Former school official alleges racial discrimination
The former assistant superintendent for the School City of Hammond filed a federal race discrimination complaint Thursday with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Indianapolis.
Dawn Greene resigned from her job in May after she said Superintendent Scott Miller accused her of receiving unauthorized stipends of $11,055 during the 2019-20 school and $31,128 in 202021.
Shortly after the Hammond School Board accepted Greene’s resignation, the district sent out a May 28 release saying Greene’s stipends weren’t presented to the board for approval.
School officials said the stipends were entered into the system under Greene’s authority “in a manner not consistent with internal control procedures.”
The district requested a special audit of its funds by the State Board of Accounts.
Results of the audit have not been released yet.
Greene’s attorney, Patrick McEuen, of Portage, said two other white school administrators received stipends, as well, but were not disciplined. “… and yet Dr. Greene was subjected to baseless charges implying ‘official misconduct’,” McEuen said in a release.
A complaint does not constitute a finding of discrimination. The EEOC has authority to investigate whether there is reasonable cause to believe discrimination occurred, according to its website.
In a statement, Hammond Superintendent Scott Miller said, the SBOA audit won’t take place until the fall.
“The SBOA has informed us they will not investigate the matter until their regularly scheduled audit this fall,” he said. “We will release the findings after SBOA completes the investigation and release the report. Once SCH has had an opportunity to review the results of the independent SBOA audit, we will determine if further actions are required.”
Greene, of Portage, oversaw human resources and district operations. She said in a May interview she took on extra duties as the COVID19 pandemic arrived and the school district lost two other assistant superintendents.
“I worked before and after work, weekends, and even on vacation,” Greene said. “I did ask for a stipend.”
She said her assistant processed the stipend that was supposed to add five days of pay per month to her salary. She said the additional amount was received with her regular salary. She believed Miller approved the stipends.
“Miller authorized the stipend … I’ve never written a stipend myself my entire time in Hammond,” Greene said.
On July 23, Greene presented the district with a tort claim, or notice to sue for defamation, if a public apology isn’t issued.