Lebanon Boro school settles whistleblower suit by ex-employee for $235,000

LEBANON BOROUGH - The school district has settled a whistleblower lawsuit brought by a former employee for $235,000.

The district reached the settlement, first reported by Transparency NJ , last October in the Superior Court litigation filed by former administrative assistant Leah Driscoll in August 2019.

As part of the settlement, neither the school district nor Driscoll admit any wrongdoing or liability.

Driscoll also agreed not to bring any more litigation against the school district, which has one pre-K-grade 6 school, and not to seek employment with the school district because of "irreconcilable differences." She also agreed not to make any disparaging remarks about the school district.

The lawsuit, which named the school district and Chief School Administrator Bruce Arcurio as defendants, arose from Driscoll's termination in 2019.

The school maintained that she was being terminated for "reasons of economy."

But Driscoll, who said in her lawsuited that she was "blindsided" by the decision, argued that she was fired in retaliation for her whistleblowing conduct in reporting a student's suicidal comments and complaining that the failure to provide the student with counseling was discriminatory because of the student's race.

The district's reason for the dismissal were "bogus and a pretext for unlawful retaliation."

Driscoll also alleged that even after her termination the school district continued to retaliate against her by "targeting" her children. According to the lawsuit filed in Hunterdon County Superior Court by Lambertville attorney David Zatuchni, the school district failed to tell her that her child experienced a choking incident in the lunchroom and her children did not receive "proper" medical attention and care after being hurt on the playground.

Sad news:'Beloved' longtime South Brunswick custodian killed in crash outside school

The series of events leading to the litigation began in December 2018 when Driscoll's daughter told her that another fifth-grader had told her that "she did not want to live anymore."

The next day, according to the lawsuit, Driscoll reported it to the student's teacher, who then told Arcurio who in turn told the school's social worker.

A few months later, in March 2019, Driscoll encountered the "visibly distraught" Black student at the school and asked her what was wrong. The student then said, "I don't want to live anymore," according to the lawsuit.

When asked, the student told Driscoll she had not talked to the school's social worker.

The latest:Brain scans coming to Woodbridge in wake of Colonia High School tumor probe

Driscoll was "appalled" that the school had not taken any action and believed, the lawsuit alleged, the lack of action was discriminatory because after a white male student had made similar comments, the school "promptly initiated a full suicide intervention." Driscoll brought her concerns to Arcurio, according to the lawsuit.

Later that month, Driscoll was talking with a school board member during a personal visit when she brought up the situation. The board member, not identified in the lawsuit, then contacted Arcurio.

Later that month, the lawsuit alleges, Arcurio gave Driscoll a negative performance review. saying that Driscoll's conversation with the board member was inappropriate.

About a month later, on May 2, 2019, Driscoll was terminated.

Email: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com

Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Lebanon Boro school settles whistleblower suit by ex-employee