A teacher is suing the Belton school district, claiming it unfairly terminated her contract because she reported concerns that the alternative high school has been unfairly dropping students out of the program and skewing test score data.
After teacher J. Walton reported problems in the program, she says that a fellow teacher — who she accused of violating district policy and manipulating data — filed his own complaint. He accused Walton of sexual harassment, a claim that she denies and that the district determined was unsubstantiated.
Walton argues that the allegation was made in an attempt to retaliate against her for reporting her concerns. Now, in Cass County Circuit Court, she’s suing the district and the fellow teacher, Tyler Epstein, arguing that she was defamed and denied the renewal of her teaching contract because she was a whistleblower.
“The whole reason (Walton) began this was because she wanted them to stop doing what they were doing. She wanted those kids to have the opportunity to get the education that they are due under the law and which they deserve,” Walton’s attorney Kevin Baldwin told The Star. “And when she saw what she thought was a denial of that right, she wanted to step up.
“She never envisioned any of this. She thought she would bring this to the attention of the administration. The administration would say, ‘we can’t do this’ and then make it right. And they would all get along and the kids would benefit. That’s not what happened.”
Epstein’s...
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