from Bellevue University. Purcell told The N&O that Moore did not mention allegations about her doctorate in her resignation email.
Former Superintendent Monique Felder announced Moore had received the degree in a June 5, 2021, email to the board and during the June 7, 2021, school board meeting. Moore has also asked board members and others to refer to her by her title, “Dr.” which had also appeared with her name on the Orange County Schools district website.
However, Bellevue University officials told The N&O on April 9 that they did not have a record of a student by the name of “Jennifer Denise Moore” attending the university or graduating from its doctorate in business administration program.
Moore does have a master’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in performance improvement from Grantham University, an online school that joined the University of Arkansas system in 2021.
Moore did not respond to The N&O’s phone call or emails seeking comment. Her campaign treasurer, Meaghun Darab, told The N&O that Moore was not likely to respond, saying “she has put up guardrails that she doesn’t want crossed.”
On April 23, Moore posted a letter to her supporters on her campaign website, in which she said, “Lastly, I accept responsibility for not clarifying that I do not have a Ph.D.”
Can Jennifer Moore still win the May 14 runoff?
Yes. The ballots for the May 14 runoff election were printed and mailed to absentee voters before she resigned.
Moore, in an April 24 update to the letter posted on her campaign website, said she will not return to the board if she wins the runoff election against Hauser.
The board can appoint someone to fill her position until a new election is held.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhy did we report this story?
The News & Observer receives and actively seeks tips on our website at www.newsobserver.com/news/submit-news
We received an anonymous tip that Orange County Schools board member Jennifer Moore, who is facing fellow board member Bonnie Hauser in a May 14 runoff election, did not receive a doctoral degree in 2021 from Bellevue University in Nebraska as she claimed.
We strive to investigate tips and hold public figures accountable. because candidates and public officials have a responsibility to be honest about their qualifications. Otherwise, it can erode public trust, making it hard for constituents to believe elected officials will do what they say and make decisions in the public’s best interest.
We asked the schools that Moore and Hauser said they had attended about their degrees. We then reached out to Moore and her campaign staff when Bellevue University’s registrar said they didn’t have a record of a student named “Jennifer Denise Moore” or a doctorate awarded to her. The registrar said there were no privacy restrictions that prevented her from releasing such information.
Read more by clicking the arrow in the upper right.
How did we report it?
We contacted or tried to contact:
▪ Institutions of higher education that Jennifer Moore claimed to have attended — Bellevue University, Bellevue College, Grantham University and James Sprunt Community College — to ask if she was a student there and what degrees she earned.
▪ Institutions that Bonnie Hauser claimed to attend: New York University and the State University of New York at Buffalo.
▪ Jennifer Moore and her campaign treasurer Meaghun Darab via email and phone.
▪ School board Chair Anne Purcell and Vice Chair André Richmond via email and phone. The N&O also called other board members.
▪ District spokesman Kevin Smith via email and phone with a request for correspondence among Moore, Purcell and Richmond that was dated April 15-18. We have not yet received those emails.
We also scoured the Internet for background information about Moore, including her James Lennix Foundation and Lennix James Foundation websites, Facebook pages and YouTube channel; N.C Secretary of State and IRS records; and articles about herself that she submitted to online magazines.
Moore’s personal Facebook page and the Lennix James Foundation website and Facebook page were taken down after our story was published. Her campaign website was taken down Monday.
This story was originally published April 22, 2024 at 8:18 PM.
