A misdemeanor charge that led to the firing of a North Elementary School principal two years ago was dismissed last week in Monongalia County Circuit Court.
“I am thankful,” Natalie Webb said in a statement Monday delivered by her attorney, Tyler Slavey. “This has been a challenging time for me and my family.”
Mon County Schools let her go in July 2023, saying she failed to report two incidents of abuse against two special-needs students – allegedly at the hands of a teacher, classroom aide and other administrator – in January of that year, and the previous November.
Webb wasn’t involved in either incident, Slavey said, either as a participant or witness, and no one in the school told her.
Acting on the recommendation of Superintendent Eddie Campbell Jr., however, Board of Education members still voted unanimously to terminate her contract that summer.
The principal appealed the decision, saying she couldn’t report something of which she was unaware. Mon’s circuit court agreed Jan. 21.
“I am very disappointed in the way I was treated by the superintendent and the Monongalia County Board of Education,” the veteran educator and administrator continued.
“From the very beginning of their investigation, I felt they considered me to be guilty until proven innocent. I have been vindicated.”
Both incidents put a shadow on a school and its administrator regarded by reputation.
Under the tenure of Webb, a national certified board teacher who began her career in front of a first grade classroom there, North was lauded for its high test scores and international diversity.
