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Rain showers in the morning with numerous thunderstorms developing in the afternoon. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. High 77F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 80%..
Rain early...then remaining cloudy with showers late. Low 58F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall around a half an inch.
Updated: May 17, 2024 @ 11:58 pm
The school board this week settled a 3-year-old federal lawsuit, approving a $100,000 settlement in return for being released from liability.
“I think it’s a good settlement for everyone who has disabled family members,” said Johnathan Wall, the lawyer representing former Sylvan Elementary School teacher Theresa Schmitz. “Ms. Schmitz was an effective teacher and I’m glad her rights have been vindicated.”
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Schmitz sued the Alamance Burlington School System in 2018, saying Sylvan violated her rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act by retaliating against her when she tried to get time off to care of her disabled son and complained to Human Resources about her principal. In the end, according to her suit, the district and principal forced her to resign.
In 2020, Judge William Osteen Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina threw out her legal claims of retaliation and wrongful termination since North Carolina is an “employment at will” state where employees can be fired without cause. But Osteen let her go forward with a claim that she suffered discrimination for her association with a disabled person.
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Schmitz will receive $100,000, according to an announcement made Monday.
In 2016, just weeks after Schmitz started at Sylvan Elementary School, she learned her son had a debilitating brain tumor and rare genetic disorder, leaving him disabled and needing care, according to her lawsuit.
Then Sylvan Principal Mark Gould let Schmitz leave school 45 minutes early to take care of the child in the afternoons for one week when there was no one else at home. After that, however, there was miscommunication between them about returning to a regular schedule, and she complained to Human Resources about Gould. She was told to take half days for half pay if she wanted to leave early.
After returning to a regular work schedule, Schmitz claims Gould started retaliating against her criticizing her work and unnecessarily and putting her on a performance improvement program. Near the end of the school year, according to Schmitz’s suit, she met with Human Resources and Gould, and was presented with a resignation letter and told she should sign it or be “on a list she did not want to be on.”
Wall said Schmitz was unemployed for about half a year and then started teaching at an area charter school, though for substantially less money.
Isaac Groves is the Alamance County government watchdog reporter for the Times-News and the USA Today Network. Call or text 919-998-8039 with tips and comments or follow on Twitter @TNIGroves.
This article originally appeared on Times-News: Alamance-Burlington Board of Education settles with former Sylvan teacher for $100,000
