U-46 asks court to reverse class-action status

Elgin Area School District U-46 Friday asked a federal court of appeals to reverse the class-action ruling in the racial bias lawsuit pending against it.

Officials said in an evening news release that they believe the appellate court should review Judge Robert W. Gettleman's Aug. 8 decision to provide two groups of U-46 students future remedies if they prevail in the lawsuit.

Currently, if the court rules in favor of the five Elgin families accusing the district of racial bias, all current Hispanic and black U-46 students who have been subject to racial discrimination in school programs and services would receive remedies. Areas where racial discrimination may have occurred, Gettleman said, include instability of student assignments, assignment to non-neighborhood schools, assignment to overcrowded schools and transportation burdens.

All current Hispanic U-46 students receiving bilingual services, those who have received those services in the past four years or those who should have but did not receive bilingual services would also receive remedies.

The district said it believes Gettleman's decision "is contrary to binding law." Moreover, "the case involves a taxpayer-supported, governmental body that is being forced to defend itself against unfounded allegations of both racial discrimination and 'deficient' education of English language learners."

The release called the claims in the case "utterly spurious."

The lawsuit, first filed in February 2005, already has cost the district more than $4.6 million in legal fees.

The suit claims U-46 violated the rights of black and Latino students by placing them in older, more crowded schools; forcing them to ride buses longer and more often than their white peers; and providing them with inferior educational opportunities. The Elgin families want the court to mandate and oversee a plan that ends discriminatory policies and practices.

Michael Hernandez, a lawyer for Franczek Sullivan, one of the two firms representing the district, said he believes U-46's petition "clearly satisfies the requirements of the court of appeals."

The district's petition argues that Gettleman made a number of "significant legal errors" in analyzing the motion for class-action status, including "assuming plaintiffs' allegations to be true without requiring them to present evidence to support their arguments."

Carol Ashley, a lawyer with Futterman Howard, the Chicago-based firm representing the Elgin families, said though plaintiffs were disappointed by the petition, they will continue to bring their case forward.

After plaintiffs have an opportunity to respond or accept the petition, the appellate court will determine whether or not to accept the request to review the decision, Hernandez said.

A decision by the court could take up to 60 days, he said.

School board President Ken Kaczynski said the district is "using the legal process that's available to us, and I think that's our responsibility. To make sure that we use everything that's available."