LEE COUNTY, Fla. — An investigation into former Lee County School District superintendent Dr. Christopher Bernier revealed a pattern of verbal abuse, bullying and disrespectful conduct towards more than one employee.
The nearly 20-page report was requested this year after more than one complaint against Bernier.
Watch below to see what the allegations were:
Bernier served as the superintendent from May 2022 to April 2024.
The first complaint came in on April 1. An anonymous email alleged Bernier made derogatory comments against Chief Operating officer Larry Stephens and tow female employees.
Three days later, another complaint came in. This was directly from Stephens, claiming bullying, racial profiling, harassing behavior and a push to get Stephens to resign.
He said Bernier had been doing all this since October 2023.
The school district hired an investigator on April 10. However, Bernier ended up resigning April 9, though he discussed the potential resignation the same day the second complaint came in.
The full report is below:
After about 20 interviews and reviewing documents, the investigation said in part, "Dr. Bernier often spoke to Stephens using profanity and in ways witnesses described as "dehumanizing," "insulting," "loud," and "disrespectful."
Some witnesses said they also dealt with similar conduct, and said they saw the behavior towards Stephens.
The investigation did not find anything to validate other claims.
There was no evidence of discrimination or derogatory behavior towards women. However, the report says Bernier did use language to suggest he harbors bias against women.
Also, it says the district did not force Bernier to resign; it was voluntary.
The report states Benier did not talk to the investigator. That's because it says he would not respond, only that his counsel said he was extremely busy, but will cooperate. However, he did not respond to the investigator's request.
Fox 4 reached out to the Lee County School District about the report.
At the School Board’s direction, the District instituted a “Speak Up Listen Up” work culture in 2023. The “Speak Up Listen Up” Culture allows employees and others to report concerns to leadership without fear of retaliation. Board Polices supporting Ethics in Education [go.boarddocs.com], Whistleblower Protection [go.boarddocs.com] and Anti-Harassment [go.boarddocs.com] are now in place to establish the necessary process and procedures to support the Board’s expectations.
Bernier is now the superintendent of the Duval County School District in Jacksonville.
They provided a statement to Fox 4:
The report clears Dr. Bernier of the most serious allegations pressed against him by a cabinet-level officer in Lee County. Dr. Bernier acknowledges that the report reflects areas in which he can improve, particularly with interpersonal interactions with senior leaders. He is committed to that improvement.
Dr. Bernier was forthright with the board about this investigation, and some board members had conversations with School district of Lee County personnel directly involved in the situation there prior to hiring Dr. Bernier.
Dr. Bernier is off to a great start here in Duval.
Our employment policies are on the web: https://dcps.duvalschools.org/o/dcps/page/chapter-6-human-resource-services [dcps.duvalschools.org]
