Warsaw Settles Employees' Suit

A 20-month-old lawsuit against Warsaw Community School Corp. by two former employees has been settled.

Monday, the school board approved the settlement agreement with Janet Helton and Mary Scott. The school corporation will pay only a $5,000 deductible. The school corporation's insurance company, Indiana Insurance Co., will pay the undisclosed settlement.

Max Reed, school board attorney, presented the agreement to the board and recommended they approve it. The $5,000 is the deductible the board has in every case. "I urge the board to go ahead and pass a resolution to adopt this," he said. After Helton and Scott sign the agreement, Reed said the suit will be settled.

"The result is the lawsuit will be dismissed and never raise its ugly head again," said Reed.

He said they are fortunate both sides were able to reach a settlement. The two plaintiffs had asked for a jury trial. If that would have happened, Reed said they could not be sure of the outcome.

During the meeting, Reed told the board the deductible was $5,000 per woman for a total of $10,000. However, after the meeting, Kevin Marose from Hall & Marose, the school corporation's local insurance agent, told Reed the deductible would be only $5,000 in total.

According to previous Times-Union stories, in August 2004, Helton and Scott filed suit against the school corporation and superintendent for wrongful termination. Helton and Scott were fired from their respective positions as personnel coordinator and payroll coordinator June 10 by then-Superintendent Dr. David McGuire. The women filed a lawsuit in Kosciusko Circuit Court against Warsaw Community Schools and McGuire, personally and as superintendent.

According to the verified complaint for damages, filed by Indianapolis attorney John Price, Scott's son was enrolled in a 2004 summer school economics class. Scott asked that her son be taught economics by a certified instructor. Scott checked with Helton, who oversaw the licensing of WCSC teaching staff, and discovered the license of the teacher scheduled to teach the economics class did not include teaching economics.

On June 1, Scott asked through an e-mail to a Warsaw Community High School guidance counselor that her son be transferred to another economics class, one taught by a teacher who teaches economics during the regular school year. The counselor forwarded Scott's request to Dr. Jennifer Brumfield, WCHS principal.

The lawsuit alleged Brumfield never contacted Scott, and Scott's son was not transferred to another economics class, though other students' requests were granted.

Scott and Helton reportedly received written reprimands from McGuire, dated June 2, that were waiting for them when they arrived at work June 3. The women were accused of breaching personnel confidentiality for private use. The women believed the reprimands were the result of a misunderstanding because all teachers' licenses and certifications are public records and are available on the Indiana Department of Education Web site.

Helton and Scott accessed the www.in.gov/psb Web site and discovered no records indicating the teacher was licensed to teach economics. They also accessed license information about other teachers who do teach economics during the school year.

All employees at the WCS administration building received a memorandum referring to "a recent misuse of position to acquire and use personnel information." The memo stipulated that all records and information at the the CIMC are confidential unless acted on by the board and/or published.

During a June 3 meeting with McGuire, the lawsuit states, McGuire told Helton and Scott that the teacher Scott's son was assigned to has a Bulletin 400 license that would permit him to teach economics. However, that teacher's Bulletin 400 license covers government, U.S. history and speech and drama. There is no reference to economics.

At that meeting, Scott and Helton showed McGuire printouts of the Internet pages that list teacher licensing information. When the Internet pages were presented to McGuire and Sandra Hess, assistant superintendent, according to the lawsuit, ... "it seemed that neither had known that public school teachers' licensing information was and is public, published information."

McGuire reportedly said he stood behind the reprimand because there was a perception that something wrong had been done.

Helton said that perception could be cleared up by explaining that licensing information is a matter of public record. Scott offered to apologize to anyone who might have been offended; McGuire reportedly refused that offer.

The women returned to work.

On June 10, according to the suit, McGuire and Rande Thorpe, then WCS finance manager, went to Helton's office and then Scott's office, terminating both women's employment. McGuire reportedly told Helton neither she nor Scott took the reprimand seriously. McGuire told Scott she had been "argumentative," did not regret what she had done and would do it again.

Helton and Scott sought damages for wrongful termination, recovery for the humiliation or harm to their respective reputations, that their positions be returned, recovery of their financial losses, attorney fees and costs and any other equitable relief.

On July 27, 2005, the Warsaw Community School Corp. school board voted 6-1 to accept the settlement agreement with, and resignation of McGuire, along with the statement concurrent with that. McGuire served WCS for 19 years, the last three as superintendent. During those three years, he oversaw the closing of three elementary schools - Atwood, Claypool and Silver Lake - which divided the school corporation community.

On Aug. 2, by the same vote, the school board named Ralph Bailey interim superintendent.

McGuire's superintendent contract was to expire June 30, 2007, and he had an indefinite teaching contract. The agreement allowed his contracts to be terminated July 27, 2005, but McGuire remained with the school corporation as a consultant until Jan. 13. The agreement also covered McGuire in the lawsuit.

During the extended employment period, McGuire was to receive the same salary, retirement and insurance benefits to which he is entitled under his superintendent contract - approximately $64,000.

Dr. Robert Haworth has been named Warsaw Schools Superintendent effective July 1 or sooner.