Osseo schools agrees to settlement for asst. principal who sexually harassed 9-year-old girl

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Osseo Area Schools (FOX 9)

MAPLE GROVE, Minn. (FOX 9) - Osseo Area Schools has agreed to pay a $61,500 settlement after a former assistant principal was accused of sexually harassing a 9-year-old student, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights announced on Tuesday.

Osseo agrees to settlement

What we know:

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights announced the settlement with the school district on Tuesday. The department says it found the district violated Minnesota's civil rights law by failing to stop the harassment.

As part of the settlement, the district agreed to send a written apology to the student, pay $61,500, and hold a listening session with the student and her parents. The district will also make changes to prevent future harassment and discrimination.

What's next:

Under the agreement, Osseo is required to enforce anti-harassment and anti-discrimination policies and train its staff, leadership, and teachers on those policies.

The Department of Human Rights will monitor Osseo's compliance with the settlement over the next five years.

State says Osseo failed to take action

Dig deeper:

The state says the harassment occurred during the 2021-22 school year. The assistant principal, who was not named by the Department of Human Rights, was accused of telling a fourth-grade girl he couldn't stop looking at her. The state says the assistant principal went out of his way to interact with the girl and inappropriately touched her.

The Department of Human Rights says the district failed to take action sooner to stop the harassment after receiving complaints from the girl's parents and other students. The state says the parents ultimately withdrew the girl from the district.

What they're saying:

In a statement, a spokesperson for Osseo Area Schools said: "As always, our foremost priority is a safe and welcoming learning environment for all our students. Since this case in 2021-22, staff trainings and student education have substantially increased. Additionally, our schools have encouraged students, parents/caregivers and staff to reach out with any concerns."

The spokesperson also pointed out that no criminal charges were filed in the case and the inappropriate touching involved the assistant principal resting his head on the girl's shoulder.

The district says the assistant principal left the district in 2022.

Big picture view:

Earlier this year, the district faced scrutiny from parents after a former Basswood Elementary teacher was charged with touching four of his students. The acts allegedly occurred between September 2022 and June 2023 – a year after state officials say the assistant principal's harassment occurred.

In the teacher's case, a parent accused the district of not doing enough to protect the children after it was learned that the teacher had been warned previously about touching his students.