EXCLUSIVE: Pennsbury Prepares For Lawsuits Amid Allegations Of Retaliation

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LevittownNow.com’s investigative reporting has been supported in part by funding from In The Know Club members. 

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The Pennsbury School District is bracing for expected lawsuits by several former and current administrators.

LevittownNow.com has learned that the district’s top leadership and attorneys have met numerous times recently in regards to legal actions threatened by administrators who claim a toxic culture and retaliation at the well-respected district that serves Falls Township, Lower Makefield, Tullytown, and Yardley.

Last year, at least four U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) complaints by administrators were filed following allegations of problems in the district and with Superintendent Dr. William Gretzula. The EEOC is tasked with reviewing complaints of civil rights laws violations and discrimination in the workplace. The federal agency can also launch more in-depth investigations, work to settle claims, or file litigation against employers. 

The EEOC complaints were filed by Director of Pupil Services Elizabeth Aldridge, Director of Special Education Sherri Morett, Fallsington Elementary School Principal Brian Shaffer, and Director of Technology Kevin Dorsey.

All four of the complainants did not offer comment for this article.

The latest round of information indicates that members of the group that filed EEOC complaints have made additional allegations of retaliation.

In the months since the initial article on the EEOC complaints in December, this news organization has spoken to at least 14 sources, reviewed papers and notes provided to a reporter, and poured over documents obtained through Right-To-Know requests filed with the Pennsbury School District and other taxpayer-funded agencies. Through the months-long reporting process, new information has come to light as the threat of expensive lawsuits looms large over the school system.

While there were rumors about the veracity of the first article that appeared after its publication, LevittownNow.com stands by its reporting on the matter and has multiple sources on all the claims, including documents.

The first article laid out information from a leaked EEOC complaint that cited claims that Superintendent Dr. William Gretzula used the pejorative term “bow-tied f—–t” when recounting a story about bullying as a boy. The word is most often a derogatory term for a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender person. The document also cited a training exercise that reportedly forced the staff to participate in an “activity that had us disclose the race, disability, and sexual orientation of ourselves and our loved ones. This activity did not feel right but continued over the following months.”

The complaint reviewed also made the allegation Morett had been “subjected to retaliation” for reporting incidents involving Gretzula using “racist and homophobic language.”

At the time, a number of district employees made claims that Gretzula’s leadership style has caused problems within Pennsbury and raised concerns about the district’s ability to function properly.

In the time since, a sense of worry has clouded the administration and school board as it appeared more and more likely that lawsuits were coming. A divide on the school board, which has at times been seen publicly, has also grown, sources said. 

According to a multi-page bill obtained through an open records request, taxpayers wrote a $5,527 check to Gretzula earlier this year to cover legal fees for law firm Kelly Grimes Pietrangelo and Vakil related, at least in part, to issues connected to the complaints. Large portions of the legal bill are redacted.

It is unclear why Gretzula worked with an outside law firm on school district-related business and then requested reimbursements months later and not sooner. 

The amount of money the district has spent since the claims first appeared is not clear, but it is likely significant. 

According to payroll records, sources within Pennsbury, parents, and publicly available documents, Morett and Dorsey are no longer working for Pennsbury. Public meeting notes from the Methacton School District in Montgomery County show that Shaffer was recently hired as a principal in that school system and Morett has found employment in another district.

Payroll records for Pennsbury show that Dorsey was being paid by the district through April although sources said he was put on leave from his job in winter. Those same sources said Morett and Shaffer finished out their time in Pennsbury but were asked not to come to work during their final days.

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Morett in April announced to administration and school board members that she was leaving in early summer.

In her resignation letter, she said she left due to “continued harassment and retaliation due to filing an EEOC complaint.” She further stated that she has been “subjected to hostile working conditions that have caused physical and emotional damage that I can no longer ignore or tolerate.” The letter additionally laid out her accomplishments at the district, went over concerns she had, and leveled complaints about Gretzula’s leadership and its impact on staff and students.

“I am certain that as in the past, all of this information will be dismissed as lies, embellishments or misleading, but data and documentation do not lie … My EEOC complaint is 100 percent factual and honest. I have not falsified anything in the document nor have I ever stated to anyone (Dr. Gretzula) that I have falsified my document. Please be assured that any statements that I have made are true and backed up by documentation and/or witness,” she wrote.

In an attempt to quell building problems in the district, according to multiple sources, Pennsbury hired someone from outside last year to look at the issues.

The district paid Dr. Joseph O’Brien and the Chester County Intermediate Unit $8,000 in June 2018 for “executive coaching services” related to problems in the district and the administration under Gretzula, according to invoices. The bill said O’Brien traveled 897 miles and spent more than 80 hours working on the investigation that involved speaking with 18 administrators and putting out an 11-page report.

Chester County IU – Pennsbury Invoices (Text)

The report looks at issues related to the school board, Gertzula, and the cabinet.

In the report that was reviewed by LevittownNow.com, O’Brien notes that “serious communication issues exist”; he would recommend improvement plans for Gretzula, the school board, and top administration; wrote about a lack of trust and focus; claimed “power circles have developed;” stated that rumors have caused confusion that the superintendent was leaving or being fired; and that the dysfunction had hurt the district.

The report also said Gretzula must not make “critical comments ever” about members of the school board. 

O’Brien also appears to acknowledge the event mentioned in the EEOC complaints where Gretzula used a pejorative term by listing the first and second “‘F’ meeting.” The report notes staff told O’Brien the use of the term by the top administrator was “dumb,” “shocking,” and “hurtful and terrible.” It also lists that some staff felt fellow administrators were trying to create problems for Gretzula. 

The report urged the school board to “stop fighting with each other” and to be respectful of one another. It also urged the school board to make a decision as to whether Gretzula should remain as superintendent and said no board members should be advocating to administrators for parents they are friends with. 

Among the recommendations, O’Brien suggested school board members stop making social media posts until a plan was put in place to handle interactions in a “professional manner.” It also said the district should hire consultants to develop a social media presence “without the acrimonious interactions with some trolling citizens.” 

Last week, O’Brien said it was not uncommon that the Chester County Intermediate Unit would work with districts from out of the county to assist in internal reviews of staffing and operations. 

It was unclear why the district used O’Brien and not the solicitor Rudolph Clarke, but a school board motion from January 2018 notes the intermediate unit was hired to “assist” the lawyers.

“I did not directly work with any solicitor from Rudolph Clarke. I did work with Peter Amuso from the firm for the initial contact,” O’Brien stated. 

When asked about the length and amount of content in the report, O’Brien said he included what he felt was necessary. 

In March, this news organization made a request for records related to the problems inside the district. The district granted a portion of the request but also denied some while turning over some records related to O’Brien’s investigation and coaching services.

In an appeal, LevittownNow.com asked the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records to review Pennsbury’s decision and make their own ruling on releasing the O’Brien report.

Earlier this month, the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records ruled the district’s argument did not meet its burden of proving the O’Brien report and related documents were exempt from being turned over.

As of Friday, the records were not yet made public, but a leaked and authenticated copy was used for this article. The district has until early August to turn over their copy of the records or file an appeal in county court.

At the time of the initial story breaking in December, the Pennsbury School Board quickly put forward a vote to offer Gretzula a new contract through June 30, 2023. It increased his pay from $176,683 to $192,000.

The vote on the new contract was a last-minute addition to the school board agenda after Gretzula previously declined to continue working with the district.

Board President T.R. Kannan and members Christine Toy-Dragoni, Gary Sanderson, Debra Wachspress, and Joshua Waldorf voted to keep Gretzula, while Vice President Christian Schwartz and members John Palmer and Jacqui Redner voted down the employment agreement. Board member Nancy Lawson was not at the meeting.

The entire school board either declined comment or did not return a response to a detailed list of questions. The superintendent and attorneys representing the school system also did not respond to a detailed list of questions. 

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