Gilroy’s new Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources,
Michael Lyons, faces three separate lawsuits by current and former
employees of the Stockton Unified School District, his former
employer. The suits were filed last week.
Gilroy’s new Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources, Michael Lyons, faces three separate lawsuits by current and former employees of the Stockton Unified School District, his former employer. The suits were filed last week.
The suits allege that Lyons, the former director of special education in the SUSD, committed acts of discrimination, harassment and retaliation. His former district is also being sued for failing to act on employees’ complaints.
Lyons worked for SUSD for two years before resigning Aug. 21, 2007. He began working for the Gilroy Unified School District the same month.
Lyons declined to comment on the lawsuits. SUSD also refused to comment on the ongoing litigation.
The lawsuit alleges that “Lyons retaliated against plaintiffs … by removing himself from meaningful professional interactions with plaintiffs … by making physical threats against his (plaintiff Joe Billingslea’s) personal safety … by informing the Special Education Administrators that he did not want her (plaintiff Cynthia First) working in the Special Education Department any longer.
Gilroy Superintendent Deborah Flores was involved in Lyons’ final interview for his position with GUSD. Although she would not offer specific details regarding Lyons’ case, she said that normal procedure for hiring management staff includes extensive reference checks.
“We do check references on all management staff with their prior districts,” Flores said. “It’s a normal process.”
However, a site visit was not conducted at Lyons’ former district, said President of Gilroy Teachers Association, Michelle Nelson. Although site visits are not standard procedure for any position other than the superintendent, Nelson said it would have been advantageous to “dig deeper.”
Trustee Jaime Rosso was impressed with Lyons’ credentials when considering candidates for hire. A member of the 12-person committee that recommended Lyons to the superintendent for consideration, Rosso said that Lyons “surfaced as the top candidate for the job” and “interviewed very well.”
“He was the unanimous choice of the committee,” Rosso said.
“The SUSD was well aware of Mr. Lyons’ issues at the time he was applying for the job (at GUSD),” said Rob Waters, the attorney for four of the plaintiffs. “Whether or not this information was disclosed to Gilroy, I don’t know.”
Lyons’ previous employees complained about a hostile work environment and presented a letter of concern to SUSD Superintendent Jack McLaughlin Sept. 14, 2006, outlining their issues. SUSD hired an attorney to conduct an investigation of the claims and McLaughlin concluded, one year after the original complaints had been submitted, that Lyons’ behavior had not violated any laws but had broken district policies prohibiting retaliation.
The lawsuits states that upon his transfer from the student services department to the special education department, Lyons made it clear that he did not want to be there. Although SUSD would not comment on the reason for Lyons’ transfer between departments, Waters said “he was having problems over in student services.”
“When Lyons was transferred, he engaged in a systematic approach to disrupt their (the plaintiffs’) work,” Waters said. Lyons was transferred between departments Aug. 9, 2006. He served as director of special education for one year before resigning.
Waters said that each of his clients used sick time to combat the stress of the job. He is seeking reimbursement for their lost wages, medical bills, attorney fees and stress.
He expects the case to go to trial in 12 to 18 months.
