The Supreme Court of Ohio has ruled that the Xenia Community City School District must turn over the email distribution list used for the superintendent's newsletter, following a public records request by Darbi Boddy, a former Lakota Local School District member. This decision, reported by the Court News Ohio, comes after the school district refused to provide the list, alleging that it was not a public record and included personally identifiable student information.
Boddy, who did not disclose her name during the request made through her attorney, argued that, as per the recent Hicks v. Union Twp. Clermont Cty. Bd. of Trustees case, email distribution lists are considered public records; the Supreme Court agreed, noting that the list was a document used by the district to communicate with the school community, therefore, documenting the actions and procedures of the school. Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy and other justices joined this opinion. Justice Patrick F. Fischer, while concurring on the record's public status, differed by opposing the awarding of damages to Boddy.
The school district was adamant that the list was exempt from disclosure under both the Ohio Student Privacy Act and the federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), but the Court was unmoved due to the district's failure to submit the list for a confidential inspection, which could have proven their exemption claim. Consequently, Boddy was awarded $1,000 in statutory damages, with additional court costs and attorney fees pending her submission of an itemized fee request, as highlighted in the per curiam opinion.
Alongside the public records dispute, Boddy also filed a federal lawsuit against the Xenia school board members in December 2024, asserting that her constitutional rights were violated during a school board meeting held in October of the same year, the aforementioned email list was part of her public records request related to this matter, and the district's compliance is now mandated by the state's highest court. Boddy's legal pursuits are painting a larger picture of her efforts to hold the school district accountable for transparency and adherence to public records law.
