Former judge disciplined for sexual harassment is running for Goddard school board seat
A former Sedgwick County District Court judge who was disciplined for sexually harassing female lawyers is now running for a seat on the Goddard school board.
Timothy Henderson, 61, who served as head judge of the county’s juvenile court system, is one of 12 candidates running for four at-large seats in November.
The Kansas Supreme Court in 2015 found that Henderson subjected “multiple female attorneys and staff members to repeated inappropriate and offensive comments for literally years” and that he improperly pressured a former Wichita school board member to get his wife a teaching position with the district.
The high court suspended Henderson without pay for 90 days and he lost the next year’s Republican primary election in Division 24. He resigned ahead of a second disciplinary hearing where he was accused of lying during the previous investigation into obscene jokes and other misconduct.
Contacted by The Eagle, Henderson, who has lived in Goddard since 2010, said that past controversy doesn’t define him.
“First of all, that’s 10, 20 years ago now. Second of all, I really don’t have a lot to add to my previous statements,” said Henderson, who apologized for his behavior during the disciplinary proceedings. “I obviously didn’t agree with the conclusions of the judicial qualification committee. But that was many years ago, and I think it’s really now a time to look forward.”
The former judge said he hadn’t planned to run for office again but decided to do so after becoming concerned about students’ academic performance.
“I was enjoying my retirement,” Henderson said. “And what caused me to run for the Goddard school board is that I was going through a drive-thru here in Goddard, and the high school-aged young man — real pleasant, real nice young man — but his cash register was giving him problems and he, for the life of him, could not give me correct change and had to call his manager to be able to give me the right change for my order.”
According to state data, 38% of Goddard students are performing at or above grade level in math and 46% have achieved proficiency in reading — both above the state average but too low, Henderson said, noting that the district graduates roughly 95% of its students.
“What that means is the Goddard school system is graduating students that are not proficient in basic reading and basic math, and I feel strongly that we can do better than that,” Henderson said.
“And I firmly believe that parents and their children need a conservative voice on the school board.”
Henderson said his experience working with troubled teens in court has given him a unique perspective.
“What I really noticed as a district court judge in the juvenile department was that we underestimate the ability of our children,” he said. “They will perform like they’re expected to perform. In other words, if you don’t expect a lot from them, you’re not going to get a lot from them. But if you have high expectations and you have firm consequences for failure to meet those expectations, then you’re going to succeed.”
Other candidates in the nonpartisan school board race include Titus R. Crockett, Edward Cropper, Ginnie Ely, Amanda Gish, Noah Guinn, Liz Hamor, Nicole Hawkins, Nathan L. Johnson, Jerry Longabaugh, Rachel Murphy and Jenny Simmons.
