Band mom addresses CCISD board of trustees regarding “culture of silence”

By BRITTANY FHOLER 

Cove Leader-Press 

Pride of Cove Band mom Heather Moris stood tall at the podium as she read a prepared statement addressing her concerns about how Copperas Cove Independent School District administrators handled the allegations involving former Director of Bands Lawrence Varela-Halbert Jr. in the fall semester.  

Moris said she and her husband, John, have daughters who attend the high school and that they chose Copperas Cove so that their kids can “be part of a community” and added that they experience love and care from the community of the Pride of Cove band program. 

Being part of the Pride of Cove community has given them exceptional music training and also a family and a place to belong, she said. Moris said she and her husband have volunteered for the band for eight years and that she has served on the board of the Pride of Cove Booster Club for three years. She said she was speaking at Tuesday’s meeting to “voice some concerns, make recommendations and advocate for the band program as a matter of public record.” 

Moris referred back to October 29, when now former Superintendent Joseph Burns “took action and removed Mr. V from the high school campus.” 

“At that time, no one in CCISD released any statement on Mr. V being removed or placed on administrative leave,” she said. “This is a decision that I question, and a course of action I stand strongly opposed to, as a parent and a citizen. Releasing a statement may have allowed for less speculation and would have allowed for trust and accountability.” 

Moris continued to say that on that same day, someone posted anonymously on a Facebook group page about this, and that some people came to the defense of the band program and even Varela-Halbert himself.  

“You see, we’re a family in Band, and we were protecting our family,” Moris said. “The [Facebook] post was screenshot by people, and within 24 hours, made its way to our band hall and the eyes of our students. The chaos the post created is a direct reflection of the position of silence the district took.” 

Moris stated that as the Copperas Cove Police Department began their investigation, many band students were interviewed on campus, including her own minor child. 

The police department’s own media release from December stated that law enforcement was notified on November 7 about an allegation of an improper relationship between an educator (named as Varela-Halbert) and a female student.  

“(My child) came home from school so upset, and it was then that we learned some of the details of the situation, and as you can imagine, we were devastated,” Moris said. “That night, we realized an important detail: she had been questioned by the police department, and no one had notified us.” 

Moris said her husband contacted CCPD and spoke to a detective that evening. The following Tuesday, when she and her husband still had not been contacted by anyone from the school district, Moris said she began communicating with high school leadership, board members, district leadership, as well as CCPD and the Coryell County District Attorney, in an attempt to address concerns and ask questions.  

“I received an email from Dr. [Jimmy] Shuck explaining the policy that should have been followed, and I got a phone call from [CCHS Principal] Mr. [Carlin] Grammer,” she said. “Mr. Grammer explained that he was unaware of who had been interviewed by CCPD, as he was not notified when CCPD had arrived on campus.” 

Moris said she did receive acknowledgements from a few board members and spoke with Burns in person, but “in those early weeks, the district’s silence felt like a lack of urgency and a lack of care and concern.” 

Moris said she eventually met face to face with both Burns and Grammer and she appreciated the time they took, as well as the thorough investigation conducted by the police department.  She asked the board to: provide confirmation that all parents of children interviewed by CCPD while on campus have been notified; for assurance that the “break in policy and procedure” has been addressed and corrected and for the board to act on this with urgency. 

“To be clear, no one stood in for parents, assuring that students’ rights were protected while being questioned by law enforcement, and I imagine this was not the first time,” Moris said. “There is simply no excuse for this that will satisfy me or my husband. Without an adult aware of and present during the interviews, the heavy burden of responsibility was placed on the backs of children, on our child. This must not happen again.” 

Moris also shared that there was a meeting held at the high school to support the band students, which she said had very good intentions but “missed the mark”, in that it failed to address the absence of Varela-Halbert, and many students left feeling confused, and several even believed that he had died.  

“In the future, we need more proactive and continuous support for students in crisis,” Moris said. “There are a variety of counseling resources available through multiple agencies willing to assist kids with difficult content and trauma connected to that content. Leadership should make these resources immediately available to students and families. Our own trusted family counselor advises us that without proactive support and counseling, given the nature of what has occurred, more damage can be done.” 

Moris also shared her concern over what she felt was a lack of support and collaboration from the high school and the district for Nancy Norris, who is the CCHS Symphonic Band and Color Guard Director, and other band staff.  

“I want to recognize that there has been collaboration, care and concern that has been shown to her by Mr. Jacobo and Mrs. Kelly, Mr. Stewart and the Copperas Cove Junior high band staff, and Mr. Marina and the S.C. Lee band staff, as well as the Pride of Cove Booster Club,” Moris said.  

Moris asserted that since October 29, for approximately 40 school days,  Norris has “worked tirelessly, leading through a successful marching season, through region band auditions, and she continues to do so.  Mrs. Norris provides the leadership that is needed to maintain the excellence of the program. Mrs. Norris has and continues to fulfill the duties and responsibilities of two full-time band directors. She has done so with excellence, with grace, with so much love for our students, and notably without additional compensation.” 

Moris said that administration and the board should hire Norris as the Director of Instrumental Music.  

“Mrs. Norris is the best and most logical choice- then open a district wide band director position without delay and allow Mrs. Norris to create the team that will best serve our students moving forward,” Moris said. “Do not put a stranger in our band hall. Do not hire another director with either a lack of experience or a lack of character or both.” 

“To close, I ask that district leadership pause and reflect on its culture of silence and move toward a culture of trust and of transparency and of action. Culture is everything. John and I will continue to advocate, not just for band and guard students, but for all the students of Copperas Cove ISD.”

Although the board is legally not able to directly answer any questions during the Public Forum, Board President Joan Manning said from the dais that when the investigation was turned over to law enforcement, “we were not allowed to say anything.” 

“I think I’ve shared that with you in some emails,” Manning said to Moris. “We took the advice of Administration and did what they thought was the best. They’re the ones that are in charge. We are support for them, and we, of course, did not like what was going on or what had happened, and we had a deputy superintendent that sought out a resignation from our band director and received it, and the day it was received was the day he quit being paid.” 

Varela-Halbert’s resignation, dated January 7, 2025, was included in the board of trustee’s list of resignations as a report item for the January meeting. 

“So, at least that is all wrapped up. We have a report that he has resigned. We don’t have to approve that, because it was taken by our HR department,” Manning said. “We do appreciate your thoughts. Not everything is known, and I will tell you that the board does not know everything that goes on every day of the year in these situations, and so not making excuses, but trying to explain a little bit of some of the things that you were concerned about. We’re concerned too, and it’s just an unbelievably terrible situation.” 

Board member Mike Wilburn  also added that as a point of reference, Manning serves as the board president and thus speaks on behalf of the board, so in the incidents where board members received emails, Manning is the one who responds.  

Lawrence Varela-Halbert Jr. was indicted by a Coryell County grand jury and arrested by Copperas Cove police on Dec. 19 for three counts of sexual assault of a child, and held on a $150,000 bond. However, he was not listed in the Coryell County Jail after Dec. 24.