Abrams says he gave permission for PSD to speak about his personnel records

The Polk County Board of Education Chair Britt Madden said during the board’s previous session that he wouldn’t say anything about the coaching change made at Cedartown High School despite public outcry over the removal of Jamie Abrams as head football coach for the Bulldogs.

Now Abrams has reported that he wishes for the District to explain the matter more so he can clear his name of any wrongdoing.

So far today, the District hasn’t changed its mind on the matter.

Abrams reached out this morning to Polk Today to say that he had given his permission for Polk School District administrators to discuss why he was moved from his position as a successful football coach for the Bulldogs – two wins away from winning the most games by percentage over any other former Bulldog head coach in the history of the program.

Instead, he’s now at Youngs Grove Elementary School serving as a Physical Education teacher.

He said the intent for him to give his release to discuss information to the district was to avoid further misinformation from spreading, and to ensure that his good name is cleared for future opportunities ahead.

He also shared that he “appreciates the support” from those in the community speaking out against the decision to remove him from the head coaching job.

“A statement was read by the BOE chairman at the meeting and he said ‘Every decision in 6 years has a documented reason as to why a personnel change has occurred, it is not taken lightly or on a whim, he can’t speak on any personnel decision,’” Abrams noted to Polk Today in a text message about the issue. He also added these statements, pointing to additional reasons why he wanted more information shared:

“Sad to him, many only hear 1 side, speculation and misinformation run rampant”; “We can’t control misinformation and speculation;” and “Every personnel decision has been  weighed against policy procedure law  or organizational future and ultimately what is believed to be best for every child in the district.”

He took issue with these statements and provided the following comment:

“I felt as if those comments led people to believe I had done something wrong, therefore I gave PSD permission to discuss the documentation that led to my removal so they could hear 2 sides,” Abrams said. “I do not want this to hinder me in future endeavors, so I want to clear the air.”

When reaching out to school officials about the matter, Dr. Thomas told Polk Today following the information provided by Abrams that she was unaware of any change on the matter and does not comment about personnel issues.

The District is still receiving applications and interviewing candidates for the head coaching job at Cedartown High School, Thomas added as an update on the process of finding a new leader for the Bulldogs football team.

Mark Lumpkin, Assistant Superintendent and head of HR for PSD, was also sought for comment on the matter after Thomas said she was unaware of any changes to the status of being able to discuss Abrams’ personnel records. He only noted that he forwarded the request onward to Dr. Thomas.

Lumpkin was previously noted to have made a statement on the record about the non-existent application status for Dr. Thomas’ husband Jonathan Thomas, a Rockmart High School assistant football coach, for the Cedartown coaching job.

Abrams said he is on the hunt for a head coaching job elsewhere, but had no announcements to share about his future endeavors at the moment.