WAUSAU – The family of an openly gay, Asian American student, who was the victim of his teacher's discriminatory conduct, said they feel vindicated after an independent investigation substantiated their complaints last week.
Now, they are calling for Wausau School District to acknowledge the problems highlighted in the investigation and make changes.
"We hope that, with this situation, it doesn't have to repeat in the future, that these students will be believed, that they will be heard, that the district will follow policy and give them access to resources," said Jennifer Yang, the student's aunt. "Nobody should have to fight this hard to be heard."
The investigation, conducted by Alana Leffler, an attorney with Title IX expertise atBuelow Vetter law firm, concluded on Aug. 14 that former Wausau East band director Robert Perkins violated school district policies in a manner that “substantially disrupted (the student’s) educational performance and opportunity" and "created an environment that was intimidating, hostile, or offensive.”
Among the many substantiated claims in the report were Perkins teaching his students the German word for bassoon, which sounds identical to a hom*ophobic slur, and shouting a word that sounds like an anti-Asian slur to the beat of a cymbal. Leffler found that Perkins later joked to another teacher that the same sound could be heard at the student's family dinners.
Leffler's report also revealed that the school dropped the ball on its own Title IX policies when it didn't put any safeguards in place to allow the student a safe return to school and finish his senior year. Title IX is a half-century old federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination in schools on the basis of sex, sexual orientation or gender identity.
As a consequence of the district's mishandling of the investigation, the road to vindication was thorny and difficult, said Twan Vongphakdy, the student's father. Their son endured months of victim-blaming and disruptions to his learning that prevented him from returning to school, attending scholarship award ceremonies, and enjoying the final months of senior year. It also greatly impacted his mental health, Twan Vongphakdy said.
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What led to the independent investigation?
The school district initially came under fire in April after the student and his parents filed a complaint alleging Perkins used racial slurs.
On April 26, Wausau School District Superintendent Keith Hilts concluded simultaneously that Perkins "did use language that could be insensitive to students of different protected classes including race and sex," but determined that the language "did not rise to the level of discrimination and harassment" in a letter addressed to the student's parents and Perkins.
That finding was met with outrage and incredulity from the Vongphakdys, Wausau's Asian American community, teachers and staff and even Wausau Mayor Katie Rosenberg.
The Wausau Board of Education retained Leffler on May 9, less than 24 hours after it heard a litany of complaints about the district's decision at a public meeting. That meeting also led to other victims of Perkins coming forward.
Shortly after the completion of Leffler's independent investigation, the district announced that Wausau East principal Deb Foster — whom the report called out several times — would no longer serve in her role for the 2023-24 school year.
Perkins resigned from Wausau East in early June.
Superintendent did not follow best practices, hoped controversy would pass by
In her report, Leffler said Hilts' response to the Vongphakdys and Perkins did not meet the standards of the district's Title IX policies.
"Neither the report nor the written decision explains which allegations were substantiated or why the substantiated conduct did not constitute harassment or discrimination," Leffler's report concluded. "Accordingly, it's the opinion of this investigator that the documents did not comply with best practice."
Elisabeth Lambert of theWisconsin Education Law and Policy Hub, who has been representing the Vongphakdy family, said the district chose to protect the school over the student.
Lambert referenced an email that Hilts seemingly accidentally sent to a member of the community and that former school board member Mary Thao obtained under Wisconsin's open records law and read aloud during a public meeting in May.
The email from Hilts read: "The problem with sharing information with the board is that, if our plan does not go well, and we need further discipline, it could still come to the board." It continues, "As to communications, we have been advised to be quiet. The less we say, the quicker this passes by."
"It's pretty revealing. Often, school districts take an approach that's about finding a way to shield themselves, as opposed to finding out the truth and and addressing the truths," Lambert said.
Human resources director was not trained in Title IX policies
Leffler's report also pointed out other school district failures.
For example, Wausau School District's director of human resources Tabatha Gundrum conducted the investigation into the complaint, but Gundrum does not qualify as a Title IX coordinator.
Wausau School District has one designated Title IX coordinator, but they were on leave to take care of a family member during the investigation in April, said Lambert.
"The district wound up assigning other people responsibility for responding to the complaints who weren't trained in Title IX procedures," Lambert said.
Under Title IX, both parties have the right to review the evidence, submit questions for witnesses and respond to the investigation conclusions. Twan and Manee Vongphakdy, along with their son, did not have a chance to do these things
Lambert had also made the argument in a May 2 appeal to the Wausau Board of Education that Gundrum, as a member of the administration, had a conflict of interest, and that the district'sown policy manualprovided for a final decision-maker separate from the investigator.
Principal did not communicate safety measures with family
In the days, weeks and months following the initial response from the district, Wausau East principal Foster did not communicate a safety plan to the Vongphakdys for their son, a requirement of the district's Title IX policies, Leffler found.
The report found, in Foster, a "lack of urgency in following up with the family." Further, the report noted that Foster claimed she led the charge on developing a safety plan, but those plans were not communicated to the Vongphakdys. As a result, the Vongphakdys' son missed out on his own scholarship ceremony night and couldn't celebrate earning four scholarships to University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with his community.
"Ms. Foster reported there was a plan in place for scholarship night, but there's no evidence the plan was communicated to the family," Leffler's report said.
Family demands apology and changes
The Vongphakdy family is calling on the district to right its wrongs to ensure what they went through doesn't happen again to a future family. They are asking for the following:
- A public apology;
- Disciplinary action and training for the administrators who mishandled their complaint;
- Title IX training for administrators, staff and students;
- A review and revision of the district's discrimination complaint procedures; and
- The appointment of a district-level equity officer.
Yang, who has stood by her nephew and sister Manee since the beginning, said the district needs to take seriously future claims of harassment and discrimination. She is calling for the district to require training for administrators, staff and students on how to recognize and respond to discriminatory harassment.
"The school district says See Something, Say Something, and yet, when a student says something, their voice has been silenced by administration. That can't happen, because if the students' voices are silenced, the cycle repeats," Yang said.
James Bouché, president of the Wausau School Board, said that the administration has begun implementing procedures that will "expedite more timely responses for Title IX complaints and appeals." Due to pending personnel matters, however, Bouché was unable to provide more details.
Lambert said it is a testament to the Vongphakdys' tenacity that they were able to receive justice for their case.
"Even before there were attorneys involved, (the Vongphakdys) were reading policy and really insisting that that process be followed closely," Lambert said. "That's the beautiful thing about this outcome. They fought for a fair process. And to its credit, the district then went through a fair and appropriate process. As a result, the truth surfaced."
Twan Vongphakdy said that, while they kept their chin up during each new step in the process, there were times they almost gave up.
"It was hard for us to trust the process," Twan Vonghpakdy said. "We were already traumatized and hurt with the first investigation and the decision they handed down. It was hard to let that go."
Twan Vongphakdy witnessed his son's months of pain alongside his own hurt, but he knew the truth was worth fighting for.
"Believe in yourself, believe in your truth. And find somebody who will listen to you and find resources," Twan Vongphakdy said. "Don't give up on your truth and what is happening to you."
Natalie Eilbert covers mental health issues for USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. Shewelcomes story tips and feedback. You can reach her atneilbert@gannett.comor view her Twitter profile at@natalie_eilbert. If you or someone you know is dealing with suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or text "Hopeline" to the National Crisis Text Line at 741-741.
Editor's note, Feb. 6, 2024: This story was republished to make it free for all readers.
