A federal lawsuit will move forward against Kingfisher Public Schools after its board of education voted Wednesday to reject the plaintiff’s $1.5 million settlement offer.

“I move that the board of education authorize its attorneys to notify the plaintiff’s counsel that the board of education is rejecting the settlement offer of $1.5 million,” said board member Charles Walker near the end of the special meeting Wednesday at the Kingfisher High School cafeteria.

The motion was seconded by Carly Franks.

Terry Payne, Jim Perdue and President Dana Golbek joined in voting to reject the offer, which had been presented by Cameron Spradling, the Oklahoma City attorney representing “John Doe No. 1.”

Kingfisher’s board of education members gathered in executive session with attorneys John Priddy and Brian Kuester of Rosenstein, Fist & Ringold, the Tulsa firm representing the school district, for just over two hours and 15 minutes to discuss the settlement offer, which had an impending deadline.

The lawsuit names the district as well as current KHS head football coach Jeff Myers and assistant coach Derek Patterson and former assistants Blake Eaton and Micah Nall as defendants.

The plaintiff, a 2021 KHS graduate who played football from 2017-20, is alleging a number of hazing, bullying and abuse incidents by unnamed teammates and the named coaches.

The lawsuit was originally filed in Kingfisher County District Court in late July 2021 and was amended in January after District Judge Paul Woodward granted permission for the plaintiff to proceed anonymously under the “John Doe” designation.

The lawsuit has since been moved to federal court in Oklahoma City, at the request of the defendants.

It was confirmed earlier this month the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation as well as the Oklahoma State Department of Education had opened investigations into the football program.

See the story published in the Wednesday, March 16, edition for more information.

The plaintiff’s offer to settle the lawsuit applied only to the school district. Spradling said no settlement offer will be made for the coaches.

“We are surprised that Kingfisher has rejected our generous settlement offer,” said Spradling in an emailed statement to the Times & Free Press.

“However, we are pleased that we have the opportunity to bring to the public’s attention more revelations.”

The meeting was attended by nearly three dozen people, many of whom were media members representing four television stations, at least three newspapers and another online publication.

The meeting was moved to the cafeteria from the administration office due to the overflow crowd.

Golbek spoke briefly with the media after the vote, but would not divulge the basis of the vote.

“On the advice from our school’s attorneys, I have no comment,” she wrote the Times & Free Press in an email.

As for the lawsuit, attorneys for all parties are scheduled to take part in a telephone scheduling conference April 6 with federal district Judge Charles Goodwin, who is assigned to the case.

All defendants have filed answers to the lawsuit denying any wrongdoing.