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Sunday, June 16, 2024

Ronald Moncrief accuses Mohawk Area School District of racial discrimination

Federal Court
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In a recent civil action complaint, Ronald Moncrief has filed a lawsuit against the Mohawk Area School District, alleging racial discrimination and retaliation. The complaint was filed on May 17, 2024, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

According to the filing, Moncrief, an African-American male residing in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, began his employment with the Mohawk Area School District in June 2021. He held various positions including Head Girls Basketball Coach and Part-Time Athletic Director. In July 2022, he was promoted to Full-Time Athletic Director but was soon reverted to his part-time role due to union negotiations. Despite assurances of retroactive pay for his time as Athletic Director amounting to $20,000 for six months, Moncrief claims he never received this payment.

Moncrief's tenure at the school district was marked by what he describes as continuous harassment and discriminatory treatment not faced by his Caucasian counterparts. He cites instances where his job performance was overly scrutinized compared to similarly situated Caucasian employees who were not reprimanded for similar shortcomings. One notable incident occurred on September 29, 2022, when Jennifer Pezzuolo, wife of a school board member, allegedly threatened Moncrief stating she would ensure he would no longer coach or serve as Athletic Director.

Despite reporting these incidents and making complaints about racial discrimination and a hostile work environment to Superintendent Mike Leitera and Assistant Superintendent Dr. Lorre Houk via email on September 29, 2022, Moncrief asserts that the harassment continued unabated. Following these complaints, Moncrief faced increased scrutiny leading to multiple Loudermill hearings—a process used before disciplinary actions are taken against public employees—for alleged performance issues. He was suspended following one such hearing on October 18, 2022.

Moncrief believes these disciplinary actions were pretextual and motivated by racial discrimination and retaliation for his complaints. This belief is further supported by an incident on December 5, 2022, where he was accused of failing to complete paperwork which he claims had been submitted timely. This led to another suspension after a subsequent Loudermill hearing.

The situation escalated when Leitera allegedly threatened Moncrief with termination from his position as Athletic Director if he continued raising concerns about discrimination and unpaid retroactive wages. Feeling cornered by these threats and the racially hostile work environment, Moncrief resigned from his role as Athletic Director on December 13, 2022.

Despite receiving a positive performance evaluation from Assistant Principal David DiCaprio on March 7, 2023, Moncrief was terminated from his position as Head Girls Basketball Coach the very next day without any given reason. He contends that this termination was also racially motivated and retaliatory in nature.

Moncrief is seeking various forms of relief from the court including back pay damages with interest from the date of discrimination; compensatory and punitive damages under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and The Civil Rights Act of 1991; reinstatement or front pay equivalent to lost salary; pre-judgment and post-judgment interest; reasonable attorneys’ fees; costs of action; and any additional relief deemed just and proper by the court.

Representing Ronald Moncrief are attorneys Joel S. Sansone (PA ID No. 41008), Massimo A. Terzigni (PA ID No. 317165), and Elizabeth A. Tuttle (PA ID No. 322888) from the Law Offices of Joel Sansone based in Pittsburgh.

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