Angelina College has paid $315,000 to a former longtime employee to settle a landmark race discrimination and retaliation case.
During the spring of 2022, Dr. Monica Peters-Clark, who is black and had previously worked at the college for several years, applied for the position of executive director of institutional effectiveness. She originated the office during her time at the college and was “eminently qualified” for the position, according to a press release from the Hightower, Franklin, & James law firm in Nacogdoches, which represented the plaintiff.
Rather than hiring Peters-Clark, Dr. Michael Simon, the AC president, hired an under-qualified white candidate, the release stated.
In June 2023, Peters-Clark filed a lawsuit in the federal court in Lufkin against the college, alleging that AC and Simon engaged in unlawful race discrimination and retaliation in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
Federal judges rejected multiple attempts by the college to have the case dismissed. In October 2024, the magistrate judge rejected AC’s last attempt to have the case dismissed, saying it was “seemingly uncontested that the college hired an unqualified (or, at best, barely qualified) individual over Dr. Peters-Clark, a much more qualified applicant possessing a great deal more direct experience with the essential functions and responsibilities of an executive director.”
The judge further found that Simon’s testimony was largely inconsistent with the facts and cast doubt on the college’s purported reasons for not hiring Peters-Clark, according to the release.
With the trial set in November 2024, the college ultimately decided to settle the case rather than face an East Texas jury.
“Throughout this litigation, President Simon made numerous false and negative comments about Dr. Peters-Clark in court and in the community in a desperate attempt to cast Dr. Peters-Clark and other former black employees in a negative light,” HFJ partner Tanner Franklin said in a statement issued after the settlement. “This historic settlement fully vindicates Dr. Peters-Clark. The fact is that Angelina College has had to spend $315,000 to fix a problem almost entirely created by President Simon. While we are pleased with this settlement and the message it sends, Dr. Peters-Clark and I would encourage the Angelina College Board of Trustees to continue to review this matter and hold President Simon accountable for his actions and inappropriate hiring practices. Despite President Simon’s conduct and this litigation, Dr. Peters-Clark has been and will continue to be a supporter of the college and the positive impact that it has on Lufkin and East Texas.”
