The vice principal of Black West Campus High School, who sued the Sacramento City Unified School District for not addressing ongoing racism from students, parents, and staff, has reached a settlement with the district.
The settlement does not include any money or admit that district officials did anything wrong. They stated that they felt “vindicated” by the deal on Friday, but they didn’t go so far as to say that the former school administrator lied about the accusations.
“District superintendent Lisa Allen said that Sac City Unified feels justified by this result, as it ends a difficult and unfortunate part of our history.” “I hope this helps the West Campus community find closure and improves the reputation of their great principal, John McMeekin.”
Dr. Elysse Versher filed a lawsuit against the school district in 2022 after experiencing racist writing and social media attacks the previous fall. Versher quit from the district that year, stating that she didn’t feel safe there and needed to focus on her mental health.
Versher’s lawsuit claimed that she faced racist behavior from coworkers, parents, and students long before the graffiti and online posts happened, and that school officials did not help her deal with it.
The lawsuit also mentioned other racially motivated events, like an online class meeting in October 2020 that was interrupted by white students who used racial slurs against their Black peers.
An internal review by the district revealed that someone had racially abused Versher with graffiti in the fall of 2021. However, they were unable to identify who did it.
But as part of the settlement announced Friday, Versher must release all claims she made against the district; and remove social media posts and podcasts in which she described alleged harassment at West Campus. She is not allowed to apply for jobs at SCUSD schools.
Mark Harris, the district’s monitor for diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, made a strong remark attacking community members who quickly believed Versher’s version of events.
Many Black and community organizations, including the Greater Sacramento NAACP, Sacramento Black American Political Association, Black Lives Matter Sacramento, National Action Network Sacramento, Sacramento ACT Unity, the Diocese of Sacramento, and the California Black Chamber of Commerce, supported Versher at a news conference in 2022 where she announced her lawsuit.
“Since Dr. Versher has withdrawn the lawsuit, I’m glad that the risk to the professional reputations of teachers at West Campus and the Sacramento City Unified School District has been lifted,” Harris said. “Since a thorough investigation did not support Dr. Versher’s original story, we need to move on and focus on providing our students and their families with the commitment to academic excellence they deserve.”
SCUSD officials announced that lawyers for Versher will receive $17,500 to cover certain expenses from over two years of court proceedings, clarifying that this amount is not for legal fees.
Versher was represented by attorney Rodney Diggs from the Los Angeles law company Ivie, McNeill, Wyatt Purcell & Diggs. Diggs could not be reached for comment on Friday.
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