Philadelphia public-school officials recently allocated $850,000 from the district’s operating budget to settle the lawsuit filed by Amanda Wible, a former student who claimed she suffered severe bullying because she’s gender nonconforming.
On Jan. 27, in response to a Right-to-Know Law request, the district emailed to PGN minutes from the school board’s Nov. 21 meeting showing that the board agreed to pay $850,000 to settle the case.
The school-board minutes don’t specify how much of the money goes to Wible and how much goes to her attorneys.
David J. Berney, an attorney for Wible, issued this statement: “We are pleased that we were able to vindicate Amanda’s legal rights and to bring this matter to a successful conclusion. Amanda took a brave stand against bullying, held the School District of Philadelphia accountable for its role in it, and as a result, she can now finally move on with her life. We owe Amanda a debt of gratitude for her courage in shining a light on this issue.”
Wible attended public schools in the city between September 2003-13 and said she suffered unlawful bullying by several classmates beginning in 2008, according to court records.
In April 2015, Wible filed suit against the district, citing numerous slurs and acts of violence directed at her due to her gender-nonconformity. Those slurs included “lesbo,” “f—ot,” “it,” “b—h,” “d–e,” “she-he,” “homo,” “freak,” “tr—y,” “she-male,” and “weirdo.”
“From elementary school to ninth grade, Amanda had to endure violent, severe, and pervasive sexual harassment to access an education,” Wible’s attorneys wrote in a court filing. “Because she did not conform to stereotypes about how girls should act and dress, peers terrorized her”
Wible’s suit alleged that bullies punched her, pulled her hair, broke her
glasses, vandalized her school supplies, stabbed her with a pencil, ripped up her classwork, spat on her, threw food at her, placed a trash can on her head, pushed her into a locker and ripped off some of her clothing.
Wible and her mother repeatedly complained about the abuse, but school authorities failed to implement corrective measures, according to Wible’s lawsuit. In 10th grade, Wible transferred out of the district to a cyber-charter school.
In court papers, defense attorneys denied that school officials were aware of Wible being subjected to systemic harassment and bullying. They also argued that a school district can’t be held liable for student-on-student bullying under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.
But in May 2018, Philadelphia Common Pleas Judge Gene D. Cohen ruled that Wible was subjected to unlawful harassment and bullying. He wrote that the district was responsible for sex discrimination in a public accommodation, which is prohibited by the PHRA. It’s believed to be the first time a court held a school district liable for student-on-student bullying under the act.
In his 11-page ruling, Cohen wrote: “The school district acted with deliberate indifference to the discrimination and bullying suffered by [Wible].” The judge added that Wible suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, for which she receives psychiatric care.
Philadelphia Public-School Spokesperson Imahni Moise said, “The [school] district takes reports of bullying and/or harassment very seriously, and does not tolerate bullying or harassment of any type. Students identified as aggravators in such situations will be disciplined according to district policy.”
Cohen awarded Wible $500,000 in damages and $578,000 to her attorneys for their legal fees and costs, to be paid by the school district. The district filed an appeal in Commonwealth Court, claiming the district is immune from lawsuits such as Wible’s. Oral arguments were scheduled for November 13, but they were canceled. The case was officially discontinued on Dec. 4, according to Commonwealth Court records.