York pays former teacher $237,500 to settle discrimination suit against school district

YORK, Maine — A settlement was finalized in court Tuesday in which the York School Department agreed to give $237,500 to a former teacher who sued over discrimination.

Michele Figueira, who sued the school district last year over anti-LGBTQ discrimination, will receive all but $67,500 of the total payout, the remainder of which is awarded to her attorney, according to the document filed in federal court. Figueira worked at York High School from 2018 to 2021 and alleged the school department allowed discrimination based on her sexual orientation as a gay person and fostered a retaliatory environment.

The settlement requires Figueira, in turn, to release the school district of “all claims, damages, complaints, grievances, causes of action, suits, liabilities, demands and expenses.” Figueira is also receiving a letter of recommendation from the school department as part of the settlement.

Superintendent Tim Doak released a copy of the settlement to Seacoast Media Group Wednesday morning. He was not superintendent when the alleged discrimination occurred, having been hired last year.

When the settlement was first reached in March prior to its details being made public, Doak said both parties reached an agreement of “mutual satisfaction.” Figueira, reached Wednesday, said she could not comment except to agree with Doak.

“I can only share that both parties are mutually satisfied,” Figueira said.

Former teacher claimed discrimination due to sexual orientation

Figueira worked for York High School as a special education teacher and alleged in her suit she was treated with discrimination by her supervisor because she is a lesbian. She alleged when she told administrators about that discrimination, she was treated with retaliatory behavior.

Figueira said the discrimination came in the form of comments about her orientation. She said her supervisor replied “duh, you think I didn’t know that?” when Figueira told her she was married to a woman. She said she was also asked inappropriate questions about “gaydar” and other faculty members being gay.

When a male student with special needs had two fathers, Figueira said, she was assigned to that student because she was gay. She alleged that she was asked to wear a shirt with a pride flag in meetings with the family.

Figueira said inappropriate comments from the supervisor stopped when she told administrators, but she said the same supervisor then began singling Figueira out for additional scrutiny and discipline. She said she was discouraged from talking about what happened by school leadership. When her contract was up, she was not given an extension.

Prior to filing a lawsuit, Figueira filed a complaint with the Maine Human Rights Commission, which found some of her claims had reasonable grounds. They agreed Figueira faced discrimination but found no grounds to believe the school retaliated against her. The votes were not unanimous, as two of the five commissioners voted in support of the retaliation allegation.

Figueira filed her lawsuit in federal court July 10, 2023, seeking damages in the form of lost back pay, front pay, liquidated damages, attorney’s fees, costs and expenses, equitable and injunctive relief and “all other relief afford(ed) to her by law.” The school department denied the allegations in the suit, according to its legal counsel, Jeana McCormick. The district previously argued before the Maine Human Rights Commission that none of the accusations were true.

The settlement’s payout to Figueira includes one lump sum of $40,000 minus federal and state taxes and other required withholding in accordance with the school district’s payroll policies. Another lump sum is for $100,000 in compensatory damages and $30,000 to Figueira for her incurred attorney’s fees, separate from the $67,500 paid directly to her attorneys at White & Quinlan.

School Department, families affected by case move forward

Parents who worked with Figueira at York High School for their children’s special education described her as a skilled teacher whose work was hindered by the discrimination alleged in her lawsuit.

Tom Martine, the outgoing School Committee chair, and his husband, Garrison Rios, said they were the gay parents paired with Figueira because of her sexual orientation. They said they felt singled out when they realized she was placed with their son because they were also gay.

Despite this, Martine and Rios also said Figueira worked well with their son. When she was removed from their son’s case, they said it adversely affected his education as he struggled with ADHD and two learning disabilities.

“Our son was the true victim of this discrimination,” Rios said. “As (the school) started to behave the way they behaved, they got lost in trying to protect themselves versus really putting the student first.”

Martine and Rios said they have new faith in Doak as superintendent, in part because he authorized the settlement but also because of the school department’s plans to improve its employee relations. Martine pointed to a human resources position added to the proposed school department budget that is going before voters May 18. Doak said the new position will free up more administrators from multitasking all the issues that come outside the normal work responsibilities.

“I feel incredibly confident with our new leadership that these kinds of things, if god forbid something occurs, they’re going to be handled correctly,” Martine said.

More: Ex-teacher accuses York School District of anti-LGBTQ bias: 'I have been attacked'

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: York, Maine pays former teacher $237.5K to settle discrimination suit