C. J. Huff was paid for workweek speech in New Mexico

The message was sent to all Joplin R-8 teachers from the C. J. Huff Administration May 7, 2013:

Today is National Teachers Appreciation Day- to the nearly 600 Joplin Schools'teachers, thank you today and every day for working hard to help our students succeed.

While the teachers were working hard at their jobs, their boss, Superintendent C. J. Huff, was spending the work day far away from Joplin- presenting the keynote speech that morning at the annual New Mexico Mines and Safety Conference.

"He was selected as a keynote speaker (Leadership in Action: Build Better Teams by Creating Common Ground) because of his experience and insight following the tragic tornado in Joplin," Randy Logsdon, senior safety adviser for Intrepid Potash-New Mexico, told The Turner Report, in an e-mail.

"The theme for the 2013 NMMHSC was “Everyday Heroes” and his remarks helped to set the stage for the remaining 1 ½ days. He followed up the keynote with a break-out session (A Conversation with C.J. Huff) immediately following the keynote session."

Logsdon was the man responsible for lining up Huff and he did so through the Washington Speakers Bureau.

"We learned about the Washington Speaker’s Bureau (WSB) in the process of searching for an appropriate keynote speaker," Logsdon said. "We decline to comment on Dr. Huff’s fee except to report that all the arrangements and negotiations were coordinated through the WSB. The NMMSHC paid what we felt was a reasonable speaker fee through WSB for Dr. Huff’s participation. We also provided compensation for his travel expenses through the WSB."

The Washington Speakers Bureau website indicates that Huff charges between $7,501 and $10,000 per speech. A Bureau representative told two Joplin High School students doing an investigative report for the now-defunct Joplin Schools Watch blog about Huff's work for the bureau.

"He (Huff) is absolutely active in giving speeches. We have booked him fairly often. He's well-versed in current issues in education and politics."

Asked what Huff charged for his speeches, the woman said, "His fee is $8,000, plus you'll be responsible for travel expenses." The students had called on the pretext that they were considering hiring Huff as a speaker.

If Huff has spoken frequently for Washington Speakers Bureau, he has not admitted it. He told Joplin Globe reporter Emily Younker in an article published July 28, 2013, that he had been approached by the bureau and had made one speech.

Whether he made only one speech as he says or many more as the Washington Speakers Bureau representative said, he has never listed any work for the Bureau on the financial disclosure documents he is required to file annually, under penalty of perjury, with the Missouri Ethics Commission.

His disclosure forms for 2011, 2012, and 2013, when he spoke in New Mexico, do not mention any paid speaking engagements. Missouri law requires superintendents and chief financial officers of school districts to reveal any outside source of income that pays them more than $1,000.

Huff has also not shared information about these speeches with the Joplin R-8 Board of Education.