Bureaucrats in the South Madison Community School Corporation fired a school counselor who opposed a mandate that required employees to lie to parents and keep secrets about mental health issues like “gender confusion.”
That decision cost them close to $200,000 in damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) announced on Wednesday that client Kathy McCord and South Madison have settled the lawsuit.
The school district implemented the directive without input from parents or employees. Employees in the school district could follow the directive or lose their jobs. When a reporter found out about the directive, he gathered information for a story and asked McCord for confirmation, which she gave him. When the story was published, the school district fired McCord.
The lawsuit was still pending when the Indiana legislature passed a law that requires government schools to notify parents about anything concerning “gender identity.” No more secrets.
“No American should be fired for expressing her beliefs, especially not an educator speaking in her personal capacity, on her own time, and out of concern for her students,” said Vincent Wagne, ADF counsel. “Kathy knows that kids do best when schools and parents work together. But South Madison left parents in the dark. It’s regrettable that South Madison made Kathy endure three years of litigation to get to this point, but we are pleased with this result for Kathy.”
Photo credit: Alliance Defending Freedom
