Damakant Jayshi
The family of the student at the center of a Wausau East controversy said Friday they stand vindicated by an outside attorney’s report which concluded their son was indeed “a victim of racial and homophobic discrimination and harassment” at the school.
The Vongphakdy family is now calling for a public apology from the district, “disciplinary action and training for the Administrators who mishandled their complaint,” and “training for administrators, staff and students on how to recognize and respond to discriminatory harassment,” according to a statement.
On Monday, an attorney appointed by the Wausau School Board, submitted a report on her investigation to the board along with recommendations. The attorney, Alana Leffler, was asked to investigate the Title IX-related complaint lodged by the family earlier this year. The student, who is of Hmong heritage, has since graduated and his mother is a counselor at the high school.
Elisabeth Lambert, attorney for the Vongphakdy family, said they received a copy of the investigation report on Thursday.
Soon after being appointed, Leffler overturned the district’s investigation results related to Title IX, the federal statute that focuses on discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation or gender identity. Federal regulations outline a specific process that must be followed when such complaints are filed. Those guidelines, the attorney found, were not followed by the district in this instance.
District officials have denied any impropriety in their probe. The district’s investigations were conducted by Human Resources Director Tabatha Gundrum.
“The report…concludes that band teacher Robert Perkins violated school district policies against discrimination, in a manner that ‘substantially disrupted [the student’s] educational performance and opportunity, and . . . created an environment that was intimidating, hostile, or offensive’,” the press release stated. Under fire, Perkins resigned in June.
The press statement, citing Leffler’s report, said “multiple District administrators failed to take steps to support the student’s safe return to school.” The district’s response “was ‘concerning, ‘irregular, showed a lack of urgency, lacked communication, and ‘did not comply with best practice’,” the statement said, ostensibly quoting from the Leffler report.
Lambert, the Vongphakdy family’s attorney, declined to share the full report publicly, saying she was not authorized to do so at this point. However, she told Wausau Pilot & Review that the words and phrases in quotes are taken directly from the report.
Wausau School District Communications Coordinator Diana White acknowledged some aspects mentioned in the family’s statement but with a caveat.
Attorney Leffler’s investigation gathered and considered new information, White told Wausau Pilot & Review. “She substantiated some, but not all of the allegations against Mr. Perkins. Ultimately, she concluded that Mr. Perkins’ conduct violated Board Policy, including Policy 5517 – Student Anti-Harassment.”
White did not respond to other questions submitted by the newspaper, which has also reached out to school board officials for their comments.
The district announced on Thursday that Wausau East Principal Deb Foster will step away from the principal’s role at East High but will remain with the school district in another capacity. No other details were provided. This newspaper has not been able to verify the reasons behind Foster’s change of role in the district.
“The outcome of this investigation is an enormous relief for our family,” said Twan Vongphakdy, the student’s father, according to the statement. “We are grateful for this thorough and rigorous investigation which fully vindicates our child.”
