The attorney for the Kansas State Board of Education (KSBOE) is declining to answer questions about letters he sent to board member Debby Potter, which she believes is an apparent attempt to silence her.
According to District 10 KSBOE Board Member Debby Potter, shortly after the Nov. 18, 2025 special meeting, board attorney Mark Ferguson approached her and handed her a sheaf of papers on his firm’s letterhead.
“Yesterday, I received an envelope from Mr. Ferguson, after the meeting was concluded and I was at the doorway leaving the conference room, when he presented me an envelope titled, “Gates Shields Debby Potter Hand Delivery. I asked him what it was and when I saw the label asked him if I was being served. His response was it was whatever I thought it was.
“As I glanced through it and saw there were numerous ‘concerns,’ I asked him if he was seeking some kind of action. He again replied that it was whatever I thought it was, but added that I had made a comment that he found bizarre. That’s a whole story and the comment was not bizarre in context, but it is what he referenced in conversation with me.
“This led me to ask him if he was seeking an apology, to which he once again stated that it was whatever I thought it was.”
