A former Ansonia High School teacher is suing the Board of Education, claiming she lost her job last year because she was wrongly accused of misappropriating federal grant money and mishandling cash.
“The plaintiff has suffered a loss of her employment, economic losses continuing into the future, the loss of her good name, public disgrace and emotional distress,” the ex-teacher’s lawyer, Rose Long-McLean, writes in the lawsuit pending in federal court in New Haven.
The plaintiff is Jacqueline Abelli, the high school’s former culinary arts teacher. She lost her job last June, after school officials opted not to renew her contract.
Abelli was not tenured, making her lawsuit unusual for a teacher. Teachers without tenure largely can’t appeal the decisions of their employers in court. However, Abelli claims that the basis for her dismissal was a falsehood, and that the process by which she was terminated was unfair.
She is suing to receive monetary damages, attorney fees, and “appropriate injunctive relief” from the court. A dollar amount is not stated.
The Valley Indy left an e‑mail and a voicemail for her attorney July 22. Christopher Parker, the school board’s lawyer, said via e‑mail he could not comment on a pending lawsuit.
The Conflict
Abelli received a letter from Ansonia School Superintendent Carol Merlone in March 2012, informing her Merlone was recommending the school board terminate Abelli by not renewing her employment contract.
Merlone’s letter listed nine reasons for Abelli’s dismissal, including:
- Misappropriating federal grant money, a Perkins grant specifically
- Commingling of funds
- Ordering a gas stove without authorization, causing the district to spend an extra $6,000
- Selling food to teachers without permission
- Failing to follow the rules regarding handling cash
- Failing to follow the rules regarding ordering food from the district’s food service director
- Failing to demonstrate professionalism to the public
- Using a school computer to promote a political candidate
Abelli, in her fifth year of teaching at the time, requested a “name-clearing” hearing in front of the Ansonia Board of Education.
It was held in April 2012 — and the school board sided with Merlone.
According to the transcript from the hearing, Abelli tapped into a federal grant to order supplies for her culinary class — but the order also included personal items, a major no-no with grant money.
She also organized a “food club” with her students. They sold sandwiches in the school, but Abelli allegedly didn’t keep track of the cash.
Abelli was also accused of ordering a gas-powered stove for the high school when the school district was equipped for electric. The oversight caused the project’s price tag to triple to $13,000.
Regarding the lack of professionalism to the public, a teacher from a Valley adult education program who used Abelli’s room for his after-school class said she was a nightmare to deal with — and allegedly vowed never to do so again, according to a transcript of the hearing.
Abelli testified at the April hearing, saying while she had made mistakes, they didn’t warrant her firing. Several past students offered testimony on her behalf, saying she was an inspiring teacher.
She countered many of the accusations leveled against her by saying they were either exaggerated or just untrue.
Regarding the federal grant money, Abelli said some of the supplies were perishable and therefore should not have been ordered using a Perkins grant. But they were not for personal use, Abelli said.
“I have never so much as taken a toothpick out of that room and put it into my personal possession. Nothing was ever given to me or assumed for personal use,” Abelli said. “Every single thing that was purchased, right or wrong, has been for this program.”
Regarding her handling of cash, Abelli said all monies were accounted for during a meeting she had with school administrators, including Superintendent Merlone.
Regarding the alleged use of a school computer to support a political candidate, Abelli said she simply forwarded a e‑mail forwarded to her from a Derby educator. The e‑mail was a quote from President Obama praising teachers. It wasn’t meant to endorse Obama, she said.
Abelli attributed the source of her problems in Ansonia High School to the superintendent. According to Abelli’s testimony, someone overheard a conversation in which she called the superintendent “stupid.” That somehow got back to the superintendent, Abelli said. However, she testified that her words were misinterpreted and that she never called Merlone a name.
Merlone also testified at the April hearing, saying that while Abelli was a great influence on her students and a good teacher — she couldn’t follow the rules laid down by bosses.
“She takes things in her own hands and then it backfires and it causes an awful lot of money per hour from the employees in this district to go back and follow-up and find out exactly what went wrong …” Merlone said.
Legal Arguments
While the school district argues that Abelli was, essentially, a probationary employee since she had not been granted tenure, Abelli’s lawyer argues that she was denied her right to due process.
The Ansonia Board of Education, her lawyer argues, failed to look into whether the accusations against her had merit — they just blindly sided with the superintendent. In addition, her employers accused her of a crime, yet no criminal charges were filed.
The school district, however, points out Abelli was given many chances — and that the school board adhered to the letter of the law, as evidenced by the April “name-clearing” hearing.
The lawsuit was first filed in state court in 2012, then moved to federal court. On June 27, 2013, a judge denied the Ansonia school board’s motion to have the lawsuit dismissed.
A status conference on the case is scheduled for August.
