Longtime Broward schools volunteer removed over bullying accusation

A longtime volunteer and frequent critic of the Broward School District has been removed from her membership on three district committees after district officials say she bullied a police officer.

Nathalie Lynch-Walsh, a Plantation parent, has served in various leadership positions on district committees for the past 13 years. This past year, she was chairwoman of the Audit Committee and District Advisory Council and corresponding secretary for the Facilities Task Force.

But Superintendent Howard Hepburn sent a letter to Lynch-Walsh on Friday evening saying he was removing her from all those committees due to violations of the district’s bullying and civility policies. The action is the result of a bullying complaint filed by district Police Detective John Mastrianni, whom Lynch-Walsh had criticized related to his arrest of another volunteer.

“As Superintendent, I have a responsibility to maintain a safe and respectful environment for all members of the Broward County Public Schools community,” Hepburn wrote to Lynch-Walsh. “While I appreciate your years of service, this decision reflects the seriousness with which we uphold the standards of conduct expected of all who serve in any capacity within our District.”

Hepburn told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that Mastrianni filed the “official complaint that we have to react to.” But the superintendent said he had also received multiple “unofficial complaints” about Lynch-Walsh from people in the district.

Lynch-Walsh has butted heads with district administrators and some School Board members for years due to her frequent criticism of district operations. She was a key witness in a statewide grand jury investigation of the district that resulted in the removal of four School Board members. She also filed a report last year with the state Department of Education, accusing some current School Board members of unethical behavior, but an outside review found no wrongdoing.

She has argued that a nearly yearlong effort to remove her from district committees is retaliation for her bringing problems to light. She told the Sun Sentinel that the district’s policy on removing volunteers lacks due process. She also shared a response she sent to Hepburn on Monday.

In that response, she said her daughter was graduating from high school on Monday, but she would carefully review on Tuesday the complaints, the district’s investigation and an outside consultant’s report that dismissed her allegations of retaliation.

“I will be reviewing for deviations from fact, policy, and anything else deemed relevant. The Board will be sent a copy once my review is complete,” she wrote. “This time-consuming exercise is a necessary burden to ensure no one else is ever targeted for retaliation for performing their duties as a member of an advisory, especially when the District caused a situation to escalate out of control by failing to know or follow its own policies and state laws.”

Mastrianni couldn’t be reached for comment.

The controversy started on Oct. 17, 2023, when Mastrianni arrested Debbie Espinoza, the district’s 2020 “Volunteer of the Year,” in the middle of a heated meeting on a sex education curriculum. Espinoza got into a verbal dispute with another audience member and both were escorted out. Mastrianni accused Espinoza of battery on a law enforcement officer, reporting that she lunged her body into his in the lobby outside the board room.

However, a report from an outside consultant raised questions about the legitimacy of the arrest, saying the officer had moved into Espinoza’s personal space, making it tough for her to avoid contact. The district had also failed to take steps to properly control the meeting, the report said.

As a result, the State Attorney’s Office declined to press charges.

Lynch-Walsh prepared a presentation for a March 20, 2024, meeting with school board members that criticized district operations, including Espinoza’s arrest. One slide, called “Valuing Advisories and Other Volunteers,” showed a photo of Mastrianni handcuffing Espinoza. The slide questioned why there’d been no accountability for Mastrianni.

During a June 25 meeting, Lynch-Walsh questioned why Mastrianni had been renewed for the 2024-25 year. Several board members were also alarmed by Espinoza’s arrest and asked Hepburn to conduct a personnel investigation of Mastrianni. Hepburn sent a memo a few weeks later saying a six-month window to investigate allegations of police officer misconduct had already elapsed.

Mastrianni filed the bullying complaint on July 24, referencing the two meetings. John Sullivan, chief of communications, conducted an internal investigation and determined that Lynch-Walsh violated the district’s bullying and civility policies.

The report, released Aug. 30, said that Lynch-Walsh made “unfounded accusations” such as that Mastrianni committed perjury in the police report, and “she demonstrated a clear intent to damage the complainant’s reputation and job security.” Several advisory chairs sent an email to the School Board saying Lynch-Walsh was speaking on behalf of multiple committees, not as an individual.

The district’s anti-bullying policy says that incidents must be purposeful and repeated, but there also must be an imbalance of power, with the accused having more power than the alleged victim.

“The investigation confirmed that the accused’s role as chair of multiple advisories did create a significant power imbalance, which was leveraged to target the complainant,” Sullivan’s report said. “This imbalance contributed to the hostile environment and negatively impacted the complainant’s ability to perform his duties effectively, as well as the overall effectiveness of the department.”

Lynch-Walsh disputed the findings, writing in August, “The amount of false statements, omissions of fact, misrepresentations of fact, and misleading information are incredible.” She then filed a retaliation complaint against Hepburn and Sullivan.

Hepburn hired an outside law firm to review Lynch-Walsh’s counter-complaint. In a report released May 15, the law firm didn’t address whether Lynch-Walsh’s actions involving the police officer violated the district’s bullying policy, but it did conclude there was no evidence that district administrators were retaliating against her.

Espinoza said she opposes the decision to remove Lynch-Walsh.

“Dr. Nathalie Lynch-Walsh has such a wealth of historical knowledge along with such attention to detail, not having her on the committee is detrimental to the district,” Espinoza said. “You may not like what Nathalie has to say but what she says is precise and factual.”

Kimberly Burke-Mohorne, who chairs the district’s Facilities Task Force, also blasted Hepburn’s move.

“I don’t know where he’s getting his intel from. I don’t think it was a wise decision,” she said, contending the district has a history of retaliating against “anyone who questions them. They don’t feel like they should be questioned or challenged by anyone.”

In a memo sent Friday to School Board members, Hepburn wrote, “I fully support open dialogue, feedback, and constructive criticism; however, Dr. Lynch-Walsh’s conduct extended beyond the boundaries of appropriate engagement and was inconsistent with the standards we strive to uphold.”

Lynch-Walsh was appointed to each committee by various groups within the district. Sullivan said her removal is indefinite, although she could be appointed again directly by a School Board member, and Hepburn would have no authority to remove her.

Several School Board members told the Sun Sentinel on Monday that they stand by Hepburn’s action. The move comes as Hepburn is reviewing the overall structure and role of district committees.

“I support Dr. Hepburn’s decision to bring a fresh perspective to committee leadership,” Board member Lori Alhadeff said. “I believe these changes, including the transition away from Dr. Lynch-Walsh’s role, reflect a thoughtful effort to move forward with renewed collaboration and effectiveness.”

Board member Allen Zeman added, “I believe the investigation was thorough and I accept their findings.” Of Hepburn upholding a standard of conduct, Zeman said, “He has to apply it to employees and volunteers alike.”