Kemp Independent School District Board of Education,
Kemp Independent School District Board of Education,
My name is Bryant Martin and I am the owner and publisher of inForney.com. My wife and I are both fifth generation Kaufman County natives whose family has built, lived, worked, been educated and served in this very community for over a century.
Since 2012 inForney.com has been the largest media outlet between DFW and Tyler. Last year we had over 4.4 million-page views by nearly one million unique visitors. Today, inForney commands an audience of 16,000 daily readers with over 47,000 social media followers. We provide breaking news, weather, sports, education, crime and other news for Kaufman County - the 4th fastest growing county in Texas and the 11th fastest in the country – and the surrounding area.
Our coverage and reporting have been picked up by every major broadcast news outlet and affiliate in both DFW and East Texas, across the state, nationally from coast to coast and internationally as well. From world respected broadcast and radio networks, to historic and prestigious publications, they all trust our organization to report timely information and to adhere to the highest journalistic excellence and ethics. A reputation I am proud of and work diligently to maintain.
I am here because I am discouraged and disheartened by the behavior of your superintendent. Our organization has made multiple attempts to obtain information and comment from Kemp ISD – all of which have been ignored.
Considering the seriousness of the allegations, I am disgusted in the lack of leadership and transparency found during our ongoing investigation into improper relationships between teachers and students at KHS. With information and interviews we have conducted with dozens of sources – details that have been published, and some that have not – it is clear that in the very least; Kemp ISD has failed to be transparent, proactive or urgently responsive to issues that relate to student safety and possible sexual abuse.
Your Superintendent has had numerous opportunities to manage this narrative, and we welcome the opportunity to rectify any errors or mistakes we made reporting it. However, we can only report on the facts that we have. To her credit, it is widely apparent that some of these behaviors and the culture of acceptability started long before her arrival.
If you were to ask your Mayor, Fire Chief, or former long-time Fire Chief and acting Sheriff they will all tell you that we always try to verify and confirm all that we can to ensure that information is accurate, fair and credible. Sometimes they can tell us everything; sometimes they can’t. But we have always honored and respected their wishes to speak on or off the record and provide a statement. Do we make mistakes? Absolutely. And when we do, we try and rectify them as quickly as possible. Our motive is not to embarrass or smear anyone or group; but to provide as many sides to every story in an unbiased, uneditorialized way.
Like our community, our organization and reach will to continue to grow. We will not stop reporting on Kemp ISD, good or bad, and my hope is that together as a board, you would encourage your leadership and administrators to work with us.
You all represent the best of your community and you have been given an enormous responsibility to educate and protect our children. The face of your organization - the woman you are entrusting our future with - is hiding. Why?
If there is nothing to hide; just say so. If you all messed up; let’s talk about how we’re fixing it.
For the sake of everyone, please, come out of the shadows and tell us what you’re going to do to protect these children now and in the future. Because whether the allegations are true or not; we now know they are possible. And that’s the only excuse any of you need to take action.
We are all waiting and watching. Your actions or inactions will speak volumes to this community.
I appreciate your time and consideration and I look forward to knowing you all better in the future.
Respectfully,
Bryant Martin, Publisher
