Preview
FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023
h
boloños lowe
November 14, 2022
Susan Rossetti
NYSTRS
10 Corporate Woods Drive
Albany, NY 12211-2395
Re: Audra Janzen Schmitt (Empl ID 0758156)
Dear Ms. Rossetti:
This firm represents Ms. Audra Janzen Schmitt ("Ms. Schmitt"), who is a retired
teacher and administrator. I provide the following information and all accompanying
Teachers'
attachments in confidence, for use by the New York State Retirement System
(NYSTRS) in its reconsideration of Ms. Schmitt's pension determination. We request that this
submission and attachments therefore be kept in confidence and not released to any person or entity
without Ms. Schmites consent, including but not limited to the District. The reason for this
request is because Ms. Schmitt is subject to restrictive confidentiality and non-disclosure
provisions contained in a Settlement Agreement she entered into with the District on May 19,
2020 (hereinafter referred to as the "Agreement") and she fears that the District will accuse
her of breaching the Agreement and/or further retaliate against her for revealing the
information provided herein. However, Ms. Schmitt has no way to challenge the pension
determination without disclosing certain information. Additionally, Ms. Schmitt does not
-I concede the admissibility of any portion of this response, or attachments, for purposes of
any
any future judicial or administrative proceeding. We appreciate your consideration of this
request and your discretion with respect to the sensitive nature of the information shared with
NYSTRS. (A copy of the complete Agreement is attached hereto as Exhibit 1).
Ms. Schmitt worked for many years in the Pittsford Central School District and was
a well-respected teacher, curriculum-leader, and administrator in that highly esteemed
community. Ms. Schmitt's biggest mistake was taking on a new challenge and agreeing to
O work in a small, rural school district, the Livonia Central School District (the "District"), as
C ) its High School Principal because the District's Superintendent, at the time Ms. Schmitt
worked there, was a harasser and discriminator. She began her employment with the District
in July of 2016. She received stellar evaluations throughout her employment and was on
track to receiving tenure at the District. The trajectory of Ms. Schmitt's career and her
O
KARLEE S. BOLAÑOS kbolanos@bolanoslowe.com
16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY14534 direct 585.643.8444 fa x 585.643.8441 bolanoslowe.com
FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023
to Susan Rossetti Page 2 of 7
date November 14, 2022
personal well-being changes drastically in or around August 2018 when she begins to protest
the Superintendent's conduct.
I have reviewed your letter to Ms. Schmitt dated July 26, 2022 (attached hereto as
Exhibit 2), wherein you inform her that NYSTRS has reached a preliminary determination
that payments made to Ms. Schmitt pursuant to the Agreement are not pensionable.
Specifically, you have preliminarily determined that Ms. Schmitt's salary and service from
May 19, 2020 to April 20, 2022 is not pensionable because the District informed you that
these earnings were for time not worked. On reaching your determination, you relied on the
following facts provided to you by the District, which you included in your letter to Ms.
Schmitt:
" The Agreement required Ms. Schmitt's irrevocable resignation effective April 20, 2022
and Livonia CSD paid her as if she were continuing to work for the District through
that date.
" The Agreement states there were no work requirements for the time period of May 19,
2020 to April 20, 2022.
" The District verified there was no work product for this time.
While the above points shared with NYSTRS by the District are, in part, factual, the
District failed to share the important details of the Agreement and the circumstances that
necessitated the Agreement and the terms set forth therein, in particular the reason why Ms.
Schmitt was not able to continue working at the District. The District's failure to provide the
information was, in my opinion, deceptive, and likely part of a continuing pattern of
harassment, intimidation, and retaliation against Ms. Schmitt by the District. Notably, the
individual who voluntarily shared the Agreement and his version of the details of Ms.
Schmitt's employment with NYSTRS, Jeremy Lonneville ("Lonneville"), has unclean hands
and a motive to retaliate against Ms. Schmitt.
To begin, Ms. Schmitt is the victim of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation in
violation of the New York State Human Rights Law, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and
the Americans With Disabilities Act, as well as interference and retaliation under the Family
and Medical Leave Act. The perpetrator was the District's former Superintendent of Schools,
Matt Cole ("Cole"). Cole has since been terminated by the District for misconduct and, upon
information and belief, is currently the subject of a Part 83 investigation, but at the time of
Ms. Schmitt's claim he was employed by the District. (A copy of Cole's recent separation
3).1
agreement with the District is attached hereto as Exhibit Lonneville was/is a close ally
of Cole and was an aider and abettor of the harassment inflicted by Cole against Ms.
Schmitt-he was aware of the conduct, did nothing to stop it, and maintained a seemingly
close, personal relationship with Cole throughout Cole's employment with the District. Ms.
O Schmitt has criticized Lonneville due to his close relationship with Cole and his complete
I
Based on Cole's separation agreement, it appears he engaged in gross misconduct to the point that he is actually
restricted from entering District property.
16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY 14534 office 585.643.8440 fax 585.643.8441 bolanoslowe.com
FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023
to Susan Rossetti Page 3 of 7
date November 14, 2022
Resources.2
abdication of responsibility as the District's Director of Human I directly
challenged Lonneville's acts after he executed Cole's attempted illegal termination of Ms.
Schmitt while she was on disability leave and while certified for federally-protected FMLA
leave, which even a novice Human Resources Director should know is a grossly unlawful act.
4.3
A copy of my letter to Lonneville is attached hereto as Exhibit Notably, it was Lonneville
who voluntarily provided the Agreement and his version of the details related to the
Agreement to NYSTRS. (A copy of Lonneville's communication to NYSTRS is attached
5).4
hereto as Exhibit My office has submitted a FOIL request to the District seeking
Lonneville's communications with Cole regarding Ms. Schmitt's retirement and his
communication with NYSTRS about Ms. Schmitt, but the documents have not yet been
provided and are well-beyond an acceptable time frame for the District's response. Lonneville
himself has submitted initial responses to my FOIL request, in what appears to be an attempt
to deny or delay provision of the materials requested.
In Matter of Cassidy v. Regan, 160 A.D.2d 1210 (3d Dept. 1990), the Court ruled that
service credit can be allowed if the employee is named in a settlement, order, or judgment
grievance.5
following a Certainly, service credit should be allowed where the employee's
employment is ended in a manner in violation of non-discrimination, non-harassment, and
anti-retaliation laws. Ms. Schmitt's situation meets these legal thresholds because she
formally notified the District of her claims (through my office) and immediately following her
notification of a claim an attorney assigned by the District's insurance company settled Ms.
Schmitt's claims. We believe that the insurance company authorized the settlement to avoid
substantial liability and to prevent Ms. Schmitt from suing the District. At the time of Ms.
Schmitt's Agreement, quick and confidential settlements with sexually harassed women were
becoming standard due to the ever-rising liability and negative publicity for to organizations
employing sexual harassers prompted by the #MeToo movement. Essentially, the District
settled Ms. Schmitt's claim to avoid a potentially and lawsuit-
costly reputation-damaging
this would not have been the case if Ms. Schmitt did not raise credible claims. Ms. Schmitt
should not be punished with pension denial because her case was so obviously egregious that
she did not need to actually file a lawsuit or go to court to receive relief from the District when
she notified the District of the illegal acts. New York State has a policy of encouraging
voluntary resolutions and settlements without judicial intervention, see Curtis v. Curtis, 20
A.D.3d 653, 656 (3d Dep't 2005) and Kass v. Syed, 2003 WL 22757711, at *2 (Ossining
Justice Ct., Oct. 30, 2003). Forcing the parties to go through the motions of bringing a formal
2 At the time Cole was harassing Ms. Schmitt and others, Lonneville was the District's Director of Human Resources
and had a responsibility under state and federal law to stop the harassment and discrimination. Instead, he condoned
and approved of the behavior.
3 In
my letter to Lonneville I directly challenge the propriety of his actions in executing the attempted termination of
Ms. Schmitt by stating: "As I am sure you are aware, terminating an employee on disability leave is reckless and
unlawful behavior, generally; however, to seek to terminate an employee who is female, over age-forty, with a stellar
resume and work record, while she is out of work on disability status, which disability has been caused by a hostile
work environment based on harassment tied to numerous protected characteristics and her whistleblowing activity,
was impudent. Based on my review of the situation, there is evidence of sexual harassment, gender discrimination,
sexist comments, ageist comments, racist comments, anti-Semitic comments, and more, all committed by the
Cole."
Superintendent of Schools, Matthew
4 Lonneville is now the District's Interim Superintendent Cole's recent termination.
following
5 The criteria specified in Cassidy is not as stringent as the criteria set forth in the letter you sent to Ms. Schmitt
16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY 14534 office 585.643.8440 fax 585.643.8441 bolanoslowe.com
FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023
to Susan Rossetti Page 4 of 7
date November 14, 2022
proceeding and then settling it-when they both know early on that they want to resolve it
without any court involvement-is essentially requiring the parties to go against New York
State public policy in order to uphold the formality of settling a court dispute, instead of being
able to settle the dispute before it ends up in court. We respectfully request that NYSTRS not
cling too tightly to the criteria in the letter it sent to Ms. Schmitt because under circumstances
like these (where there is a public health emergency limiting court access, and the facts of the
case are so egregious that all sides are eager to avoid needlessly litigating them), there is no
point in forcing the parties to go to court and waste the resources of the parties and the court
itself.
Ms. Schmitt first notified the District of her claims against Cole by a letter from my
office to Lonneville. (S_m Exhibit 3). Thereafter, when Ms. Schmitt became aware that
Lonneville may be conspiring with Cole regarding her letter and failed to notify the Board of
Education regarding her claims, Ms. Schmitt served a detailed notification of her claim upon
each Board member via process server. (A copy of the notification served upon the Board of
Education members is attached hereto as Exhibit 6). Within hours of the Board of Education
members receiving notice of Ms. Schmitt's claim, the attorney assigned by the District's
insurer reached out to me to begin negotiation of an confidential settlement package for Ms.
Schmitt. It was the District, not Ms. Schmitt, that wanted Ms. Schmitt not to return to work.
They wanted her and her claims against Cole to disappear and for her to stay quiet. Ms.
Schmitt's position was that she would be eternally harmed if she stopped working prior to her
first eligible retirement date. The District created a settlement package to address Ms.
Schmitt's concern and meet its objective of removing Ms. Schmitt from the workplace and
keep its harassing Superintendent employed. Moreover, at this time, Ms. Schmitt was already
approved for disability/sick leave and FMLA and she should have continued on paid status
while out on medical leave.
Ms. Schmitt was a whistleblower and the victim of harassment by the highest-level
District employee-the Superintendent. Ms. Schmitt served under the direct supervision of
Cole who was the perpetrator of the discrimination and harassment. Cole harassed Ms.
Schmitt and created a hostile work environment for Ms. Schmitt and other administrators
based on nearly every category protected by law-sex, gender, age, race, religion, and
disability status. The details of what Cole did are set forth in Exhibits 4 and 6 and will not be
repeated in detail here. I only note that some of the conduct Ms. Schmitt complained about
was severe. For example, Cole's negative treatment of Ms. Schmitt began when he directed
her to stay with him (sleep) in his vacation condo during a 2018 administrative retreat while
other administrators were assigned to individual hotel rooms. This action followed sexually
suggestive behavior and advances that Ms. Schmitt had overlooked. When the
Superintendent tried to force her to spend the nights of the retreat in his vacation condo, Ms.
Schmitt contacted another male principal and expressed concern because she felt that the
O sleeping arrangement was highly inappropriate. She told the male administrator that he
needed to call Cole and tell him that she wanted a separate hotel room. Cole's hostility began
immediately after her refusal to sleep at his condo and was relentless. Presumably, had Ms.
Schmitt conceded to Cole's overt sexual advance and spent the retreat with Cole in his private
condo, presumably, she would not have ended up in the hostile work environment that she
O
16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY 14534 office 585.643.8440 fax 585.643.8441 botanoslowe.com
FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023
to Susan Rossetti Page 5 of 7
date November 14, 2022
ended up in. In addition, Cole regularly made racist, ageist, anti-Semitic, and sexist
comments in the presence of Ms. Schmitt and others, including Lonneville (who often
laughed at the remarks or minimized the remarks). As examples, Cole referred to a particular
older administrator as the "old man"; Cole would make statements to Ms. Schmitt and others
retire?"
like, "I can't ask you when you are going to retire, but aren't you old enough to In
response to questions Ms. Schmitt asked about aggression toward Black and Latino students,
it."
Cole said. "Livonia is racist. Get used to Cole made inappropriate comments about
national origin and religion, such as: "Livonia kids do not need to learn to sew...that's what
do!"
poor kids in Bangladesh He said a particular teacher "looked like Jew from Auschwitz",
always referred to this teacher as a "Jew", mocked the teacher's Jewish heritage, and once
said, "He's Jewish that is why he whines so much". Cole called other teachers "pussy ass
babies", "douchebags", and "fuckers". At the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, Cole
made a comment regarding risk of coronavirus after a trip he took to New York City, stating:
"I just came back from New York City but it's not like I was licking doorknobs and hugging
Asians..."
Furthermore, Ms. Schmitt exposed Cole to Lonneville and the Board members as
working for a private consulting company for profit while on District time and she reported
that Cole spent 200+ hours away from the District on personal business and did not record
this time off as personal time/vacation. Lonneville processed the payroll and knew or should
have known that Cole was not properly accounting for his time off. Cole had bragged about
dined"
attending events wherein he was "wined and by technology companies. Upon
information and belief, he entered into purchasing arrangements whereby the District
purchased technology products associated with these companies that were providing gifts to
him. Ms. Schmitt informed the District about these kickbacks. Lonneville was aware of and
dine"
witnessed Cole's "wine and comments, yet as the District's Business Official he was
aware of and condoned the technology purchases.
After Ms. Schmitt's disclosure of this and other information about Cole to the Board
members,
Preview
FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023 h boloños lowe November 14, 2022 Susan Rossetti NYSTRS 10 Corporate Woods Drive Albany, NY 12211-2395 Re: Audra Janzen Schmitt (Empl ID 0758156) Dear Ms. Rossetti: This firm represents Ms. Audra Janzen Schmitt ("Ms. Schmitt"), who is a retired teacher and administrator. I provide the following information and all accompanying Teachers' attachments in confidence, for use by the New York State Retirement System (NYSTRS) in its reconsideration of Ms. Schmitt's pension determination. We request that this submission and attachments therefore be kept in confidence and not released to any person or entity without Ms. Schmites consent, including but not limited to the District. The reason for this request is because Ms. Schmitt is subject to restrictive confidentiality and non-disclosure provisions contained in a Settlement Agreement she entered into with the District on May 19, 2020 (hereinafter referred to as the "Agreement") and she fears that the District will accuse her of breaching the Agreement and/or further retaliate against her for revealing the information provided herein. However, Ms. Schmitt has no way to challenge the pension determination without disclosing certain information. Additionally, Ms. Schmitt does not -I concede the admissibility of any portion of this response, or attachments, for purposes of any any future judicial or administrative proceeding. We appreciate your consideration of this request and your discretion with respect to the sensitive nature of the information shared with NYSTRS. (A copy of the complete Agreement is attached hereto as Exhibit 1). Ms. Schmitt worked for many years in the Pittsford Central School District and was a well-respected teacher, curriculum-leader, and administrator in that highly esteemed community. Ms. Schmitt's biggest mistake was taking on a new challenge and agreeing to O work in a small, rural school district, the Livonia Central School District (the "District"), as C ) its High School Principal because the District's Superintendent, at the time Ms. Schmitt worked there, was a harasser and discriminator. She began her employment with the District in July of 2016. She received stellar evaluations throughout her employment and was on track to receiving tenure at the District. The trajectory of Ms. Schmitt's career and her O KARLEE S. BOLAÑOS kbolanos@bolanoslowe.com 16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY14534 direct 585.643.8444 fa x 585.643.8441 bolanoslowe.com FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023 to Susan Rossetti Page 2 of 7 date November 14, 2022 personal well-being changes drastically in or around August 2018 when she begins to protest the Superintendent's conduct. I have reviewed your letter to Ms. Schmitt dated July 26, 2022 (attached hereto as Exhibit 2), wherein you inform her that NYSTRS has reached a preliminary determination that payments made to Ms. Schmitt pursuant to the Agreement are not pensionable. Specifically, you have preliminarily determined that Ms. Schmitt's salary and service from May 19, 2020 to April 20, 2022 is not pensionable because the District informed you that these earnings were for time not worked. On reaching your determination, you relied on the following facts provided to you by the District, which you included in your letter to Ms. Schmitt: " The Agreement required Ms. Schmitt's irrevocable resignation effective April 20, 2022 and Livonia CSD paid her as if she were continuing to work for the District through that date. " The Agreement states there were no work requirements for the time period of May 19, 2020 to April 20, 2022. " The District verified there was no work product for this time. While the above points shared with NYSTRS by the District are, in part, factual, the District failed to share the important details of the Agreement and the circumstances that necessitated the Agreement and the terms set forth therein, in particular the reason why Ms. Schmitt was not able to continue working at the District. The District's failure to provide the information was, in my opinion, deceptive, and likely part of a continuing pattern of harassment, intimidation, and retaliation against Ms. Schmitt by the District. Notably, the individual who voluntarily shared the Agreement and his version of the details of Ms. Schmitt's employment with NYSTRS, Jeremy Lonneville ("Lonneville"), has unclean hands and a motive to retaliate against Ms. Schmitt. To begin, Ms. Schmitt is the victim of harassment, discrimination, and retaliation in violation of the New York State Human Rights Law, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and the Americans With Disabilities Act, as well as interference and retaliation under the Family and Medical Leave Act. The perpetrator was the District's former Superintendent of Schools, Matt Cole ("Cole"). Cole has since been terminated by the District for misconduct and, upon information and belief, is currently the subject of a Part 83 investigation, but at the time of Ms. Schmitt's claim he was employed by the District. (A copy of Cole's recent separation 3).1 agreement with the District is attached hereto as Exhibit Lonneville was/is a close ally of Cole and was an aider and abettor of the harassment inflicted by Cole against Ms. Schmitt-he was aware of the conduct, did nothing to stop it, and maintained a seemingly close, personal relationship with Cole throughout Cole's employment with the District. Ms. O Schmitt has criticized Lonneville due to his close relationship with Cole and his complete I Based on Cole's separation agreement, it appears he engaged in gross misconduct to the point that he is actually restricted from entering District property. 16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY 14534 office 585.643.8440 fax 585.643.8441 bolanoslowe.com FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023 to Susan Rossetti Page 3 of 7 date November 14, 2022 Resources.2 abdication of responsibility as the District's Director of Human I directly challenged Lonneville's acts after he executed Cole's attempted illegal termination of Ms. Schmitt while she was on disability leave and while certified for federally-protected FMLA leave, which even a novice Human Resources Director should know is a grossly unlawful act. 4.3 A copy of my letter to Lonneville is attached hereto as Exhibit Notably, it was Lonneville who voluntarily provided the Agreement and his version of the details related to the Agreement to NYSTRS. (A copy of Lonneville's communication to NYSTRS is attached 5).4 hereto as Exhibit My office has submitted a FOIL request to the District seeking Lonneville's communications with Cole regarding Ms. Schmitt's retirement and his communication with NYSTRS about Ms. Schmitt, but the documents have not yet been provided and are well-beyond an acceptable time frame for the District's response. Lonneville himself has submitted initial responses to my FOIL request, in what appears to be an attempt to deny or delay provision of the materials requested. In Matter of Cassidy v. Regan, 160 A.D.2d 1210 (3d Dept. 1990), the Court ruled that service credit can be allowed if the employee is named in a settlement, order, or judgment grievance.5 following a Certainly, service credit should be allowed where the employee's employment is ended in a manner in violation of non-discrimination, non-harassment, and anti-retaliation laws. Ms. Schmitt's situation meets these legal thresholds because she formally notified the District of her claims (through my office) and immediately following her notification of a claim an attorney assigned by the District's insurance company settled Ms. Schmitt's claims. We believe that the insurance company authorized the settlement to avoid substantial liability and to prevent Ms. Schmitt from suing the District. At the time of Ms. Schmitt's Agreement, quick and confidential settlements with sexually harassed women were becoming standard due to the ever-rising liability and negative publicity for to organizations employing sexual harassers prompted by the #MeToo movement. Essentially, the District settled Ms. Schmitt's claim to avoid a potentially and lawsuit- costly reputation-damaging this would not have been the case if Ms. Schmitt did not raise credible claims. Ms. Schmitt should not be punished with pension denial because her case was so obviously egregious that she did not need to actually file a lawsuit or go to court to receive relief from the District when she notified the District of the illegal acts. New York State has a policy of encouraging voluntary resolutions and settlements without judicial intervention, see Curtis v. Curtis, 20 A.D.3d 653, 656 (3d Dep't 2005) and Kass v. Syed, 2003 WL 22757711, at *2 (Ossining Justice Ct., Oct. 30, 2003). Forcing the parties to go through the motions of bringing a formal 2 At the time Cole was harassing Ms. Schmitt and others, Lonneville was the District's Director of Human Resources and had a responsibility under state and federal law to stop the harassment and discrimination. Instead, he condoned and approved of the behavior. 3 In my letter to Lonneville I directly challenge the propriety of his actions in executing the attempted termination of Ms. Schmitt by stating: "As I am sure you are aware, terminating an employee on disability leave is reckless and unlawful behavior, generally; however, to seek to terminate an employee who is female, over age-forty, with a stellar resume and work record, while she is out of work on disability status, which disability has been caused by a hostile work environment based on harassment tied to numerous protected characteristics and her whistleblowing activity, was impudent. Based on my review of the situation, there is evidence of sexual harassment, gender discrimination, sexist comments, ageist comments, racist comments, anti-Semitic comments, and more, all committed by the Cole." Superintendent of Schools, Matthew 4 Lonneville is now the District's Interim Superintendent Cole's recent termination. following 5 The criteria specified in Cassidy is not as stringent as the criteria set forth in the letter you sent to Ms. Schmitt 16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY 14534 office 585.643.8440 fax 585.643.8441 bolanoslowe.com FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023 to Susan Rossetti Page 4 of 7 date November 14, 2022 proceeding and then settling it-when they both know early on that they want to resolve it without any court involvement-is essentially requiring the parties to go against New York State public policy in order to uphold the formality of settling a court dispute, instead of being able to settle the dispute before it ends up in court. We respectfully request that NYSTRS not cling too tightly to the criteria in the letter it sent to Ms. Schmitt because under circumstances like these (where there is a public health emergency limiting court access, and the facts of the case are so egregious that all sides are eager to avoid needlessly litigating them), there is no point in forcing the parties to go to court and waste the resources of the parties and the court itself. Ms. Schmitt first notified the District of her claims against Cole by a letter from my office to Lonneville. (S_m Exhibit 3). Thereafter, when Ms. Schmitt became aware that Lonneville may be conspiring with Cole regarding her letter and failed to notify the Board of Education regarding her claims, Ms. Schmitt served a detailed notification of her claim upon each Board member via process server. (A copy of the notification served upon the Board of Education members is attached hereto as Exhibit 6). Within hours of the Board of Education members receiving notice of Ms. Schmitt's claim, the attorney assigned by the District's insurer reached out to me to begin negotiation of an confidential settlement package for Ms. Schmitt. It was the District, not Ms. Schmitt, that wanted Ms. Schmitt not to return to work. They wanted her and her claims against Cole to disappear and for her to stay quiet. Ms. Schmitt's position was that she would be eternally harmed if she stopped working prior to her first eligible retirement date. The District created a settlement package to address Ms. Schmitt's concern and meet its objective of removing Ms. Schmitt from the workplace and keep its harassing Superintendent employed. Moreover, at this time, Ms. Schmitt was already approved for disability/sick leave and FMLA and she should have continued on paid status while out on medical leave. Ms. Schmitt was a whistleblower and the victim of harassment by the highest-level District employee-the Superintendent. Ms. Schmitt served under the direct supervision of Cole who was the perpetrator of the discrimination and harassment. Cole harassed Ms. Schmitt and created a hostile work environment for Ms. Schmitt and other administrators based on nearly every category protected by law-sex, gender, age, race, religion, and disability status. The details of what Cole did are set forth in Exhibits 4 and 6 and will not be repeated in detail here. I only note that some of the conduct Ms. Schmitt complained about was severe. For example, Cole's negative treatment of Ms. Schmitt began when he directed her to stay with him (sleep) in his vacation condo during a 2018 administrative retreat while other administrators were assigned to individual hotel rooms. This action followed sexually suggestive behavior and advances that Ms. Schmitt had overlooked. When the Superintendent tried to force her to spend the nights of the retreat in his vacation condo, Ms. Schmitt contacted another male principal and expressed concern because she felt that the O sleeping arrangement was highly inappropriate. She told the male administrator that he needed to call Cole and tell him that she wanted a separate hotel room. Cole's hostility began immediately after her refusal to sleep at his condo and was relentless. Presumably, had Ms. Schmitt conceded to Cole's overt sexual advance and spent the retreat with Cole in his private condo, presumably, she would not have ended up in the hostile work environment that she O 16 South Main Street, Pittsford, NY 14534 office 585.643.8440 fax 585.643.8441 botanoslowe.com FILED: ALBANY COUNTY CLERK 03/31/2023 10:47 AM INDEX NO. 902786-23 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 17 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 03/31/2023 to Susan Rossetti Page 5 of 7 date November 14, 2022 ended up in. In addition, Cole regularly made racist, ageist, anti-Semitic, and sexist comments in the presence of Ms. Schmitt and others, including Lonneville (who often laughed at the remarks or minimized the remarks). As examples, Cole referred to a particular older administrator as the "old man"; Cole would make statements to Ms. Schmitt and others retire?" like, "I can't ask you when you are going to retire, but aren't you old enough to In response to questions Ms. Schmitt asked about aggression toward Black and Latino students, it." Cole said. "Livonia is racist. Get used to Cole made inappropriate comments about national origin and religion, such as: "Livonia kids do not need to learn to sew...that's what do!" poor kids in Bangladesh He said a particular teacher "looked like Jew from Auschwitz", always referred to this teacher as a "Jew", mocked the teacher's Jewish heritage, and once said, "He's Jewish that is why he whines so much". Cole called other teachers "pussy ass babies", "douchebags", and "fuckers". At the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, Cole made a comment regarding risk of coronavirus after a trip he took to New York City, stating: "I just came back from New York City but it's not like I was licking doorknobs and hugging Asians..." Furthermore, Ms. Schmitt exposed Cole to Lonneville and the Board members as working for a private consulting company for profit while on District time and she reported that Cole spent 200+ hours away from the District on personal business and did not record this time off as personal time/vacation. Lonneville processed the payroll and knew or should have known that Cole was not properly accounting for his time off. Cole had bragged about dined" attending events wherein he was "wined and by technology companies. Upon information and belief, he entered into purchasing arrangements whereby the District purchased technology products associated with these companies that were providing gifts to him. Ms. Schmitt informed the District about these kickbacks. Lonneville was aware of and dine" witnessed Cole's "wine and comments, yet as the District's Business Official he was aware of and condoned the technology purchases. After Ms. Schmitt's disclosure of this and other information about Cole to the Board members,