CHEBOYGAN — The Cheboygan school board voted Monday night to discipline board member Travis Neville following community outcry over racist and sexist comments he posted online. During a special meeting attended by around 300 members of the community, the board found that Neville violated the board’s code of ethics and stripped him of several district responsibilities.
The meeting was held to address public concern regarding screenshots of Neville’s social media posts and comments made on his podcast. The board’s decision included removing Neville from committee assignments and coaching roles, while also restricting his access to district students and facilities. Neville did not attend the meeting.
Following the Monday meeting, the school board issued an official statement outlining its decision to remove Neville from all board committee assignments. The board also revoked his key card access to district buildings, removed him from his coaching position and weight room supervision and restricted his access to students. Individuals at the meeting noted that while the board read a lengthy resolution, the most significant outcome was the determination that Neville had violated official policies.
Jenna Lindholm, who lives in Cheboygan, said the board’s public reading of the resolution was difficult to follow. “They’re reading out this long resolution and it really sounds like nothing,” Lindholm said. “But there, there were some things in there that mattered. The board all agreed that he did violate the board code of ethics, I believe and maybe some other board policies.”
Mark Dombroski, who previously served as the Cheboygan school district superintendent, spoke during the meeting regarding the board’s response to Neville’s actions. “The board took upon themselves to create a resolution last night in which they themselves spoke out strongly against what this board member in question has said, or is bringing out in the community.”
The community concerns centered on A specific social media post where Neville claimed that “marriage-able” girls begin at age 15.
Abbie Brooks, who lives in the area and mother of two girls, said she found the content inappropriate. “I feel like, there’s a very narrow subset of what he qualifies as an acceptable woman in this world,” Brooks said. “Most disturbing to me, however, was, a particular, meme that I think was actually his own words. He had created the meme that said, that marriageable girls, the age begins at 15 for it to qualify as being, you know, marriage quality.”
Lindholm said that seeing the posts, which included Neville’s full name, was disturbing for local families. “It makes me feel sick to know that, like someone in real life that you is in our community behaves this way behind a keyboard,” Lindholm said.
In addition to his social media activity, Neville hosts a podcast where he discussed his interactions with school personnel. “When I have a conversation with somebody on the school board or a coach that I’m working with or whatever and I kind of start to drop a couple of seeds, even not realizing I’m doing it” Neville said on the program.
Community members reported that screenshots of Neville’s posts have circulated throughout the community. Some students have reportedly begun making jokes referencing the “Nepstein Files” in relation to the shared images.
The school board’s resolution came after these images were widely distributed among parents and students.
Lindholm stated she will soon begin a petition to have Neville removed from his position. She also announced that she plans to run for his school board seat.
Those interested in viewing the school board meeting can do so here.