Closing arguments turn tense in final hearing over firing of Woodland Hills superintendent

Woodland Hills Superintendent Joe Maluchnik pushed back on claims made by some of the district's own staff during what was at times a tense hearing session held in front of the school board, which voted to fire him.

Maluchnik appealed that decision, leading to the courtroom-style hearing, which has been held over the course of five nights, spread across multiple weeks. Maluchnik is accused of engaging in gender-based discrimination and harassment. He argued on Thursday that he treated both men and women the same. 

The evening featured closing arguments, which followed the first testimony of Maluchnik. It grew tense when school district solicitor Matthew Racunas began questioning Maluchnik, with a style that contrasted with the district-appointed lawyer who had asked most of the questions for the district, Allison Genard.

The back and forth between the two, which initially focused on the communication Maluchnik has had with the members of the board and staff, moved so quickly that the hearing officer had to ask Racunas to slow down for the benefit of the court reporter. 

Earlier in the five-hour-long session, Maluchnik suggested Racunas and the district business manager, Jill Regan, were the ones behind him being placed on administrative leave. For Regan, he said that extended beyond just what happened to him.

"Jill is behind the scenes, pulling strings with everybody," Maluchnik said, explaining earlier it wasn't the first time he'd worked in a district where the business manager was "running the show."

Regan played an important role in an earlier hearing session. She testified that she and other staff members felt raises were only being offered to men. She also said Maluchnik had not offered her sympathy after she faced harassment.

Maluchnik's lawyer, Manning O'Connor, read from a prepared statement Thursday from his client, which said the only raises he advocated for were for two men and two women. Maluchnik then said there was one other individual he advocated for. 

The superintendent claimed Regan threatened a school board member, saying she said: "If you want to go, let's go." He explained her volatility wasn't isolated and that he'd sent her a letter of reprimand after an incident. He added that she frequently used foul language.

Maluchnik, during the session, responded to each of the allegations made by the district's lawyers. He argued he'd been trying to make reforms that would have improved the district, but that he faced resistance. He noted the district has no standard operating procedure for hiring practices and that nepotism had played a role in the district's hiring.

Witnesses for the district had argued Maluchnik had not included them in decisions. He said that wasn't the case - citing specific examples where he included them, took their advice, and attempted to take the action they wanted to see. 

"I got push back any time, especially from Jill Regan, that I wanted to include the community in the decision-making process," Maluchnik said.

In the charging document, Maluchnik was accused of touching a female teacher in a closed-door meeting "in a manner that made her feel uncomfortable."  

That sixth-grade teacher, Lori McDowell, said earlier during her own testimony that Maluchnik had grabbed her hands and held them during a tense conversation.

"I was being accused, I was being intimidated, my hands were being held without my permission," McDowell said.

Maluchnik on Thursday said the incident never happened. 

He said he left McDowell's classroom, agreeing to disagree.

"We sent emails back and forth, never once did she say that I touched her," Maluchnik said. 

O'Connor, again reading from a statement from Maluchnik, said the accusation was only done to protect McDowell's best friend and her two-year buyout. The buyout caused problems among the board and the solicitor. 

"I didn't agree with it," Maluchnik said of the buyout being given to people who just don't want to work, explaining that 10 contracts could cost the district $4-5 million. 

"I was being accused, I was being intimidated, my hands were being held without my permission," sixth-grade teacher Lori McDowell said.  

He also questioned why McDowell did not report the incident to the school's assistant principal, who served as their Title IX coordinator. 

During the cross-examination, solicitor Racunas focused his questions on Maluchnik at one point, asking Maluchnik whether he was saying he was certain he did not touch McDowell or if he did not recall what happened. He repeatedly asked Maluchnik if McDowell was lying. 

Earlier in the cross-examination, Genard, the district's attorney, focused on Maluchnik's time as Superintendent of Wilkinsburg's school district. 

She read from what she said was a determination letter, which she said found that "charging party and other employees were subject to harassment by Maluchnik."

The rapid speed at which she read from the letter made it difficult for people in the room to understand the full contents of it.

Maluchnik said the investigator in the case said it was unfounded. He said parts of the letter did not deal with him.  

Later, he said of the individuals who had claimed they'd been harassed or intimidated, two were women, and two were men. One of the men, he said, had not paid millions in unpaid bills on behalf of the district.

He said when he was being hired at Woodland Hills, Wilkinsburg tried to keep him on. 

Genard asked Maluchnik if, given what happened at Wilkinsburg, he had read Woodland Hill's harassment policies when he came to the district. He responded, saying he was too busy meeting with students and staff.

She also asked about him using vacation time in his first few months on the job, given all the problems the district faced. He said they were pre-planned vacations and that in one instance, he left Disney World in the middle of a trip to take a flight to ensure he made it to a school board meeting, and then he was still working to an extent even when on vacation. 

Genard also read from a text between him and Dr. Helen McCracken, a woman who served as interim superintendent. In the text, as read by Genard, she said a female superintendent has more issues than a man in the same role. He responded in the text saying he agreed in most cases, but when most of the leadership team and school board are mostly women, they get upset when held accountable. 

"I did state that," Maluchnik said. "I've felt since my first day that I've been treated differently in the district because I'm a man."

He felt some board members who disliked him made the comment, "he's a man's man, because he's in the United States Army."

He claimed that while he didn't hear the comment directly, other board members had. 

It's not yet known exactly when the board will take a final vote on Maluchnik's future. 

Cameras were not allowed to film the hearing.