Probable cause found in former Raymond School principal's complaints

As a result, a hearing will be held to determine if illegal actions occurred.

DWD finding

In September 2023, Jeff Peterson was placed on paid administrative leave and filed a complaint alleging Raymond School District was discriminating against him because he is gay.

Peterson subsequently filed complaints against the district alleging retaliation and a violation of the state Family and Medical Leave Law.

He filed the complaints with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development Equal Rights Division and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

On Nov. 5, a DWD investigator made initial determinations about Peterson’s allegations.

The DWD concluded that there is probable cause to believe the school district may have violated the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act by discriminating against Peterson because of his sexual orientation and retaliating against Peterson because he “opposed a discriminatory practice.”

The DWD also found probable cause to believe the school district violated the Wisconsin Family and Medical Leave Law by “interfering with, restraining or denying the exercise of a right provided” to Peterson under that law.

Raymond School District “denied that (Peterson’s) sex, sexual orientation, or engagement in a protected activity were factors in its employment actions,” according to the DWD. “Instead, the (school district) stated that it was motivated by (Peterson’s) job performance and results of an independent investigation.”

In a statement last year, the Raymond School Board said “any notion that the school district or its board members would tolerate any discrimination, including that which is based on sex, sexual orientation, or any other protected classification, is ridiculous and extremely disappointing.”

Because of the probable cause findings by the DWD, there will be at least one hearing before an administrative law judge.

“The statements provided during this investigation by witnesses who worked directly with (Peterson) suggests that the (Raymond School District) may have taken these adverse employment actions because (Peterson) is a gay man,” the DWD initial determination on discrimination and retaliation states. “Given the totality of the circumstances and information presented during this investigation by the parties, including witnesses, it is possible that the (Raymond School District) was at least partially motivated by (Peterson’s) sex and sexual orientation when not renewing his contract and placing him on administrative leave. Further, the close temporal proximity between (Peterson’s) opposition to discrimination, and the adverse employment actions taken against him, suggest that the (school district) may have also been motivated by a retaliatory animus.”

It is unclear how many hearings will occur and when they will take place.

Before then, a pre-hearing phone conference will happen.

Both sides can also begin the “discovery” process before a hearing, which is “the exchange of information and facts relevant to a case,” according to the DWD.

The sides are required to participate in discovery.

At a hearing, both sides will offer testimony and exhibits to support their case. They can also call witnesses.

Performance improvement plan

In December 2023, the Raymond School Board voted 4-1 to not renew Peterson’s contract at the end of the 2023-24 school year.

Peterson alleges that the board not renewing his contract was “in retaliation for opposing discrimination in the workplace,” according to the DWD.

During Peterson’s employment hearing last December, former Raymond School District Superintendent Michael Garvey said Peterson had not satisfactorily complied with a performance improvement plan Garvey put Peterson on, and Garvey said he did not believe the best interests of the school district were served by having Peterson as principal.

Peterson and his attorney Wesley Haslam argued that there were no examples in the plan of what Peterson needed to do to improve, nor was data shown for how improvement could be measured.

Peterson said the poor performance reviews “were fabricated,” according to the DWD.

After Peterson’s first year at Raymond School in 2021-22, he “received extremely positive feedback from his supervisor, parents and teachers” and a pay raise, according to the DWD.

Peterson argued that it was “highly improbable” that he “all of a sudden changed from a stellar employee to one worthy of extremely negative performance evaluations in every category,” according to the DWD.

Unpaid leave, investigation

Peterson argued that the Raymond School Board discriminated and retaliated against him when it ended his pay before his contract expired June 30, 2024.

According to Haslam, the school district in March placed Peterson on unpaid leave for 76 days, the exact amount of time that remained on his contract.

Peterson appealed the action, and there was a hearing before an independent hearing officer.

At the hearing, Peterson’s attorneys argued that Peterson was fired in March, which requires a different process than being placed on unpaid leave for 76 days.

The IHO found in favor of the district, ruling that not paying Peterson for 76 days was not a termination of his contract.

The district told DWD that Peterson was placed on unpaid leave because of the results of a misconduct investigation by Stadler Sacks LLC.

The district said the Sacks investigation found that Peterson “has exhibited a long history of concerning behavior regarding staff and students where he has exercised poor judgment or has made statements that would be inappropriate for a principal or any educator,” according to the DWD. “His willingness to talk negatively about staff members behind their backs to other staff members fosters a divisive work culture.”

Peterson argued that the Sacks investigation was biased and “reveals some homophobia and irrational fears influential board members had about” him, according to the DWD.

He also said the Sacks report had a “very suspicious selection of witnesses.”

Peterson said six of 12 staff interviewed in the Sacks investigation “were adverse to” him, including one employee who had been disciplined by Peterson, according to the DWD.

Former staff support Peterson

Raymond School, 2659 76th St., is a K-8 building with about 400 students.

Some former employees said Peterson helped build an excellent staff culture.

Peterson provided statements to the DWD from Mary Ozburn, a retired Raymond School kindergarten teacher who worked for two years with Peterson as her principal, and Andrew Weiss, a Raymond School middle school science teacher who worked under Peterson.

Ozburn wrote that she “experienced strong leadership and support” from Peterson.

Weiss wrote that Peterson became principal when staff relationships “were becoming strained and fractured,” but Peterson worked hard to improve that.

He wrote that Peterson’s creative “staff team-building activities; his demonstrated ability and desire for open communication with staff using various methods; and leadership style that promoted transparency with the community and staff members all contributed to removing barriers and rebuilding staff relationships,” according to the DWD.

The DWD investigator also contacted witnesses provided by Peterson, and witnesses responded in writing to questions.

One was Abbie Ramon, Raymond School District coordinator of student services from August 2015 to July 2023.

Ramon wrote that she believes Peterson was targeted by community members, School Board members and school staff, including Garvey, who wanted to remove him from the school.

Ramon wrote that Peterson “met the expectations of what any school district would expect from a principal,” according to the DWD.

She believes Peterson’s contract was not renewed because of “extreme right-wing propaganda and politically motivated groups that actively worked to get followers elected to boards and appointed to administrative positions in schools in order to further their agenda,” according to the DWD. “Part of this agenda included oppressing LGBTQIA individuals by erasing their existence.”

Ramon believes Peterson was wrongfully terminated as a result of the “complete abandonment and disregard for standards in practice in employee evaluation and review,” according to the DWD.

Another witness was Kelly Rasmussen, Raymond School teacher from August 2003 to June 2024.

Rasmussen wrote that Peterson “met and exceeded the expectations at the Raymond School District” and “embodied positive leadership and always went above and beyond for the staff and students,” according to the DWD.

Rasmussen believes that when Garvey was hired, “everything immediately changed for Peterson, negatively impacting his career at Raymond School, and ultimately, through great humiliation and attack on his personal/private life, he was forced out of his position of principal,” according to the DWD.

Garvey had “an extreme vendetta” to oust Peterson as principal, Rasmussen wrote. “Garvey was determined to build a case in collaboration with the office staff to get rid of Jeff Peterson because he is gay.”

‘Life turned upside down’

Separately, Peterson filed a federal lawsuit last month with similar allegations to his DWD complaints.

Peterson is seeking several actions in the federal lawsuit: to be reinstated as Raymond School principal or money equivalent to 10 years of front pay in the principal job; back pay and relief compensation; punitive damages against the individual defendants; the redaction of public records “to conceal private information of no public interest;” for those public records to not be released in future record requests; compensation for Peterson’s attorney fees and costs; and any other relief.

“Our primary goal is for Mr. Peterson to be reinstated as principal,” Haslam wrote in an email.

In an email, Peterson said he has struggled not working in education for more than a year and “having my life turned upside down.”

“Having that taken away from you is much more impactful than any apology or monetary award could compensate for,” Peterson wrote.