By THOMAS LUCKIE III
North Country Now

OGDENSBURG – A donation of $10,000 from James France was approved by the Ogdensburg City School District Board of Education at their Jan. 14 meeting.

France, who assumed the roles of interim chairman and chief executive officer of NASCAR in August, also provided the district with three separate donations totaling $25,000 during the fall of 2017.

The NASCAR executive was also at the center of accusations made by Andrew Ashley, the parent of a 2017 Ogdensburg Free Academy graduate.

Ashley spoke before the Board of Education and district administration at several 2017 meetings, contending that France, OFA High School Principal Cynthia Tuttle and others overstepped boundaries and bypassed his parental authority in regards to his son.

France is the maternal grandfather of Ashley’s son.

Ashley ultimately filed a legal complaint against France and others seeking $17 million in damages for emotional harm and slander in St. Lawrence County Supreme Court in 2017. Electronic court records indicate that the complaint was ultimately dismissed in March of 2018.

Another complaint filed by Ashley against the Ogdensburg City School District, Tuttle and school counselor Richard Christy in early 2018 was also dismissed.

The Board of Education must approve or reject all donations received, per school district policy.

Superintendent Kevin Kendall noted that the $10,000 donation is unrestricted and the administration is still deciding how to allocate the funds.