UPDATED: Superintendent placed on leave following felony charge

Western Wayne Schools Superintendent Kelly J. Plank was placed on administrative leave after being charged Monday with a Level 5 felony battery count in Henry County.

Court records show the Henry County Prosecutor’s Office charged Plank, 44, on Monday, May 11, in Henry Circuit Court 2 with one count of battery resulting in serious bodily injury, a Level 5 felony. Judge Kit C. Dean Crane found probable cause for the charge and ordered a warrant for Plank’s arrest. Records show that Plank has a New Castle address.

In a news release, WWS legal counsel A.J. Sickmann said that after learning of the charge, the school board placed Plank on leave, effective immediately. He said the alleged incident reportedly occurred on a Saturday, off school grounds, while Plank was not acting in her role as superintendent.

The board issued a statement saying it takes the matter seriously. 

“While the allegations do not involve school property, students, or staff, we believe this step is necessary to ensure the district remains focused on its primary mission: the education and well-being of our students,” the board wrote. “We are committed to a process that is both thorough and fair to all parties involved.”

According to the affidavit of probable cause, New Castle Police Department officers went to Henry Community Health’s emergency room shortly after 11 a.m. April 5 after a woman sought treatment for injuries she said occurred the previous night at Elks Lodge No. 484 in New Castle.

The woman told police she, her husband, her son, her son’s girlfriend and Plank had been seated together drinking, watching basketball and singing karaoke. She said she and Plank had been longtime friends and that tensions escalated throughout the evening over interactions involving the woman’s son and his girlfriend.

The son told police Plank became upset with him for not singing karaoke and later criticized how he was speaking to his girlfriend. According to the affidavit, after the girlfriend accidentally spilled a drink on him and he began cleaning the table, Plank yelled at him for touching her drink.

The affidavit says Plank later took the girlfriend to the restroom and allegedly told her she could “do better” than the son. When the son confronted Plank about the comment near the bar area, witnesses told police an argument followed.

The woman told police she stepped between Plank and her son to calm the situation, but Plank grabbed her and swept her legs out from under her “like a martial arts move,” causing her to strike her head on the ground, the affidavit said. The son told police he saw Plank grab his mother around the neck and kicked her legs out from under her.

A bartender told police she heard the woman yelling “that was enough” at Plank while waving her hands and then saw the woman on the ground moments later. The bartender said Plank had consumed “a few beers,” but she did not believe anyone had been overserved. The son’s girlfriend told police she did not see the fall itself but saw Plank throwing drinks at her boyfriend afterward.

The woman initially believed she had bruising or a dislocated knee, but as the pain worsened, she sought treatment the next day. Medical records reviewed by police indicated she suffered fractures to her right tibia and fibula and later underwent surgery in Indianapolis to stabilize the injuries.

Police said the woman was uncertain on April 5 whether she wanted to pursue criminal charges and requested documentation for possible civil litigation. On April 8, her husband informed investigators she wished to proceed with charges.

Investigators conducted additional interviews throughout April and reviewed medical records before submitting the case to the Henry County Prosecutor’s Office on May 4. The affidavit says Plank initially indicated she wanted to provide her account to investigators, but later declined to give a statement on the advice of attorney Sean Rowe. Police noted there were no surveillance cameras in the bar area where the incident allegedly occurred.

WWN reached out to Plank on Monday evening for comment by phone and email.

Court records Tuesday, May 12, showed Rowe entered an appearance on Plank’s behalf, filed a waiver of her initial hearing and entered a plea of not guilty, along with a standard discovery motion seeking disclosure of certain evidence prosecutors might introduce during a trial.

Sickmann said the school board is finalizing an interim leadership plan, and that school activities will continue as scheduled without disruption. He said the board would conduct its own review of the situation “as it relates to district policy and professional standards.” 

The board canceled a special budget planning work session that had been scheduled for 5 p.m. on Wednesday evening. The regular board meeting is still scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Plank became WWS superintendent in July 2025 after previously serving in various roles at Northeastern Wayne Schools. She began working in Wayne County in 2018 when she became principal at Fairview Elementary School in Richmond. Before that, she was dean of students at Greenfield-Central Junior High School, according to her LinkedIn profile.

In Indiana, a Level 5 felony carries a possible prison sentence of one to six years, with an advisory sentence of three years. 

People accused of crimes are presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty in court.

Updated Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at 10:10 a.m. to note that the board has canceled a budget work session scheduled for Wednesday, May 13. The regular 6 p.m. board meeting is still scheduled. A previous version of this article indicated the board meeting had been canceled, but only the work session has been canceled.

Updated Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at 1:22 p.m. to add new information available from court documents describing the alleged battery incident and noting Plank’s not guilty plea made via her attorney.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.