Munger, Tolles & Olson Files Lawsuit Against West Contra Costa Unified School District for Failing to Address Staffing and Facility Issues
Munger, Tolles & Olson, alongside civil rights law firm Public Advocates, has filed a lawsuit on behalf of five educators, staff and parents against the West Contra Costa Unified School District (“WCCUSD”) for failing to address facility issues and teacher vacancies in schools across the district, depriving students of their right to the basics of a quality education.
This is the first lawsuit to enforce a statutory duty that arose out of a 2004 landmark settlement in Williams v. California. After that settlement—which Public Advocates won with co-counsel in 2004—the California Legislature established a process to ensure that all public school students have equal access to textbooks, safe and clean school facilities and qualified teachers. The Williams legislation authorizes community members to file an administrative complaint identifying deficiencies in those areas, and then requires the responding school district to “remedy” any such complaint if it is valid.
Petitioners submitted nearly 50 such administrative complaints to address facility issues at Stege Elementary School, including mold-infested walls, 90-degree indoor temperatures, broken floor tiles and windows that would not open. The school district refuses to respond substantively to Petitioners’ facilities complaints. Separately, Petitioners submitted complaints to address teacher vacancies at multiple schools: Stege Elementary School, Helms Middle School and Kennedy High School. Rather than undertake legal measures to fill teacher vacancies with qualified year-long teachers, these schools have resorted to day-to-day substitute teachers or the unauthorized use of substitutes for longer periods.
“By failing to uphold its mandate to address poor facilities conditions and teacher vacancies, the district creates a vicious cycle,” said associate Dane Shikman. “Teachers leave or don’t apply for a position, in part, because of poor facilities at the school. And resulting teacher vacancies drive down student performance and attendance, causing stakeholders—including district administrators—to lose confidence and reduce investment in the school and its facilities. This suit is intended to break that cycle, so that WCCUSD students have a fighting chance to succeed in school.”
Teachers are the most important in-school predictor of a student’s success in school, research shows. Having a single qualified teacher in a classroom for the full year increases success for Black and Latinx students.
“Qualified teachers are the cornerstone of achieving education equity,” said associate Kyra Schoonover. “Research shows that teaching vacancies disproportionately impact schools with low-income students and students of color, like Stege, Helms and Kennedy. Through this lawsuit, we are fighting to ensure that every student in WCCUSD receives the education to which they are entitled.”
The petitioners are represented by an MTO team including Rohit Singla, Dane Shikman and Kyra Schoonover, alongside co-counsel from Public Advocates.
Read the press release from Public Advocates.
About MTO’s Pro Bono Practice
Contributing to the community through pro bono work and other forms of volunteerism is a core tenet of the culture at Munger, Tolles & Olson. The firm was one of the charter signatories to the American Bar Association’s pro bono challenge and consistently devotes more than three percent of all attorney time to delivering needed pro bono legal assistance. We are proud to be one of the select group of firms to have received the ABA’s coveted Pro Bono Publico Award.