Sacramento school district settles lawsuit with former vice principal of West Campus High School
SACRAMENTO – The Sacramento City Unified School District announced Friday that a lawsuit was settled with the former vice principal at West Campus High School who claimed the district failed to keep her safe from racist attacks by parents and students.
In 2022, Dr. Elysse Versher resigned from her position as vice principal at West Campus High School and claimed the school district continuously failed over three years to protect her from racist attacks.
But on Friday, the school district announced a settlement for the lawsuit. The school district said it admits to no wrongdoing and will not issue a financial payment to Versher.
Versher's attorneys will be reimbursed $17,500 for costs during the two years of litigation but the school district says this is not a payment for legal fees.
The school district added that the agreement also calls for Versher to release all claims against the district, remove online posts and podcasts in which she described the alleged harassment, no longer seek employment with the school district and update her online resume to remove references to a master's degree that she doesn't have.
"This is an example of a rush to judgment by some members of our community based solely on several unfounded allegations by Dr. Versher," said Mark Harris, SCUSD's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Monitor. "With the withdrawal of the lawsuit by Dr. Versher, I am happy to see the removal of the threat to the professional reputations of educators both at West Campus and the Sacramento City Unified School District.