An employee recently placed on paid administrative leave by the Limestone County Board of Education is now suing the district, alleging they misused and jeopardized funding, violated state and federal laws, racially discriminated against potential employees and otherwise violated board policy.

The civil lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Montgomery County Circuit Court, says the interim superintendent and board president, among others, then conspired to terminate the employee when he notified state and federal authorities of the misconduct and illegal activities.

“I am being retaliated against for several reasons, including, but not limited to, advising the Alabama State Department of Education by Affidavit that Mike Owens, Interim Superintendent, and the Limestone County Board of Education violated Board policy and State law by attempting to hire and, ultimately hiring, an improperly certified teacher thus placing the Board’s Title I funds in jeopardy,” Mark Isley, who has served as Limestone County Schools’ executive director of human resources since September 2018, said in an affidavit filed Tuesday.

The suit names Owens, LCBOE president Bret McGill and fictitious parties A, B and C as defendants. The fictitious parties are so named because while they are accused of participating in slander, libel and/or discrimination against Isley, their identities are not currently known by Isley or his legal team.

The suit asks for a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction against the defendants, a retraction of slanderous or libelous statements, a trial by jury and an unspecified amount of monetary compensation.

Violating law, policy

According to the complaint, “Isley is participating in an ongoing investigation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Education concerning Limestone County Board of Education’s misuse of state and federal funds.”

The News Courier previously reported Isley contacted the Alabama State Department of Education via email after he learned an unqualified candidate was being considered for a teaching position. Hiring the candidate was a violation of board policy and state law that put the board’s Title I funds in jeopardy, according to the lawsuit, and Isley provided an affidavit under oath to ASDE and Alabama State Superintendent Eric Mackey.

Beyond hiring unqualified candidates, the suit accuses McGill of objecting to the hire of black people for an administrative position in the district and using racial slurs to describe them. Isley alleges another employee, a black woman, overheard the conversation and Charles Shoulders, the board’s only member of color, was made aware of McGill’s comments.

The specific position referred to in Isley’s suit was filled by a person of color after the board unanimously approved the hire in a public board meeting. At the end of the meeting, during time allotted for general comments from board members, Shoulders said he was “very proud” to have her in the district and looked forward to working with her.

Other violations in the lawsuit include the online school curriculum not matching special education students’ individual education plans, evaluative processes not complying with board policy or state law and employees being required to stay on leave despite their physician saying it was OK to return to work.

Conspiracy to terminate

The sixth count in the suit alleges conspiracy by Owens, McGill and the fictitious parties to have Isley terminated. Isley was placed on paid administrative leave Jan. 27, at which time he was told he could not enter any board property, attend any events on board property and must return any electronic devices owned by the board, according the suit.

Isley said he was then escorted from the property by a deputy of the Limestone County Sheriff’s Office and “visually searched” by two deputies as he removed items from an LCBOE vehicle. LCBOE released a statement that day announcing Isley was under investigation by the board.

Owens told The News Courier at the time the decision to place Isley on leave was to make sure the matter was investigated effectively, saying the board was “trying to get to the root of anything that’s being insinuated and make certain we do it in such a manner and way that it doesn’t impact the system and employee.”

Despite requests from Isley’s legal team, no reason for the decision was provided. Court documents include an email in which LCBOE attorney Taylor Brooks said “there is no obligation on the part of a Superintendent to provide a reason for placing someone on paid administrative leave.”

However, on Feb. 4, Owens sent a letter to Isley announcing his plans to recommend Isley for termination at the 6 p.m. March 10 board meeting.

“You have the right to submit a written statement to the Superintendent and the Board explaining why you should not be terminated,” the letter reads, adding the statement must be in Owens’ office by no later than 4 p.m. March 9 and Isley would receive notification of the board’s decision either way after the meeting.

The lawsuit calls this move ridiculous, saying Owens and McGill are conspiring to terminate Isley to cover up their “illegal and discriminatory practices.”

“The Board wants Dr. Isley to provide a written statement explaining why he should not be terminated when he has not been advised of any reason for his termination,” the suit reads. “The Board’s cowardly actions mask the real reason that Dr. Isley was placed on administrative leave and subject to termination.”

The suit further calls it “unlawful, oppressive or immoral” to conspire to terminate Isley in this manner, causing Isley “extreme mental and emotional anguish as a result.”

Slander, libel

The fourth count of the suit alleges libel and slander against Isley by the defendants. According to the suit, the libel and slander include comments made to The News Courier by Owens and social media posts, including a Jan. 31 post to Facebook that Isley’s attorney, Shane Sears, described as showing Owens and other employees using Isley’s office for the interim superintendent’s 70th birthday party.

In the second count, the suit calls the defendants’ actions negligent, saying they owed it to Isley not to harm him in social media posts or otherwise. The third count accuses them of being “intentionally reckless, careless, and wanton, which caused the Plaintiff, Dr. Isley, harm including but not limited to annoyance, alarm, and embarrassment.”

The fifth count accuses them of intentional infliction of emotion distress. The suit says the actions by Owens, McGill and unnamed others were “wrongful, malicious (and) designed to embarrass, harass and damage the Plaintiff, Dr. Isley.”

Isley seeks compensatory and punitive damages in an unspecified amount for these counts, saying these actions led to humiliation, embarrassment, mental anguish, distress, a damaged reputation, medical bills, lost wages and attorney’s fees.

“This conduct is reprehensible, atrocious and should not be tolerated in a civilized society,” the suit reads.

Pause the board

In addition to compensation and punitive damages, Isley asks the Montgomery County Circuit Court to grant a temporary restraining order.

The order would block McGill, Owens and others from the following:

• Employing, hiring, investigating or meeting with any new potential candidates for hire including but not limited to superintendents, administrative staff, principals and teachers;

• Holding any board meetings or votes concerning Isley’s employment or termination;

• Publishing any statement on social media or otherwise that Isley is under investigation; and

• Withholding any information concerning the reason for Isley being placed on paid administrative leave.

After holding five public interviews with candidates for superintendent of Limestone County Schools, board members are currently scheduled to meet 6 p.m. tonight at Creekside Elementary School, at which point members could vote to approve one of the candidates as the district’s new superintendent. Owens was approved as interim superintendent during the Oct. 15, 2019, after former superintendent Tom Sisk announced he would be retiring from Alabama’s education system and taking a position in Bristol, Tennessee.

It is unknown at this time how granting such an order would affect any decisions made tonight.

Reactions

When contacted by The News Courier, Owens and McGill each declined to comment, citing unfamiliarity with the lawsuit at that time. A call to Brooks was not returned before press deadline.

Sears, meanwhile, said he and Isley did not enjoy filing the lawsuit but felt they had no other option.

“We tried and tried to work it out with them before we filed this lawsuit, to no avail,” Sears said. “Clearly, this is embarrassing not just for Limestone County but the state of Alabama. It doesn’t make us happy to bring all this out in front of the public.”

No date had been set for the suit as of Tuesday afternoon, he said.