ROCORI School District Sued Over Racial Harassment of Students

(KNSI) – A Cold Spring family is suing the ROCORI School District in federal court for allegedly failing to act and stop racially motivated harassment and discrimination.

Andrea Robinson filed the lawsuit on behalf of her biracial children on January 21st. The family alleges the district didn’t do enough to stop behavior that created a “racially hostile environment” in violation of Title VI and Title IX of the 1964 Civil Rights Act by failing to address repeated reports of harassment and bullying.

Paul Kinne is the Robinsons’ lawyer and says the family filed the lawsuit as a last resort.

“Mrs. Robinson had tried to help her family by directly going to the school, and that simply wasn’t getting anywhere. She then decided to go to an administrative agency and file a complaint. When she received the ROCORI school district’s answer, she came to the determination that the only way she was going to get justice for her family was to go into federal court.”

Kinne described the abuse he says the children had to endure in school.

“racial slurs were directed at her children. They suffered physical abuse from other students. They were punished for making their complaints. They received threats in school and over social media.”

As a result of the harassment, Kinne says the family’s two children no longer go to school in the ROCORI School District. He says it’s not as if the school didn’t try to do anything but claims the school’s actions made no meaningful impact on the way the Robinson children were treated. He says the school district should have done more.

Kinne talked about what his client hopes happens by filing the lawsuit.

“by filing a lawsuit she hopes to accomplish really two things. She wants to make changes for children that come after her children. So other people don’t have to go through what her kids had to experience. And she’s also seeking compensation, which the law allows, for her children for the harm that they suffered as a result of what happened at ROCORI. The loss in education they suffered because of the way they were treated at ROCORI and they’re also be seeking compensation for the emotional distress that her children went through because of the abuse that the ROCORI school was deliberately indifferent to.”

Kinne didn’t say how much money the family was seeking. The lawsuit claims teachers and administrators were told about issues of racial bullying on school grounds going as far back as the 2015-2016 school year.

Last year, Robinson began a community-wide conversation about race in the school district after she posted a video on social media, voicing her frustrations about the ongoing harassment of her children after one of the alleged harassers was given an award from the district exemplifying model student behavior.

Robinson’s family was also the victim of an alleged racially motivated attack by a man who allegedly used an SUV to intentionally crash into their home, causing extensive damage. He has been charged with several counts in connection to the incident.

District officials say they haven’t been served with a complaint at this time and are not in a position to respond to any allegations that may or may not be included in the complaint.

___