Recall election removes Scott Hancock from De Soto school board

Voters in the De Soto School District chose to remove Scott Hancock from the board of education in a recall election on Tuesday.

About 90 percent of voters cast ballots to remove Hancock, with about 2,300 votes counted Tuesday night. Hancock’s term would normally have ended in 2017.

The recall stemmed from accusations that Hancock disrespected female district administrators, calling them “missy” and “little girl.” Hancock denied those allegations.

The complaints amounted to an alleged violation of federal law against sexual harassment in the workplace, according to Hancock’s opponents. Critics also said Hancock made excessive demands on administrators’ time with requests for information.

The district has about 7,000 students at 12 schools in De Soto, Shawnee, Lenexa, Olathe and unincorporated areas of Johnson County.

Hancock had been at the center of unrest in the school district since the resignation of two popular administrators last spring. Superintendent Doug Sumner and Jessica Dain, director of teaching and learning, both accepted other jobs in the area beginning this school year.

Hancock’s actions were blamed for 30 administrator resignations. He had questioned the bidding process for $900,000 of technology equipment, which, a superintendent admitted, had not been properly bid.

This story was originally published August 18, 2015 at 9:05 PM with the headline "Recall election removes Scott Hancock from De Soto school board."