State of Board of Education calls special meeting for potential punishment for Natalie Cline

Feb 14, 2024, 7:37 AM | Updated: Feb 26, 2024, 12:31 pm

Utah State School Board Member Natalie Cline announced over Facebook Monday that she is running for...

Name card of Utah State School Board Member Natalie Cline. Cline announced that she is running for reelection.(Laura Seitz, Deseret News)

(Laura Seitz, Deseret News)

BY ADAM SMALL

Reporter

SALT LAKE CITY— The Utah State Board of Education has called for a special meeting on Wednesday to mull over potential punishment for board member Natalie Cline, amid a growing number of people calling for her to resign.

Cline came under fire last week after she shared a high school girls basketball promo photo on social media. The photo pictured two teenage girls in the Granite School District. Cline wrote a caption above that photo, “Girls’ basketball…” Many people believe Cline insinuated one of the girls was transgender.

Commenters on that post accused one of the girls of being transgender and even threatened to disrupt future games. The girl’s parents told KSL TV their daughter is not transgender and that Cline cyberbullied her for her appearance. The parents also called for Cline to resign.

Cline has since deleted the post and issued an apology on social media.

Growing fallout

Calls for Cline’s resignation have only grown since last week’s post.

The Salt Lake City, Murray, and Millcreek City Councils are calling for her to step down, as is the Granite School District, where the girl in question attends school.

Utah Governor Spencer Cox and Lt. Governor Deidre Henderson also released a statement that said Cline, “embarrassed the state,” and called for the board of education to hold her accountable.

Gov. Spencer Cox, Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson denounce behavior of Utah School Board Member Natalie Cline. Read the full statement here ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/XLZbfT4450

— Utah Gov. Spencer J. Cox (@GovCox) February 8, 2024

Henderson also spoke with KSL NewsRadio. She said she also believes Cline should step down.

“Natalie Cline has no business being in any kind of a position of authority or trust over children,” Henderson told KSL NewsRadio. “She has lost all public trust.”

“It was awful to target, harass, and abuse a child in the state of Utah,” Henderson said. “For adults to do that is pathetic.”

Some state lawmakers are also looking into ways to hold Cline accountable.

Today’s meeting is scheduled for 3 p.m. at the State Board of Education offices in Salt Lake City. Be sure to tune in to Jeff Caplan’s Afternoon News from 3 to 7 p.m. for the latest developments.

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State of Board of Education calls special meeting for potential punishment for Natalie Cline

Growing fallout

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