Former Charles City superintendant dismisses claims against School Board members

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A former superintendent of the Charles City School District has dismissed a lawsuit against the schools district’s Board of Education members.

The attorney for Anne Lundquist filed a document Thursday afternoon in Floyd County District Court, saying Lundquist “dismisses with prejudice” the lawsuit. Being dismissed with prejudice means she cannot file the suit again.

Lundquist told the Press, “We have reached a compromise settlement.”

She said she will be paid $7,500 and will pay her own attorney fees, but could make no other comments on the settlement.

Lundquist had filed her lawsuit in June, about seven weeks after having been placed on administrative leave on April 19 by district Board of Education President Dr. David Schrodt.

In her suit Lundquist alleged that the five members of the board had committed acts that resulted in intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation, invasion of privacy, breach of her contract and were against public policy.

The Board of Education members – Schrodt, Dara Jaeger, Kathryn Fox, Bruce Koebrick and Josh Mack – responded to the claim on Aug. 2, asking the court to dismiss all the charges “for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted” and other reasons regarding particular claims.

Lundquist was placed on administrative leave in April after private evaluation comments she had made about some district personnel were left on a district copying machine and given to Schrodt.

The next day Schrodt told Lundquist she was being placed on administrative leave with pay while the matter was being investigated, then later that day he sent a message to district employees that “the investigation involved an issue as to whether the behavior of Anne Lundquist raised questions regarding her fitness for duty and ability to serve as an employee of the district.”

Her suit argued that the evaluation comments were made within her duties as superintendent and were private until she chose to disclose them.

Her suit asked the court to award actual and punitive damages and sought a jury trial.

In the response to Lundquist’s lawsuit, the five directors state that Lundquist’s suit should be dismissed based on her failure to allege her claims “with sufficient plausibility and particularity.”

Lundquist remained on administrative leave through the end of the school year, June 30, when her contract expired. Lundquist had told the board in February that she planned to retire at the end of this school year.

Under Iowa court rules, the plaintiff can dismiss a civil action against the defendants without a judge approving the dismissal, as long as it takes place more than 10 days before a trial date has been set. No trial date had been set in this matter.