Highlands settles former teacher's federal lawsuit for $150K

A former Highlands elementary teacher will get $105,000 as part of an agreement settling his federal lawsuit alleging the district had violated his rights.

The Highlands School Board approved the settlement with Jason Smith on June 22. The district released details of the settlement Friday in response to a Right-to-Know Law request.

Smith resigned as a fourth-grade teacher in February 2019. He sued the district in August 2019, alleging Superintendent Monique Mawhinney retaliated against him for taking unpaid leave in 2018 under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

In addition to the payment to Smith, his attorneys with the firm Steele Schneider will be paid $45,000.

The money to Smith and the firm will come from the district’s insurance carrier, according to the settlement and release agreement.

In Smith’s lawsuit, Mawhinney is alleged to have told the principal at Smith’s school to purposefully lower his annual evaluation scores, resulting in him getting an unsatisfactory rating. And during a 2018 administrative meeting, Mawhinney allegedly told principals of Smith and another teacher on unpaid leave to “be in their rooms every day until you find something.”

Smith resigned because he felt he was being forced out of his job, his complaint alleged.

The district, which had denied Smith’s allegations, makes no admission of liability in Smith’s settlement.

Smith’s attorney, Charlie Steele, said he could not comment on the case.

Mawhinney and school board President Bobbie Neese did not respond to requests for comment. District spokeswoman Jennifer Goldberg also did not respond.

The settlement came after a mediation attempt earlier this year failed.

Steele also represented former Highlands Early Childhood Center Principal Heather Bigney, who brought a similar and related federal suit against the district after resigning in October 2019.

Bigney alleged Mawhinney retaliated against her and threatened to fire her after she took unpaid leave and because she had supported Smith, with whom she was in a relationship.

Bigney’s complaint claimed Mawhinney held animosity toward individuals who used their Family and Medical Leave Act rights and those who are sympathetic toward them.

The district settled Bigney’s litigation in March. In the settlement, Bigney received $135,000, while Steele Schneider received $30,000 for attorney fees.

While the district released Bigney’s settlement within days, it took more than a month to release Smith’s.

Smith’s signature on his agreement is dated June 19, while Neese’s signature is dated July 17.

The school board approved the settlement at a meeting June 22. Smith was not named in the resolution approved by the school board, which used an employee number instead.

The Tribune-Review filed a request for the settlement under the Right-to-Know Law on June 23.

In a letter dated June 30, the district said it needed another 30 days to respond to the newspaper’s request, citing staffing limitations, the need for a legal review to determine if the record is subject to access under the law and because a response was not possible within the mandated five days because of the “extent or nature of the request.”

The district ultimately granted the request and released a copy of the settlement July 31, a day past the required deadline that the district had acknowledged in writing.