Lincoln School Board rescinds HS Girls B-Ball Coach decision

The Lincoln School Board rescinded their vote to hire Shane Brown as the high School girls head basketball coach during a special meeting held via Zoom Monday, Sept. 26.

"We have to rescind it," School Board Chairman Aaron Birkholz said after calling the brief meeting to order. "If we don't the district court in Lewis and Clark County will rescind it. I'm advised that it is a very big no-no and that we should do this on our own."

The vote to hire Brown was taken on the recommendation of trustee Ken Lumpkin after a vote to hire Shane Smith for the position failed.

The legality of the vote was in question based on two issues. Birkholz told the BVD the primary issue stemmed from the fact that Brown hadn't submitted a letter of interest to the board for the position. A second issue involved the question of whether it's legal for a school board member to recommend someone for a position in the school. Lincoln Schools Superintendent Jen Packer told the BVD they hope to have a definitive answer on that question following an Oct. 4 visit by the Montana School Board's Association.

Packer told the BVD the typical hiring practice established by the school board involves a hiring committee comprised of two school board members, the superintendent and, in the case of coaches, the athletic director. The final recommendation is typically based on a five-point scoring criteria derived from interviews with the candidates.

In the case of coaches, Brown as the AD, makes the hiring recommendations to the school board. If the sole candidate for a coaching position has already gone through the interview process for a similar position, the AD could make his recommendation based on that.

Smith, who has already been hired as the junior high girls' basketball coach, submitted a letter of interest for the high school girls' basketball coaching position. Brown forwarded Smith's letter to the school board but didn't recommend him for the job.

Birkholz said the vote on whether to hire Smith should never have happened due to the lack of a recommendation from Brown. Packer said the situation falls into a very gray area, since there is no written guidance on what to do if the AD doesn't make a recommendation to hire the sole satisfactory candidate for a position. As discussed during the regular Sept. 12 school board meeting, as AD Brown can't recommend himself for a coaching position.

Packer said it's something the school board could address through a policy, but there's current not a lot of guidance. She expects the visit from MTSBA will provide more clarity on those situations.

At the close of the school board's brief special meeting, Birkholz said they will revisit the coach recommendation at the next regular school board meeting Oct. 10.