Behind Closed Doors: How Activists, Union Reps, & Liberal Allies Are Working to Overturn the Hamilton County Tennessee School Board Centerstone Vote

Submitted by a Concerned Hamilton County Citizen –

I rushed home on Thursday evening because I didn’t want to be late for a call I’d been invited to join by the Hamilton County Democrat Party. The call was scheduled for 5:30 PM and had been promoted as “a great chance to learn” about how the Centerstone MOU counseling program impacts our schools and students in Hamilton County.

I sat through the hour-long call in shock. Contrary to the HCDP post, I quickly realized I was on a call with a small network of Tennessee Education Association (TEA) operatives, failed progressive school-board candidates, and activist groups working behind the scenes to pressure the board into reversing its decision.

As background: during the August 2025 Hamilton County School Board meeting, the duly elected board voted 6–5 to end the Centerstone MOU. That should have settled it — there was debate, a vote, and a decision.

Fast forward to September 4, 2025. The radical left was holding a virtual strategy meeting, led by Aaron Fowles, a Uniserv Field Director for the TEA, where he coordinated pressure tactics against duly elected board members.

I’ve seen Mr. Fowles speak at school board meetings in the past. My opinion of him before this week was that he was a “nothing burger” — just a young man who thinks he’s more important than he really is, talking just to hear himself speak.

After Thursday, my opinion changed. He is a dangerous activist — intent on creating chaos, dripping with sarcasm, and lacking candor.

A little research shows just how embedded Fowles is in HCDE:

He was selected for the 2025 Leadership HCS cohort, described by the district as “a diverse group of community leaders” designed to interact closely with HCDE leadership (Chattanoogan.com, Dec 3, 2024).

He previously taught at East Ridge Middle School and was quoted in a 2021 NewsChannel 9 article criticizing updates to Tennessee’s school funding formula.

A quick glance at his BlueSky social media shows he’s a far-left activist at heart.

That raised an immediate question for me:
Why is this man so deeply invested in strong-arming our school board into reinstating the Centerstone MOU? And is this really who we want influencing decisions in our majority-conservative county?

Here’s What Happened:

The call kicked off at 5:30 PM, led by Aaron Fowles. From the start, it was obvious this wasn’t an informational session, it was a strategy meeting.

Within minutes, it became clear this wasn’t about “learning more” about Centerstone. It was about organizing a coordinated pressure campaign to force the Hamilton County School Board to reverse its 6–5 vote.

Aaron started with a history lesson on the last school board budget vote, complaining that schools have to “go sing for their supper every year at the county commission.” He insulted commissioners who support fiscal responsibility and bemoaned that educators didn’t get a step increase.

What he failed to mention:
Hamilton County Schools recently approved a revised budget that included $50K starting salaries for teachers, a $1,750 raise for employees, and pay increases based on years of service. That omission felt intentional.

Packing the September 18th Meeting

Participants discussed the upcoming September 18th school board meeting and urged attendees to work their networks to “pack out” the room with as many Centerstone supporters as possible.

According to Fowles, numbers were the key, not reason, not debate, not facts:

“Facts and data aren’t going to do squat,” he told the group, coaching them to use emotional narratives instead.

They weren’t trying to inform the community, they were coaching each other on how to manipulate it.

The Ideology Driving the Movement

At one point, Fowles told a story about a Hamilton County commissioner who supposedly called him to ask if SEAD coaches were socialists. He used that moment to praise Paulo Freire, a radical socialist educator, calling him his “homeboy” and bragging that he named his cat Paulo after him.

Freire’s book, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, advocates political “consciousness-raising” over traditional literacy and is considered foundational to activist-driven education reforms focused on identity politics and challenging traditional values. Fowles even called the book “lovely.”

To me, this revealed how deeply ideological this fight is for Aaron and his allies. This wasn’t a discussion about mental health services — it was about pushing a worldview and embedding activism into schools.

Private Conversations with Friendly Board Members

Multiple participants admitted they’ve been communicating privately with “friendly” school board members and using those discussions to shape strategy against the six who voted NO.

For example:

Crystal Boehm (failed 2024 candidate) revealed behind-the-scenes chats with allied board members, sharing details from those conversations. She even claimed her mother lives in Steve Slater’s district and said his “no” vote was “faith-based.”

Tammy Barnes (another failed 2024 candidate) said she spoke directly with Steve Slater after the vote. She also claimed that board member Felice Hadden told Slater she voted yes by mistake — and that it was “an error.”

They even discussed pressuring one or two board members to “move to reconsider” the vote — a parliamentary tactic meant to force a re-vote.

For me, this raises serious Sunshine Law concerns.

An RFP Workaround: Quietly Reinstating Centerstone

One of the most troubling revelations came when Fowles mentioned “rumors” that HCDE administration, under Superintendent Justin Robertson, might be preparing a new Request for Proposal (RFP) to bring Centerstone-style services back under a different name.

If true, this would mean HCDE leadership is working behind the board’s back to bypass the 6–5 decision. That’s not just unethical — it undermines the governance process and erodes public trust.

The Missing LGBTQ+ Comic Book

At one point, Fowles pulled up Centerstone’s website to address concerns about student-facing resources. He mocked critics, saying:

“…they’re afraid we’re gonna come in and make all the kids gay and make them all trans and whatever, right? So let’s look at the website…”

While scrolling, he acknowledged that an LGBTQ+-themed comic book had recently been removed from the site.

This raises an obvious question:
If there was nothing wrong with Centerstone’s materials, why hide them?

The timing of its removal — right as backlash intensified — suggests damage control, not transparency.

Counselor Dependency on Centerstone

Several teachers admitted something most parents didn’t know: school counselors were relying heavily on Centerstone staff to manage caseloads and handle issues they weren’t contracted to address.

Q. Hatcher said she shares an office with a counselor now “taking on the social worker part” and struggling without Centerstone.

Thomas Carner, a teacher at Harrison, said his school has two counselors for 800 students and that they were “pulled apart at the seams.”

Parents were led to believe Centerstone provided optional, consent-based counseling. In reality, the program was deeply embedded in school operations — filling staffing gaps with very little transparency.

Looking Up School Board Members’ Home Addresses

One of the most shocking moments came when Aaron Fowles casually suggested looking up the home addresses of school board members who voted against Centerstone.

The TEA’s Hamilton County field director openly encouraged attendees to find out where elected officials live — a tactic that goes beyond advocacy and veers into intimidation.

Admitting a Lack of Community Support

Fowles admitted that actual community support for reinstating Centerstone is extremely small:

• 25 people RSVP’d for the meeting

• 17 to 19 actually attended

Despite this, the group strategized about how to manufacture the appearance of overwhelming demand:

• Using social media and parent Facebook groups to amplify scripted talking points

• Coaching participants on dominating public comment sessions

• Bringing coordinated signs and slogans to create a visual show of force

In reality, this isn’t grassroots — it’s manufactured optics.

Recruiting for Public School Strong and CALEB Chattanooga

Another revealing part of the call came when Meghan Gilbert of Public School Strong and Angelica Acevedo of CALEB Chattanooga used the meeting as a recruitment drive.

Instead of focusing on students or solutions, they pitched their activist groups, encouraged attendees to sign up for updates, and used the controversy to grow email lists and expand influence.

This wasn’t about mental health — it was about building a political machine.

What They Shared in the Chat

The chat was just as revealing as the conversation itself. Attendees shared:

• A Mobilize.us link to register for the September 18th meeting

• A Museum of Protest resource with 200+ nonviolent tactics

• Op-ed coordination instructions from Angelica Acevedo

• Crystal Boehm’s suggested signs that said “Moms for Mental Health” 

• Requests for social media coordination to make the movement look bigger

This wasn’t just a meeting — it was a training session. 

How the Call Ended

After more than an hour, the call fizzled out. The last few minutes were filled with:

• Questions about how to sign up to speak at the September 18th meeting

• Frustrations over the lack of leadership

• More venting about the school board and county commission

Finally, Aaron Fowles wrapped up by urging everyone to show up on September 18th — and then encouraged attendees to commit to additional school board meetings:

“…in some stupid month that you don’t care about yet.”

That quote says it all. This wasn’t about students.
This wasn’t about parents.
And it certainly wasn’t about transparency.

This was about building a political movement — one designed to pressure elected officials, override a democratic vote, and expand activist influence in Hamilton County Schools.

For all their planning, they admitted they only had 17 to 19 people on the call. That’s not a grassroots uprising — that’s a handful of activists trying to make themselves look bigger and louder than they really are.

*A Full Transcript Of the Meeting Is Available For Download HERE.