Jackson Free Press

Jackson Public Schools has reached a settlement with Michael and Rachel Ellis in the Ellis' Title VII lawsuit filed in January against JPS Superintendent Dr. Earl Watkins.

JPS has not revealed the terms of the settlement, although Ellis and his legal team are reportedly pleased. The payout, according to sources who wish to remain anonymous, is in the half-million dollar range. JPS has also not revealed whether there will be any consequences for Watkins, who has continued to maintain that he never harassed Ellis.

The parties agreed that all legal proceedings are dismissed with prejudice, without any finding of wrongdoing by JPS or Watkins. There will be no more legal actions among the parties, according to a brief statement by Delmar Stamps just moments ago.

Watkins fired Ellis, former principal of Chastain Middle School, in Dec. 2006, accusing Ellis of doctoring payroll records, mismanaging funds and failing to achieve significant progress at Chastain, among other things. Ellis filed the Title VI suit, alleging Watkins sexually harassed him and that his firing was an act of retaliation for bringing the harassment to the attention of JPS. The suit also claimed JPS failed to promote Rachel Ellis for the same reason, although JPS did so later this year.

Ellis requested a termination hearing from JPS, which was his right. That hearing, which began in mid-February, concluded in July after weeks of testimony and several lengthy delays due to scheduling conflicts. In addition, Charles McClelland, the original hearing officer in the case, recused himself in May after Ellis' attorney Lisa Ross raised the specter of conflict-of-interest issues. Robert Johnson III replaced McClelland during the final stages of the JPS hearing, and submitted a summary of findings to the school board in August.

During the JPS hearing, the state auditor's office investigated their own audit findings, which JPS cited among their reasons for Ellis' firing, to determine the possibility of criminal charges against Ellis. That investigation did not find evidence of payroll document tampering, which JPS presented as the key, most damning evidence for Watkins' actions.

Canton Public Schools hired Michael Ellis, in the meantime, as an assistant principal at Nichols Middle School.

Previous Comments

ID

95614

Comment

I'm glad that this has been settled. It was dragged out entirely too long.

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2007-09-14T17:28:33-06:00

ID

95615

Comment

I've known Michael for a while and I'm glad he landed on his feet here. He has one of the nicest families I've ever encountered and its awesome that he has a local job.

Author

GLewis

Date

2007-09-14T23:18:35-06:00

ID

95616

Comment

I wonder how much Dr. Earl Watkins is going to pony up ?

Author

Slider

Date

2007-09-15T16:20:47-06:00

ID

95617

Comment

A settlement has been made with the people's money; but, the people don't know how much? I understand that legal fees for Watkins alone was over 400K. I really wish that this one could have been settled through a court of law with a jury because if Watkins is spoiled goods, it is only a mater of time before the dam breaks again. Just thinking.

Author

justjess

Date

2007-09-17T10:03:13-06:00

ID

95618

Comment

Well, it certainly leaves some vital questions unanswered, doesn't it?

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2007-09-17T10:08:31-06:00

ID

95619

Comment

Watkins resigning effective June 2009

Author

LatashaWillis

Date

2008-04-07T17:02:31-06:00