Parents brought pitchforks to first Wise County School Board meeting to include public comments from high school football coach Travis Turner disappeared in November.
Turner, the former head football coach at Union High School in Big Stone Gap, Virginia, disappeared on November 20, 2025and days later he was charged with five counts of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor.
A mother who spoke at the meeting on Monday, January 12, expressed “deep disappointment at the silence, the decisions behind closed doors and the lack of accountability of those charged with protecting our children,” in a video made by News Channel 11.
In the year 2023, former professor of the Union Timothy Lee Meador he was charged with three felonies and pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent liberties with a child. Meador, now 28, served 15 months in prison and was banned from school.
The use of K-9 units could be the key to finally finding Union High School football coach Travis Turner, who went missing more than two weeks ago. “As the body decays, the smell will intensify and make it easier for cadaver dogs to find the remains,” said the retired law enforcement veteran and criminology professor (…)
Father of Wise County Stephen Murray told News Channel 11 outside the meeting that the pattern was “shocking.”
“I couldn’t really tell you more that it’s just a culture of sweeping things under the rug and hopefully we’ll bury things and nobody talks about it,” Murray said.
Murray specifically called out Wise County Superintendent Mike Goforthsuggesting that it was time for him to vacate his position.
“If you look at the pattern of behavior and the time period that this has all been going on, (Goforth) has been in some kind of leadership,” Murray said. “At some point someone has to be able to take responsibility and say, ‘You know, I’ve been in charge for so long and I can’t stop this abuse from happening, so maybe I should step down.'”
According to News Channel 11, another commentator at the meeting “presented a 14-step plan for the board on how to ensure that child predators are not hired and retained by the Wise County school system.”
The school board said it would not address the comments and concerns raised at Monday night’s meeting until the next school board meeting in February.
Monday night’s meeting followed a school board meeting in December, during which public comment was not allowed.
Turner was last seen by family members walking into the woods behind his home carrying a rifle, according to a statement from the family’s attorney. Adrian Collinsprovided to Us Weekly in december
Missing high school football coach Travis Turner may not have carried out his disappearance alone, according to a former detective. Turner, 46, suddenly disappeared from his rural Virginia home on Nov. 20 while Bureau of Criminal Investigation agents were en route to his residence to question the coach. Days later, Turner was accused (…)
At the time he disappeared, authorities were on their way to Turner’s home to question him about an open investigation.
The day after Wise County Public Schools went missing, an unnamed staff member had been placed on administrative leave.
“At this time, a staff member has been placed on paid administrative leave while an outside agency reviews a complaint brought to our attention,” the district said in a statement. “This is standard procedure and not a determination of wrongdoing. The division cannot comment further.”
When contacted by Us Weekly on Monday, Virginia State Police said they had no updates to share on the investigation into Turner’s disappearance.