University Place Schools Settle Race Discrimination Suit For $450K: Report

UNIVERSITY PLACE, WA - The University Place school district has settled a racial discrimination lawsuit brought by three black students, according to the Tacoma News-Tribune.

Jamal Welch, Elijah West, Tyrell Wells, and their families, will split the $450,000 settlement. The News-Tribune reported that Welch, West, and Wells are former Curtis High School students who alleged that they were racially harassed, including being called racist names, over a long period. The former students' parents claim their complaints about their treatment were ignored by officials.

In one incident, Wells continued to find a racial slur written on his desk; he would erase it only for it to reappear later, according to the report. In another incident, after a former University Place teacher wrote her address on a blackboard, students joked that they might egg her house; the teacher allegedly responded, "no one would do that, except for (Wells), because he's black."

Read more about the lawsuit from the Tacoma News-Tribune>>>

School district officials could not comment on the settlement due to the terms of the legal agreement. However, the News-Tribune reported that the school district denied many of the allegations and did not admit liability. The newspaper got a copy of the settlement only after filing a public records request.

The lawsuit was originally filed in June 2015.

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