Releasing a video of a controversial skit that resulted in the suspension of the Natrona County High School principal does not violate personnel confidentiality, the school district's attorney said Tuesday.

Personnel matters legally can be kept secret, but that doesn't necessarily apply to materials involved in a personnel investigation, Kathleen Dixon said.

"The actual material under a Freedom of Information Act request would not have the same degree of protection," Dixon said. "It would be considered to be a public document."

The investigation started Aug. 26, after a skit of questionable taste was presented to 215 staff and six members of the student council, according to the press release.

A complaint to the trustees lead to the investigation and the district replacing Kelly with acting administrator Kelly Hornby. Kelly, who still is a district employee, had been the school’s principal since 2007.

These matters are confidential for legal reasons, Dixon said Monday after the Natrona County School District's regular bimonthly meeting. “It is an investigation report of a personnel matter, and as a result of that I would anticipate that there will be very little that we will be able to make public based on statute.”

The trustees did not discuss the situation or investigation at the meeting. But afterwards, District Superintendent Steve Hopkins issued a press release stating the video and a transcript of the skit would be made public after the investigation is done.

Dixon still anticipates the completion of the report by the end of the week, but would not say if other documents would be disclosed.

"The final report has not been released, and it is our intention to not release the video until the final report is issued," she said. "As far as other materials, I can't speculate about that."

On Tuesday afternoon, the district announced it has scheduled an executive session for 6 p.m. Monday at the Central Services building at 970 N. Glenn Road, to hold an investigative and personnel discussion with legal counsel. "Please note that this meeting is closed to the public."
Dixon declined to say whether the executive session would be related to the incident with the skit.

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