Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) earlier this month announced new principals and executives for the 2025-26 school year, which included the promotion of Dr. David Martin to serve as the executive director of the MNPS Support Hub.
While the MNPS press release published on June 3 described Martin as “an experienced educational leader with more than 15 years in district and state-level administration,” it did not note that Martin resigned in 2021 from his new role as superintendent of the Alamont School System in Illinois after just six days, when concerns were raised about his past career as an openly gay professional wrestler, as well as his appearance on “The Jerry Springer Show,” which was reported in 2001.
According to the 2001 article published by The Nashville Scene, Martin was discovered by the raunchy television show through his “side gig as an openly gay professional wrestler,” wherein the outlet reported Martin acted as “a heel character who went by the name of The Flamboyant Faron Foxx,” and performed in a tag team with an individual named “Sweet ‘N’ Sassy.”
The outlet suggested that Martin began performing as this wrestling persona in 1997, and noting that it was this role that led to his appearance with Jerry Springer, explained that Martin played one-third of a fictional love triangle involving a woman portraying his sister, and a man portraying her boyfriend.
Martin (pictured above) was meant to be in a secret relationship with the fictional boyfriend.
“She’s got great taste in men, and I know firsthand!” Martin shouted on television after the relationship was revealed, according to The Scene. “Today, baby, he’s going home with me!”
Martin told the outlet in 2001 that he was disappointed about his pay for the appearance, explaining that while he was given the narrative by Springer’s producer, he managed to line up the cast members playing the characters on his own by asking friends to participate in the program.
When he resigned as superintendent in February 2021, Martin said he held no shame over his wrestling career.
“Everyone has a past. I am not ashamed of my involvement in the professional wrestling business,” wrote Martin in his resignation letter. “With regards to my participation as a paid actor on an over-the-top talk show 20 years ago, I will admit, the 43 year old David would have passed but the 22 year old me saw it as cool and exciting at the time.”
He also suggested that “some of the backlash” was provoked because he is homosexual.
“Being a gay man, I have been encouraged by the progress made over the last several years, but there is still a long way to go in promoting tolerance and equality,” wrote Martin. “We live in a fantastic country that gives us the right to agree and disagree in all areas of society. That is fundamental to democracy. It is my hope that we continue to have a respectful dialogue and learn to be more tolerant and respectful of people’s differences.”
The MNPS Support Hub is the administrative building that was rebranded in 2021 by Superintendent Dr. Adrienne Battle, who changed the name from the MNPS central office.
Battle recently made news after she weighed in on the May immigration enforcement operation that saw nearly 200 illegal immigrants detained, when the superintendent noted that no U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials visited MNPS schools, and referred impacted families to the controversial “Belonging Fund” announced by Mayor Freddie O’Connell.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Nashville schools waste of money, audit seriously needed.
MPS going downhill