Summary: The case involving teacher Jamila Williams has led to a lawsuit against Grand Rapids Public Schools for Title IX violations and how the issue was handled.
The Grand Rapids Public School System is at the center of a lawsuit that was filed on Tuesday that centers around how the district handles sexual allegations made against a teacher, according to WoodTV8.
Grand Rapids University Prep Academy is being sued by the families of five students, who claim that the district did not investigate complaints made by students and parents about Jamila Williams, a teacher at the school.
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Last October, Williams was convicted of criminal sexual conduct for having sex with two students. She was sentenced to eight to 15 years in prison.
The lawsuit takes on the criminal allegations and Williams’ history of sexual encounters with five students at the school. It claims multiple violations of the Title IX law and that Williams would snap her thing in the hallway. The lawsuit also claims Williams would talk about the boys being sexually attractive.
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The lawsuit then claims that the Assistant Principal from University Prep Kenyatta Hill went with Williams to her victims’ classrooms and stood there as she asked who they told and what they told after the complaints were filed against her by parents.
The suit also says that some of the victims started getting low grades and missed assignments because of their relationship with the teacher. Leaders at the school also did not help the students transfer to other schools when they were told they would not be welcome at University Prep any longer.
Even though the lawsuit names just five boys, nine have come forward so far in the case.
During a news conference to announce the lawsuit, a mother of one of the boys said, “You would think that since all of this has happened that we would have received an apology from the school, that the school would ask how our boys are doing or even if there is anything they can do to help us. Instead it has been complete silence.”
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